{"id":106892,"date":"2025-08-30T14:45:18","date_gmt":"2025-08-30T14:45:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/106892\/"},"modified":"2025-08-30T14:45:18","modified_gmt":"2025-08-30T14:45:18","slug":"dishonest-real-estate-agents-have-been-getting-away-with-a-sneaky-act-for-too-long-but-thats-all-about-to-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/106892\/","title":{"rendered":"Dishonest real estate agents have been getting away with a sneaky act for too long\u2026 but that’s all about to change"},"content":{"rendered":"

By NICHOLAS COMINO, NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA<\/a> <\/p>\n

Published: 02:11 EDT, 30 August 2025 | Updated: 02:30 EDT, 30 August 2025 <\/p>\n

A buyer’s agent has praised a groundbreaking tool that exposes real estate agents for underquoting, saying it is about time it was created.<\/p>\n

Australian Property Advocates director Simon Murphy said the platform will bring ‘accountability’ to an industry that has become ‘cooked’.<\/p>\n

The platform, RealEstats, uses artificial intelligence<\/a> to compile and compare property data, ranking agents by how far off their guides are from the actual sales price.<\/p>\n

‘Everyone knows agents are lying about price guides, so I built a free tool to show just how much,’ the creator realestats_sergio wrote on\u00a0Reddit<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The site features a sortable database of agents, showing who most consistently underquotes, or overestimates prices.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It also breaks down data at suburb and council level, and includes affordability filters, offering buyers and sellers new transparency in one of Australia’s most opaque markets.<\/p>\n

Mr Murphy said real estate agents should be ‘called out’ over the dodgy practice.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘This is awesome. It’s called accountability. It needs to happen,’ he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Australian <\/p>\n

Australian Property Advocates director Simon Murphy (pictured) said the platform will finally bring ‘accountability’ to an industry that has become ‘cooked’<\/p>\n

Mr Murphy said now more than ever, potential buyers should do their research, saying that underquoting was rife across Australia.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘Stop looking at the listed price and start getting educated in the market. Start looking at the sold price,’ he said.<\/p>\n

‘Underquoting has become a big issue, it’s a big problem everywhere…. real estate agents have absolutely cooked this industry.’\u00a0<\/p>\n

Under NSW law, agents must provide a reasonable estimate of a property’s likely selling price in the agency agreement.\u00a0<\/p>\n

If advertising with a price range, the upper figure cannot exceed the lower by more than 10 per cent.<\/p>\n

Breaches can attract fines of up to $22,000.<\/p>\n

‘Agents are putting in price ranges like $900k\u2013$990k for a property worth $1.2million. That’s how they attract buyers,’ Mr Murphy said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Daily Mail makes no suggestion these agents have engaged in underquoting, but is simply reporting the disparity between guides and sold prices available from public data.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Underquoting <\/p>\n

Underquoting is when a sold price is 10 per cent higher than the auction price guide (stock image)<\/p>\n

For now, RealEstats only covers Sydney and parts of regional NSW, though it is understood it could be expanded to other states.<\/p>\n

RealEstats notes the data is manually collected from public sources, meaning gaps, delays and errors are possible.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The results are estimates, it says, and should be read as opinion rather than fact.<\/p>\n

Its disclaimer also emphasises not all Sydney agents are included, and that inclusion or omission does not necessarily reflect professional competence.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘This material is provided for general information only and does not constitute financial, legal, or professional advice,’ the site warns.<\/p>\n

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