Tip-offs help authorities track fake estate agents

POLICE have begun to track bogus estate agents from an increasing number of tip-offs, it was revealed, as the president of the Cyprus Turkish Estate Agents’ Union, Hasan Sungur, repeated calls for a long-awaited legal amendment to empower his organisation.

Mr Sungur said numbers of registered estate agents in North Cyprus had risen from 18 in 1987 to over 1,000 at present, half of whom were foreign nationals legally barred from working in the profession. He claimed the state had lost control of a market where “foreign students” had “long been operating as bogus agents” to sell property and cars, and grievances had been voiced by many people.

Municipalities, the Tax Office and banks had now begun to take the issue seriously, he said, adding that the 2007 Estate Agents Law clearly stated that offenders were liable to imprisonment.

Mr Sungur said his union was prepared to take on their share of enforcement work, which would constitute an immense contribution to state revenues as most offenders did not pay taxes.

“Provided the state authorises us . . . we are prepared to do anything necessary and pay for any expenses to this end,” he said, adding that a helpline would be established to report illegal operators. He also suggested that an inspector be commissioned to draw up a report based on information from the Land Registry and emphasised that police action was not sufficient. Police arrested the 32-yearold owner of the unregistered Heaven Island Exclusive Real Estate in early December following the alleged fraudulent letting of apartments belonging to others, currently under investigation.