EAAB digital accreditation will help eliminate non-legal agents

A NEW initiative launched last month by the Estate Agency Affairs Board, obliging estate agents to register themselves for digital accreditation through PrivySeal, will go a long way toward protecting the public against illegal operators in the property industry, says Annette Evans, general manager of the Institute of Estate Agents of SA’s Western Cape branch.

“All key bodies in the property industry agree that consumers need to deal only with registered estate agents,” says Evans.

PrivySeal is a digital seal with a hyperlinked verification certificate that confirms the real-time registration status of the estate agent in question. This enables members of the public to check that the person they are dealing with is registered and suitably qualified.

“The PrivySeal is only displayed once it is confirmed by the EAAB’s database that the agent concerned has a valid fidelity fund certificate (FFC),” says Evans.

“From this month, it is a requirement for all agents to be registered with PrivySeal, and members of the public are urged to check whether they are dealing with current FFC holders.”

“Estate agents can apply for their personal PrivySeal at www.privyseal.com. However, they should first check that all their information is correctly recorded on the MyEAAB portal as the information entered there will be used for their PrivySeal.”

The EAAB will begin its public awareness campaign in August, says Evans, so agents are urged to get their registrations done as soon as possible.

For further information visit www. eaab. org. za/ article/ launch_ of_ consumer_ protection_initiative.