More than 35 agents, salespersons and office administration staff members participated in the first virtual talanoa zoom session for the year with Real Estate Agents Licensing Board (REALB) yesterday.
Guest speaker, Fijian Competition and Consumer Commission Senior Enforcement Officer Isimeli Vulagi strongly emphasized on their role in the rental market.
In his presentation, Mr Vulagi highlighted the obligations of a tenant and landlord.
“The obligations of a tenant are they should demand for a tenancy agreement, receipt upon rent payment and a copy of a tenancy agreement, “he said.
“The landlord on the other hand must provide tenancy agreement and receipt upon rent received. They should also ensure the property’s condition to be properly documented and signed by both parties.”
He added that they also face challenges when dealing with landlord and tenants.
“A major challenge is where tenants knowingly agreeing to terms of tenancy which may become a problem for them later on,” Mr Vulagi said.
“Another one is the lack of awareness. The issues and complains we are receiving at FCCC is tenants and landlords are unacquainted with duties, obligations and responsibilities. We also have the issue of misleading information where complainants providing misleading information to FCCC officers.”
Condition report, value of housing and rent evasion were other challenges included during his presentation.
Mr Vulagi also clarified issues relating to the rental complaints received from the general public, the total rent cases (formal and informal), the investigated cases, rent freeze and the actions undertaken by FCCC.
REALB Compliance & Monitoring Officer Vinal Singh said this talanoa session was to address recent concerns voiced by the general public and stakeholders, particularly on rent freeze and other related rental issues.
The quarterly talanoa sessions is part of REALB’s continuous industry engagement.
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