Valuers claims amendments will liberalise property management
theedgedaily.com 09-05-2006:  By Kevin Tan

The proposed amendments to the Valuers, Appraisers and Estate Agents Act 1981 will liberalise property management instead of limiting it to a small group of registered valuers, the Board of Valuers, Appraisers and Estate Agents Malaysia president Abdullah Thalith Mohd Thani said.

Among others, the proposed amendments would allowed members of other professions relevant to the property industry to qualify as registered valuer, which is currently restricted to those with a degree in property management and related qualifications, he said.

"Currently, it's exclusive to the valuers, now we are expanding it to include others. Is it limiting or liberalising?" Abdullah said at a press conference after the opening ceremony of the 11th World Valuation Congress in Kuala Lumpur on May 9.

He was responding to news reports that property owners, developers and shopping mall operators were seeking support from other civil society groups and politicians to stop the proposed amendments.

The Real Estate and Housing Developers' Association (Rehda), Malaysian Association for Shopping and Highrise Complex Management, Associated Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry Malaysia and several management corporations and resident associations had formed a joint working group on the matter.

The group said property management would become the exclusive domain of registered valuers if the amendments were passed. Currently, property owners appoint their own management agents or establish subsidiaries to manage the property.

Asked when the proposed amendments would be brought to Parliament, Abdullah, who is also the director-general of valuation and property services in the finance ministry, said: "We would like it to be as soon as possible to end the argument."

Meanwhile, Rehda president Datuk Jeffrey Ng Tiong Lip said the government should not restrict property owners' choice in employing their own property managers. "As owners, we reserved the right to choose who we want but it should not be limited to valuers," he added.

Ng explained that registered valuers may not be the most experienced people when it comes to property management and that the amendments would only serve the valuers' vested interests.

He said some valuers were inexperienced in property management would probably sub-contract their work to those with experience and this would increase management fees. "We don't want an Ali Baba situation," he added.