90 pct of real estate brokers are unlicensed: realty association

The association said most of the unlicensed brokers are amateurs, and include people who decided to change jobs recently to take advantage of the real estate boom.

They are untrained and unregulated, and analysts fear they pose a risk to buyers, sellers and the market as a whole, with some also blaming them for causing market disruptions and price bubbles by spreading rumors about development.

The actual ratio of unlicensed brokers could be even higher since the study was only done at the association’s 300 member companies.

At least 1,000 companies were operating before Covid-19.

Meanwhile, the number of applications for real estate broker licenses in the south has surged by eight times this year, with 2,186 people taking the broker’s examination in the first five months this year compared to 275 last year , according to data from the Ho Chi Minh City Construction College.

The government made licenses compulsory in July 2015, and all licenses issued before that were effective until 2021, said Luong Dinh Thu Van, CEO of real estate training facility Mogin Institute in HCMC's District 1.

"Because of Covid-19 last year many people could not take the examination for a new license."

Brokers who conduct business without a license could be fined VND60 million ($2,600), she said.

The HCC has recommended setting up a portal for verifying broker’s credentials to improve transparency in the real estate market.

It also suggested letting those having beginner certificates and more than a year of experience take the broker’s examination, and scrap the requirement of a high school degree.

Easing eligibility would help independent brokers practice professionally in compliance with laws and regulations, it added.