Confidence in agents slipping

Consumers in general and people who had been involved in a real estate transaction were surveyed about their impressions of the industry and their dealings with it.

When asked to rate their experience with real estate agents, 56% of those who had been involved in a transaction in the last 12 months said the agent was excellent or very good when it came to being professional. That was down from 66% in 2013.

Fifty-five per cent said their agent was excellent or very good in terms of their knowledge of the market, down from 63% last year, 54% said the way the process was explained was excellent or very good, down from 68%, and 53% rated their agent highly for acting ethically, honestly and openly, down from 65% last year.

When it came to being knowledgeable about legal requirements and providing the necessary information, about half rated agents as very good and excellent, down from 64% and 62%, respectively, last year.

Those who bought a property were much less likely to rate an agent highly than vendors – 55% of those who had bought rated the agent excellent or very good for professionalism, compared to 73% of those who sold.

Of consumers who had not been involved in a transaction in the past year, a third said they were confident the real estate industry was professional. Two in ten were confident it was fair and well monitored.

The REAA said the results highlighted that more work needed to be done to raise the professionalism and transparency of the industry. "We will continue to work with the sector to improve this."

The proportion of those who sold a property and recall receiving the New Zealand Residential Property Agency Agreement guide (70%) has decreased significantly since 2013 (83%), going back to 2012 levels (69%) The majority (61%) found this guide to be at least somewhat useful, down from 78% last year.

The majority (90%) felt at least somewhat empowered and able to participate effectively in their real estate transaction.