Reminder: Commencement of the Property Practitioners Act

28 February 2022
South African Accounting Academy

The PPA is a consumer-focused piece of legislation that has been designed to protect consumers in the property industry.

The Property Practitioner’s Bill was first issued in 2018, and affects a very wide range of individuals in South Africa.

Following a proclamation notice on 14 January 2022, President Cyril Ramaphosa declared 1 February 2022 as the date that the Property Practitioners Act (PPA) 22 of 2019 (Practitioners Act) came into operation.

Such commencement repealed the Estate Agency Affairs Act 112 of 1976 (Estate Agency Act) which previously governs the regulatory framework dealing with estate agency affairs.

The final Property Practitioners Regulations (the Regulations) which replace the draft regulations published for comment on 6 March 2020, were also published in the notice on 14 January 2022.

Like the Estate Agency Act which governs “agents”, the Practitioners Act also provides for the registration of property practitioners, prescribed training and qualifications, the obligation to obtain a fidelity fund certificate, and the compulsory use of trust accounts. It also provides, amongst other matters, for the protection of consumer interests, a dispute resolution mechanism, a legal framework for the managing and letting of property, and the transformation of the property sector.

The definition of “property practitioner’ under the Practitioners Act is wider than that of an agent under the Estate Agency Act, and includes, inter alia, a person who directly or indirectly sells or leases properties including sales and rental agents, auctioneers, business brokers that deal with the sale and letting of immovable property, managing agents who receive remuneration for managing property on behalf of another, and trusts that do the work of a property practitioner. Being identified as a “property practitioner” necessitates compliance with various provisions of the Practitioners Act.

Click here to download the PPA: https://www.gov.za/sites/default/files/gcis_document/201910/42746gon1295.pdf

Click here to download the Government Gazette containing the notice and the Property Practitioners Regulations:

https://saicawebprstorage.blob.core.windows.net/uploads/resources/Property-Practitioner-Act-effective-1-Feb-2022.pdf

Relevance to Auditors, Independent Reviewers & Accountants:

The Property Practitioner’s Act is yet another piece of legislation that your clients must comply with (if they meet the definition of a property practitioner), and which you must assess compliance with. If they don’t comply with the relevant laws and regulations, you have certain reporting obligations in terms of NOCLAR (NOn-Compliance with Laws And Regulations) – this could include reporting to management, qualifying your audit opinion, reporting a Reportable Irregularity, etc.
As an auditor and independent reviewer, you need a good working knowledge of this new Act.

Relevance to Your clients:

This Act would apply to your clients if they meet the definition of a “property practitioner”.
The definition of “property practitioner’ under the Practitioners Act is wider than that of an agent under the Estate Agency Act, and includes, inter alia, a person who directly or indirectly sells or leases properties including sales and rental agents, auctioneers, business brokers that deal with the sale and letting of immovable property, managing agents who receive remuneration for managing property on behalf of another, and trusts that do the work of a property practitioner. Being identified as a “property practitioner” necessitates compliance with various provisions of the Practitioners Act.

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