valuers registration act nsw

VALUERS REGISTRATION ACT – NSW NOTE: as of 2016 valuers in NSW no longer require registration

In NSW the Real Estate Valuers Registration Board has powers specified under the Valuers Registration Act, 1975. Its main function is to licence and register valuers of real estate to ensure that they perform their duties within the terms of the act and regulations. The licenses can be restricted to a "class" of property and/or a geographic area.

Under the Valuers Act 2003, section 3 definitions the following definitions are applicable:

REGISTERED VALUER means a person registered under this Act as a valuer.

VALUER means a person who values property for a fee or reward that is paid or payable either to the person or to a person (including the State or an instrumentality or agency of the State) who employs the person, whether in the capacity of employee or agent or in any other capacity.

EXCEPTION FOR ARCHITECTS, ENGINEERS AND SURVEYORS

A person who carries out a valuation of property in the course of and incidentally to the performance of services as an architect, engineer, surveyor or quantity surveyor is not a valuer with respect to that valuation if any fee or reward paid or payable in respect of those services is wholly or principally attributable to the performance of services other than the carrying out of that valuation.

PROPERTY means:

(a) land (including any estate or interest in land), or
(b) an exclusive right to the separate occupation of land or a building or part of a building (whether the right derives from the ownership of a share or interest in a body corporate or arising in some other way), or
(c) an access licence under the Water Management Act 2000 , or
(d) any other property that is prescribed by the regulations as property for the purposes of this Act.

Part 2 covers registration, eligibility and conditions:

PART 2 - REGISTRATION

6 NATURAL PERSON PRACTISING OR ADVERTISING AS VALUER
(1) A natural person must not practise or advertise as a valuer unless he or she is a registered valuer.
(2) A registered valuer must not practise as a valuer in contravention of any conditions to which the valuer's registration is subject.
(3) A natural person must not advertise that a person employed by him or her (whether in the capacity of an employee or in any other capacity) is entitled or prepared to value property or practise as a valuer unless a person so employed is a registered valuer.

(4) Anything done by a person who is a student valuer in the course of carrying out duties under the supervision of a registered valuer does not constitute practise as a valuer for the purposes of this section. A student valuer is a person who is undertaking a course of study approved by the Director-General under this Act in connection with a qualification for registration as a valuer.

(5) A person advertises as a valuer by advertising himself or herself or holding himself or herself out as being entitled or prepared to value property or practise as a valuer.
Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units.

8 ELIGIBILITY AND QUALIFICATIONS FOR REGISTRATION

(1) A person is eligible to be registered as a valuer only if the Director-General is satisfied that the person:
(a) is at least 18 years of age, and
(b) is a fit and proper person to be registered, and
(c) has the qualifications approved by the Director-General for registration as a valuer, and
(d) is not a disqualified person.
(2) The Director-General may from time to time approve qualifications for registration as a valuer.
(3) Without limiting the Director-General's power to approve qualifications under this section, the Director-General may approve qualifications by reference to any one or more (or a combination of any one or more) of the following:
(a) the completion of a course of study,
(b) the completion of a period of training in valuing property,
(c) the attainment of a standard of competency in valuing property,
(d) registration under the Valuers Registration Act 1975 (before the repeal of that Act) or under a corresponding law.

9 DISQUALIFICATION FROM REGISTRATION

(1) A person is disqualified from registration as a valuer if the person:
(a) has a conviction in New South Wales or elsewhere for an offence involving dishonesty that was recorded in the last 10 years, unless the Director-General has determined under subsection (2) that the offence should be ignored, or
(b) is an undischarged bankrupt or is a director or person concerned in the management of a corporation that is the subject of a winding-up order or for which a controller or administrator has been appointed, unless (in the case of an undischarged bankrupt) the Director-General has certified that he or she is satisfied that the person took all reasonable steps to avoid the bankruptcy, or
(c) at any time in the 3 years preceding the application for registration, was an undischarged bankrupt, applied to take the benefit of any law for the relief of bankrupt or insolvent debtors, compounded with his or her creditors or made an assignment of his or her remuneration for their benefit, unless the Director- General has certified that he or she is satisfied that the person took all reasonable steps to avoid the bankruptcy, or
(d) at any time in the 3 years preceding the application for registration, was concerned in the management of a corporation when the corporation was the subject of a winding-up order or when a controller or administrator was appointed, unless the Director-General is satisfied that the person took all reasonable steps to avoid the liquidation or administration, or
(e) is a mentally incapacitated person, or
(f) is disqualified from being licensed or registered or otherwise authorised under a corresponding law or whose licence, registration or other authority under a corresponding law is suspended, or
(g) is the holder of a licence, permit or other authority that is suspended under the Fair Trading Act 1987 , or
(h) subject to the regulations, is in partnership as a valuer with a person who is a disqualified person, or
(i) is for the time being declared to be a disqualified person under Part 3 (Complaints and disciplinary action), or
(j) has failed to pay any monetary penalty payable by the person under Part 3 (Complaints and disciplinary action) or has failed to comply with a direction given by the Director-General under that Part, and the failure continues, or
(k) is in breach of any provision of this Act or the regulations that is prescribed by the regulations as a disqualifying breach.
(2) The Director-General may determine that an offence committed by a person should be ignored for the purposes of this section because of the time that has passed since the offence was committed or because of the triviality of the acts or omissions giving rise to the offence.

11 CONDITIONS OF REGISTRATION

Registration as a valuer may be granted subject to conditions, including (but not limited to) conditions of the following kind:
(a) a condition prohibiting the valuation of specified kinds of property or prohibiting the valuation of property other than specified kinds of property,
(b) a condition prohibiting the valuer from practising as a valuer otherwise than as an employee or under the supervision of a registered valuer whose registration is not subject to such a condition,
(c) a condition requiring the valuer to undertake or complete a specified course of studies within a specified period of time,
(d) a condition requiring the valuer to undertake by way of professional development specified further education or training during the term of the valuer's registration.