The Namibia Estate Agents Board (NEAB) has worked hard to finish the Namibia Property Practitioners Bill. “The Bill is meant to reshape the environment of the real estate market by building a suitable organizational and administrative structure relevant to contemporary circumstances,” said trade minister Lucia Iipumbu this week during an information exchanging roadshow session for property managers in Windhoek.
To appropriately safeguard consumers of services provided, brokers, among others, are now required to be licensed under the bill’s provisions. In addition, real estate developers and management companies will be called together as property professionals, in contrast to conventional estate agents.
According to Lipumbu, there are restrictions in the emerging lawful structure for impactful industry legislation: “Therefore the judicial and systemic [framework] must be evaluated against the present, and prospective necessities and similarities are formed with territorial and worldwide advancements to maintain the significance and usefulness.” She emphasized that the existing Act is restrictive and eliminates numerous property professionals acting as brokerages, for example, property builders, from the Act’s applicability.
As per Iipumbu, such constraints demanded a modification of the Estate Agents Act and the development of the planned Namibia Property Practitioners Bill. Moreover, Iipumbu stated that the Act criminalizes certain conduct committed by not legally authorized as estate agents. “Operating as an estate agent without a suitable integrity fund license is one of the Act’s prohibited infractions.”
“Each license granted is legitimate until the 31st of December of that year,” she stated. The minister stated that unregistered estate agents represent a commercial and social danger to fully licensed agents. She appealed to the public to assist NEAB by reporting these unscrupulous agents. On the same day, Festus Unengu (NEAB CEO) stated that the data exchanging event is part of the NEAB’s responsibility to update estate agents on the current developments in the sector and hear about all difficulties and problems in the business.
