Human Settlements Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi this week officially launched the Property Practitioners’ Regulatory Authority (PPRA), formerly known as the Estate Agency Affairs Board (EAAB).

The Property Practitioners Act (PPA), which governs the PPRA, came into effect on February 1. The Act provides for, among other things, the regulation of property practitioners; transformation of the property sector and continuation of the Estate Agents Fidelity Fund as the Property Practitioners Fidelity Fund.

“The launch of the PPRA marks the coming into operation of the PPA, which is aimed at strengthening the regulatory aspect of the human settlements sector. Collectively, the entities, together with the national department, provincial departments and municipalities form a human settlements delivery system which is critical for the implementation of our priorities," the Minister said.

The new body’s main functions include, besides others, to regulate the affairs of all property practitioners; to promote transformation in the property sector and to provide for consumer protection. 

Kubayi-Ngubane noted that the PPRA, in contrast to the EAAB, will have more far-reaching power, including the right to conduct inspections without notice and to enforce more serious consequences for noncompliance. 

“The new Act will only be able to achieve the desired outcome if it is driven by a stable and well-functioning regulatory authority. Our priority when we came into the sector was to stabilise the portfolio of both the national department and the entities. We were and still are concerned about the negative media reports about human settlements entities, including the EAAB.

“It is for this reason that we prioritised the appointment of a new board, whose topmost important task was to stabilise the entity and ensure that the entity focuses on its primary mandate. I am delighted to report from industry bodies that they have noticed a positive change. This is a demonstration that the new board has hit the ground running and has made such a tremendous progress in a short space of time,” said the Minister.