# Property Agents In Singapore Face Tougher Rules As CEA Raises Industry Standards — With DIY Home Listings Also Under Study

- **Source:** Stacked Homes
- **Published:** 2026-07-28T07:57:44.000Z
- **Author:** Ryan J. Ong
- **Original:** https://stackedhomes.com/property-agents-in-singapore-face-tougher-rules-as-cea-raises-industry-standards-with-diy-home-listings-also-under-study/
- **Topics:** Government & Policy, Transactions & Deals

## Featured rationale

The currency requirement may reduce inactive agent numbers and shift agency priorities from headcount toward productivity, potentially improving the relevance of advice received by consumers.

## AI summary

From 1 January 2027, Singapore property-agent registrations will last three years, with renewal requiring three qualifying transactions or passage of a refresher examination.

## Original article

The real estate agent industry just had its biggest regulatory update in years, with the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) – the statutory board regulating property agents and agencies – confirming three major changes. A broader package of other changes is currently being studied as well.

The latest changes and proposals under review were announced by Sun Xueling, Senior Minister of State for National Development and Senior Minister of State for Transport, at the Singapore Institute of Estate Agents (SIEA) Conference on July 28.

Underpinning these changes are the government’s three key objectives for the real estate agency industry, namely: raising professional standards, enhancing transparency, and giving consumers greater clarity and choice, according to Sun.

Here’s what we know about the changes so far:

Three Confirmed Upcoming Changes Impacting Property Agents

1. Property agent registrations will now last three years instead of one year

From 1st January 2027, property agency licences and property agent registrations will be valid for three years. At present, the licence requires annual renewal. This move is part of pro-enterprise measures being rolled out by the Ministry of National Development (MND) and CEA, says Sun.

This move is expected to reduce administrative demand for multiple industry players, from estate agencies to individual agents. However, annual registration fees will remain unchanged, but the application fee will be payable once every three years instead of annually.

For existing agents who are set to renew their license at the end of 2026, the first three-year registration cycle will run from 1 January 2027 to 31 December 2029.

This adjustment to a three-year license doesn’t mean standards will be easier for property agents – as we can see in the next headline change.

2. Agents must remain active or pass a refresher examination

The move to a three-year registration cycle will be accompanied by a new Currency Requirement. This means that in order to renew their registrations, agents must either:

Complete at least three qualifying property transactions over three years; or

Pass a refresher examination.

“Consumers should be able to trust that their property agent’s advice reflects the latest rules and regulations,” says Sun. She adds that while the majority of property agents already uphold these standards, CEA has received feedback regarding the currency of market knowledge of property agents who have not transacted a deal over extended periods.

Eugene Lim, President of SIEA and who is also the Key Executive Officer of ERA Singapore, points out that the minimum of three transactions over three years works out to an average of one transaction a year. “For someone who intends to remain actively engaged in the profession, that is a reasonable baseline,” he says.

This adjustment to the license and registration periods is in line with CEA’s consumer research, which found that three in four consumers expect their agent to complete at least one transaction each year, according to CEA’s 2024 Public Perception Survey. Around 40% of registered agents do not close at least one deal per year.

Qualifying transactions will include HDB resale and rental transactions, private residential sales and rentals, commercial and industrial transactions, overseas property sales, and collective sales.

CEA has since clarified that foreign property transactions will be included in the count. It says that this ensures that agents who specialise in this segment are not unfairly disadvantaged, while upholding the intent of the Currency Requirement.

New agents will receive some flexibility. Since these rookies usually need more time to build up their client base, first-year agents will not be required to complete any transactions during their first year. Instead, they will need to complete two qualifying transactions over Years Two and Three, or pass the refresher exam again.

Lim also points out that transaction counts do not always tell the entire story. “Some agents may be taking a career break or practising on a limited basis because of family or other commitments. Some agents simply specialise in market segments with longer transaction cycles and therefore take a longer time to close one transaction,” he says.

As a result, agents who are unable to satisfy the Currency Requirement – and subsequently leave the industry – may need to retake the Real Estate Salesperson (RES) exam if they want to return as a licensed property agent.

CEA has also clarified that property agents who are unable to meet the Currency Requirement due to extenuating circumstances, such as serious medical issues or those handling complex property transactions which may take more time, may apply to CEA through their agencies for a waiver of the Currency Requirement on a case-by-case basis.

Moreover, individuals in management roles within property agencies who do not intend to conduct estate agency work are not required to maintain their property agent registration and will hence not need to meet the Currency Requirement.

3. CEA will collect commission data

Finally, CEA will begin collecting commission data from property agencies. The intention is to eventually publish aggregated and anonymised industry-level information, to give prospective agents a realistic understanding of what a career as a real estate agent looks like.

This data collection is not intended to disclose individual agents’ earnings, stressed Sun. Instead, CEA will study the data before publishing anonymised, industry-level statistics.

CEA says that it will start to collect commission data on a monthly basis from property agencies, starting from 1 January 2027. For now, it says it has not decided when to publish the data it collects. While details are still forthcoming, the move could provide greater visibility into typical earnings among property agents.

Longer-term reforms under study

Beyond the three confirmed changes, Sun shared that there are a series of proposals that the government is still studying and are unconfirmed.

The Possibility of Mandatory Estate Agency Agreements Before Work

CEA is studying whether property agents and their clients should be required to sign an Estate Agency Agreement before work begins. The agreement would also require agents to disclose upfront who will be paying the commission, and how much.

“A signed agreement will give greater clarity to all parties and prevent downstream disputes,” says Sun, adding that the proposal would also protect agents by reducing situations where they complete substantial work only to encounter disputes over commissions later.

This will also address an old bugbear in the real estate industry: agents who introduce a buyer, fail to close the deal, but find a deal was closed with the same buyer later – possibly by another agent or directly with the seller.

This also seems like an appropriate time for such arrangements, as some agents now engage in much more elaborate work than in previous decades. One example would be staging homes for video tours, and paying for online content distribution out of pocket.

A safe listing-verification platform

CEA announced that it will launch a full-scale platform next year to verify the authenticity of online property listings. The initiative builds on the earlier Alliance for Action on Accurate Property Listings. CEA says that the platform will conduct backend verification checks and assign a unique code to property listings before the listings are published.

According to Sun, the platform is intended to address “inaccurate, fake, duplicated, as well as unauthorised property listings”.

We don’t know much else for now, but the government says that implementation details will be announced closer to the launch of this platform.

Survey of Realtors Regarding Their Agencies

CEA plans to conduct a survey of property agents regarding their experiences with their agencies. The Senior Minister of State encouraged agents to provide candid feedback, saying that the survey would help CEA better understand how property agencies operate. It will also identify areas for future improvements.

HDB’s Resale Flat Listing service could become the default

Another proposal under study is whether HDB’s Resale Flat Listing (RFL) service should become the default listing platform for HDB resale flats. Since its launch in May 2024, over 12,500 verified listings have been on the platform, with over 60% transacting successfully.

However, Sun emphasised that the proposal is still not intended to replace commercial property portals. Property agents and sellers will still be able to continue advertising on the usual private platforms.

HDB is gathering feedback from buyers, sellers and agents before deciding on the next phase of changes.

From our perspective, it seems to suggest that HDB wants oversight and control over parts of the resale process for the sale of public housing. It would be coherent with the concern HDB has displayed in recent years, regarding the public perception of million-dollar flats.

Owners may eventually be allowed to advertise directly

CEA is also studying whether homeowners should be allowed to list their own properties directly on commercial property portals, without engaging a property agent.

Perhaps with the implementation of a verified listings system, this might be more possible. As of now, however, most major portals don’t allow this as it increases the number of potentially fake or distorted listings.

The last time owners were able to directly list their properties for sale on public listing platforms, it gave rise to improper and rude cases, the nudity incident being just one among many.

Clients may be able to rate their property agents

Another proposal being explored is a verified review system that could allow clients to rate their property agents.

Although the details of this have yet to be announced, this could be something of a double-edged sword, since the most popular agents are not necessarily the best. As most realtors can tell you, it can be very easy to appear cooperative and helpful if you just confirm a client’s biases. Agents who provide real insights, contrary to their clients’ prejudices, can sometimes suffer unfairly for it.

Currently, the CEA Public Register provides consumers with the licence and registration detailsof any property agency and property agent. Consumers can also view the records of residentialproperty transactions completed by property agents in the past 36 months, Singapore Institute ofEstate Agents (SIEA) Awards received, if any, by the property agent, as well as enforcementactions taken against agencies and agents

Perhaps the most interesting takeaway from the announcements is what they say about the future role of property agents.

Several of the proposals seem geared towards providing consumers with more options to sell their property. Homeowners may eventually be able to advertise their own homes directly, and buyers could have access to better verified listings.

Yet none of these proposals suggests that property agents are becoming less relevant. In fact, they’re almost an acceptance of the opposite: we need agents to remain active and accountable because they’re still necessary for most.

The changes reflect the main cause of information asymmetry: Property has one of the longest feedback loops of any financial decision. When you buy or sell, you don’t know immediately whether you’ve made the right choice. It can take months or years before you discover that you bought the wrong project.

Lim of ERA says that for property agencies, headcount alone does not tell the full story.

“What matters is whether our agents are actively participating in the market, continuing to build their capabilities and contributing to the strength of the organisation. The three-year window (for property agent registrations) gives us sufficient time to identify different levels of engagement across our network and respond accordingly,” he says.

Likewise, he echoes that the profession itself has become increasingly demanding, adding: “Consumers are better informed, competition is intense, and salespersons are expected to provide advice across financing, regulations and market conditions”.

Ultimately – unless you’re a very seasoned investor – you need the insights from people who are handling multiple transactions every year; and that’s the whole reason for the emphasis on currency.

We will likely see some attrition among agents who have retained their registration but are no longer meaningfully active in the industry. But the latest changes will shift the focus away from agency headcount towards the productivity of individual agents.

## Chinese translation

> Translation model: grok_cli

### 新加坡房产经纪面临更严格规定，CEA提高行业标准——自助挂牌亦在研究中

自2027年1月1日起，新加坡房产经纪须每三年至少完成三笔交易，或通过进修考试，方可续期注册。以下是新CEA规定对房产经纪、消费者及行业的影响。

房地产经纪行业迎来多年来最大的监管更新，负责监管房产经纪与中介公司的法定机构——房地产代理理事会（CEA）确认了三项重大变更。更广泛的其他改革方案目前也在研究中。

最新变更及正在审议的提案，由国家发展部高级政务次长兼交通部高级政务次长孙雪玲于7月28日在新加坡房地产代理协会（SIEA）大会上公布。

孙雪玲表示，这些变更的基础是政府对房地产中介行业的三大目标：提升专业标准、加强透明度，以及为消费者提供更清晰的信息与更多选择。

以下是目前已知的变更内容：

三项已确认、即将影响房产经纪的变更

1. 房产经纪注册有效期将由一年改为三年

自2027年1月1日起，中介公司执照与房产经纪注册的有效期将为三年。目前，执照需每年续期。孙雪玲表示，此举是国家发展部（MND）与CEA推出的亲企业措施之一。

此举有望降低从中介公司到个人经纪等多方行业参与者的行政负担。不过，年度注册费将保持不变，但申请费将由每年缴纳改为每三年缴纳一次。

对于将在2026年底续期执照的现有经纪，首个三年注册周期将从2027年1月1日持续至2029年12月31日。

调整为三年执照并不意味着对房产经纪的标准会放宽——下一则重磅变更即可说明。

2. 经纪须保持活跃，或通过进修考试

转向三年注册周期的同时，将配套新的“时效要求”（Currency Requirement）。这意味着，经纪若要续期注册，必须满足以下条件之一：

在三年内至少完成三笔合格房产交易；或

通过进修考试。

孙雪玲表示：“消费者应能信任，其房产经纪的建议反映最新的规则与法规。”她补充说，尽管多数房产经纪已维持这些标准，但CEA收到反馈，指部分长期未完成交易的经纪，其市场知识的时效性存疑。

SIEA会长、同时担任ERA Singapore首席执行官的林尤金指出，三年至少三笔交易相当于平均每年一笔。“对打算继续积极从事这一职业的人而言，这是合理的底线，”他说。

这一执照与注册期限的调整，与CEA的消费者研究结果一致。CEA 2024年公众观感调查显示，四分之三的消费者期望其经纪每年至少完成一笔交易。约40%的注册经纪每年未能至少成交一笔交易。

合格交易将包括组屋转售与租赁交易、私人住宅买卖与租赁、商业与工业交易、海外房产销售，以及集体出售。

CEA已澄清，海外房产交易将计入统计。该机构表示，这可确保专攻该细分领域的经纪不会受到不公平不利影响，同时坚持时效要求的原意。

新入行经纪将获得一定弹性。由于这些新人通常需要更多时间建立客户群，首年经纪在第一年无需完成任何交易。相反，他们须在第二年与第三年完成两笔合格交易，或再次通过进修考试。

林尤金也指出，交易数量并不总能说明全部情况。“有些经纪可能因家庭或其他事务而休职，或以有限方式执业。有些经纪只是专攻交易周期较长的市场细分，因此成交一笔交易需要更长时间，”他说。

因此，无法满足时效要求并随后离开行业的经纪，若想以持牌房产经纪身份重返行业，可能需要重新参加房地产销售人员（RES）考试。

CEA亦澄清，因特殊情况（如严重健康问题，或处理可能耗时更长的复杂房产交易）而无法满足时效要求的房产经纪，可通过所属中介公司向CEA申请豁免时效要求，按个案处理。

此外，在房产中介公司担任管理职务、无意从事房地产代理工作的人士，无需维持房产经纪注册，因而也不必满足时效要求。

3. CEA将收集佣金数据

最后，CEA将开始向房产中介公司收集佣金数据。意图是最终公布经汇总且匿名的行业层面信息，让有意入行的人士对房地产经纪职业有更现实的认识。

孙雪玲强调，此数据收集无意披露个别经纪的收入。相反，CEA将在研究数据后，公布匿名的行业层面统计。

CEA表示，将自2027年1月1日起按月向房产中介公司收集佣金数据。目前，该机构尚未决定何时公布所收集的数据。尽管细节仍待公布，此举或可为房产经纪的典型收入提供更大能见度。

正在研究的较长期改革

除三项已确认变更外，孙雪玲表示，政府仍在研究一系列尚未确认的提案。

工作开始前强制签订房地产代理协议的可能性

CEA正在研究，是否应要求房产经纪与客户在工作开始前签署房地产代理协议。该协议亦将要求经纪事先披露由谁支付佣金，以及金额多少。

孙雪玲表示：“已签署的协议将为各方提供更大清晰度，并防止下游纠纷。”她补充说，该提案也将保护经纪，减少他们完成大量工作后才遇到佣金纠纷的情况。

这也将解决房地产行业的一个老问题：经纪介绍了买家，未能成交，却发现同一买家后来与卖方直接成交，或由另一名经纪完成交易。

在当前时机推进此类安排也显得恰当，因为部分经纪如今的工作远比数十年前更繁复。例如为视频看房布置房屋，以及自费支付线上内容分发费用。

安全的挂牌核验平台

CEA宣布，明年将推出全面平台，以核验网上房产挂牌的真实性。该举措建立在先前“准确房产挂牌行动联盟”的基础上。CEA表示，该平台将进行后端核验检查，并在挂牌发布前为房产挂牌分配唯一代码。

据孙雪玲所述，该平台旨在应对“不准确、虚假、重复以及未经授权的房产挂牌”。

目前我们所知有限，但政府表示，实施细节将在平台推出前公布。

针对经纪对其所属中介公司的调查

CEA计划就房产经纪在所属中介公司的经历开展调查。高级政务次长鼓励经纪提供坦诚反馈，表示该调查将帮助CEA更好了解中介公司的运作方式，并识别未来可改进的领域。

建屋发展局转售组屋挂牌服务或成为默认选项

另一项正在研究的提案是：建屋发展局的转售组屋挂牌（RFL）服务是否应成为组屋转售的默认挂牌平台。自2024年5月推出以来，该平台已有超过12,500个已核验挂牌，其中超过60%成功成交。

不过，孙雪玲强调，该提案并非旨在取代商业房产门户。房产经纪与卖家仍可继续在惯用的私人平台上做广告。

建屋发展局正在收集买家、卖家与经纪的反馈，再决定下一阶段变更。

在我们看来，这似乎表明建屋发展局希望对公共住房转售流程的部分环节拥有监督与掌控。这与近年来建屋发展局对百万组屋公众观感的关切是一致的。

业主最终或可获准直接挂牌

CEA亦在研究，业主是否应被允许在商业房产门户上直接挂牌自己的物业，而无需聘请房产经纪。

或许在已核验挂牌系统落地后，这一点会更可行。但目前，多数主要门户不允许此做法，因其会增加潜在虚假或失实挂牌的数量。

上一次业主能够在公共挂牌平台直接挂售物业时，引发了不当甚至无礼的个案，裸照事件只是其中之一。

客户或可为其房产经纪评分

另一项正在探讨的提案是已核验评价系统，或可允许客户为房产经纪评分。

尽管细节尚未公布，这可能是一把双刃剑，因为最受欢迎的经纪未必是最好的。正如多数经纪会告诉你的，若只是附和客户的偏见，很容易显得合作且乐于助人。而提供真实洞见、与客户成见相左的经纪，有时会因此不公平地受损。

目前，CEA公共登记处为消费者提供任何房产中介公司与房产经纪的执照及注册详情。消费者亦可查看房产经纪过去36个月内完成的住宅房产交易记录、该经纪是否获得新加坡房地产代理协会（SIEA）奖项，以及对中介公司与经纪采取的执法行动。

或许这些公告中最耐人寻味的，是它们对房产经纪未来角色的启示。

多项提案似乎旨在为消费者提供更多出售物业的选择。业主最终或可直接为自己的房屋做广告，买家也可能获得更好的已核验挂牌。

但这些提案都未暗示房产经纪变得不那么重要。事实上，它们几乎是在承认相反的一点：我们需要经纪保持活跃并承担责任，因为对大多数人而言他们仍然必要。

这些变更反映了信息不对称的主要成因：在各类财务决策中，房产的反馈周期最长之一。当你买卖时，无法立刻知道自己是否做对了选择。可能要数月甚至数年，你才会发现自己买错了项目。

ERA的林尤金表示，对房产中介公司而言，仅看人数并不能说明全部情况。

“重要的是我们的经纪是否积极参与市场、持续提升能力，并为组织实力作出贡献。三年窗口期（就房产经纪注册而言）让我们有充足时间识别网络中不同的参与程度，并作出相应应对，”他说。

同样，他呼应说这一职业本身要求日益提高，并补充：“消费者信息更充分，竞争激烈，销售人员被期望在融资、法规与市场状况方面提供建议。”

归根结底——除非你是非常资深的投资者——你需要那些每年处理多笔交易的人提供洞见；这也正是强调“时效”的全部原因。

我们可能会看到一些虽保留注册、但已不再在行业中实质活跃的经纪流失。但最新变更将把重点从中介公司人数，转向个别经纪的生产力。