How to Become a Real Estate Agent in South Africa

Real Estate Agent Qualification

A real estate qualification is required by anyone who buys or sells property as a profession,

Negotiates to buy or sell property;

Canvasses or undertakes or offer to canvass for a lessee or lessor for rental of property;

Publicly exhibits a for sale or to let of property;

Collects or receives any money payable on account of a lease of immovable property or business
undertaking; or

Renders any other service which the Minister of Human Settlements may specify by means of a notice in
the government gazette.

What Costs are Involved?

As with any professional qualifications, there are fees applicable. The costs are not payable all at once
but rather at the various stages of the process. The total fees for the 2 year period is approx. R25 000.

What are the Basic Requirements?

The intern estate agent needs to complete the 12-month internship of being mentored by a professional
and experienced estate agent. This requirement will ensure that the intern is provided with a personal
record of all practical tasks completed and experience gained at the workplace.
The intern is expected to complete and maintain a logbook in which accomplished activities are
recorded and signed-off by the principal/mentor/coach/supervisor assigned to assist and provide the
intern estate agent with logistical support during the internship period.

There will be no exemptions granted for completing the internship or the logbook.

The intern estate agent must complete their FETC (the Further Education and Training Certificate) in
Real Estate at level NQF 4 through with an accredited provider and receive a certificate of competence
from Services SETA (the Services Sector Education and Training Authority)

This qualification has 150 credits, equating to 1 500 notional hours (study hours needed to complete the
course).

It is possible to combine the FETC NQF 4 qualification and the internship so that the intern estate agent
can work on these two aspects of the qualification simultaneously, as long as they have completed at
least 8 months of their internship.

If the intern holds any degrees or diplomas in certain areas, it is possible to apply for and be exempt
from completing the FETC.

Lastly, an intern must also write and pass the Professional Designate Exam (PDE) after they have been
found competent by Services SETA in their NQF Level 4 portfolio of evidence.

The PDE 4 must be passed within 2 years from the date of the first issue to the intern estate agent of an
intern fidelity fund certificate; it grants the intern estate agent a status upgrade to a full-status non-
principal estate agent.

No exceptions will be granted from writing the PDE exam.

If an agent wants to extend their education further to become a principal and run their own business,
they must be competent in NQF level 5 and PDE level 5.

It will take between 2-3 years for an intern estate agent to complete the whole process and 3-4 years for
a principal. An intern agent may sell property in the meantime, but no legal documentation – mandates
or contracts – may be signed off without the presence of the principal or full-status agent. Professional,
registered designations are as follows - PPRE – Professional Practitioner in Real Estate (PDE 4) and MPRE
– Master Practitioner in Real Estate (PDE 5).

The 5 Step Process to Becoming an Estate Agent in South Africa

Step 1: Apply for a position at a registered estate agency as an intern

All persons seeking to enter the real estate agency profession are required to serve as intern estate
agents, acting under the supervision of a principal estate agent or of a full status estate agent who has
continuously held a valid fidelity fund certificate issued by the EAAB for a period not less than 3 years,
thereby creating a mentor-protégé relationship, regardless of any academic, professional or other
qualifications which they may hold.

Once the potential intern estate agent has decided on an employer of choice, they will still need to apply
for the position and go through the interview process. “We at Engel & Völkers have set a procedure of
interviews which are completed before we select our agents, as we only take on individuals who will live
up to the company values. The first interview after receiving a CV will be a telephonic one, and if you
meet the basic criteria, you will be invited for an official interview. Should a candidate pass the second
phase, they are given an online test to complete, which aids us in ensuring that the candidate will be
successful,” says Craig Hutchison, CEO of Engel & Völkers Southern Africa. This is quite an important
step, as the choice of employer could determine the success or failure of the potential intern estate
agent.

Step 2: Register with the Estate Agency Affairs Board (EAAB)

Once the intern estate agent has successfully been employed, they need to register as an intern agent
with the Estate Agency Affairs Board (EAAB) to receive their “intern” Fidelity Fund Certificate (FFC).

In order to register, a candidate needs to lodge a completed application comprising of:

Application form
Certified copy of a valid I.D book;

Certified copy of a valid passport if not a South African;

A valid work permit if not a South African;

Required payment or proof of payment for registration;

Letter of employment (on an official letterhead) signed by the Principal of the firm.

Step 3: Complete your 12 Month Internship

All new entrants to the estate agency profession are obliged to serve as intern estate agents for a
continuous period of 12 months from the date of the first issue of their FFC. The compulsory internship
period aims to equip the intern estate agent with the relevant practical and theoretical workplace
knowledge required to operate successfully in the sector. Each intern has to undergo training and
practical knowledge of all of the following: Industry, Law, Finance, Marketing, Management,
Administration, and Paralegal.

The intern estate agent is expected to complete and maintain a logbook in which accomplished activities
are recorded and signed-off by the principal/mentor/coach/supervisor assigned to assist and provide
the intern with logistical support during the internship period. Tasks recorded in the logbook include:

Listings completed

Inspections done

Show houses arranged with registers

Mandates negotiated

Sales/lease contracts concluded

Property values established

Agendas for and meetings/training attended

Proof of time management and time/log sheets.

Step 4: Complete NQF 4 Through an Accredited Provider (150 Points / 1500 Hours)

It is expected that after having served as an intern estate agent for a continuous period of 12 months
and having been certificated against the FETC: Real Estate, the newcomer to the sector will have
attained a similar degree of knowledge, skills and expertise as a practitioner who has already been active
in the estate agency profession for quite some time.

What topics are covered in the NQF4?

Estate Agency Affairs Act and Code of Conduct.

Real estate product and services.

Legal environment – acts.

Legal environment – contracts.

Financial process FICA/tax/accounting.

Marketing and selling/leasing – immovable property.

Estate agency management.

Agency administration and systems.

Paralegal environment.

The criteria for NQF4 qualification

The entrant must complete their internship training (NQF4 Qualification) with an accredited provider
and receive a certificate of competence from Services SETA (the Services Sector Education and Training
Authority)

[Services SETA][12] (SSETA) governs, controls and monitors education standards. The real estate
industry falls under [SSETA Trade and Industry.][13] It is legislated that to be a full status real estate
agent, and the candidate must be found competent in the outcomes-based NQF Level 4 Real Estate.

This qualification has 150 credits, equating to 1 500 notional hours (study hours needed to complete the
course). SSETA require 30% of the time spent studying to be in the classroom and the rest open book, on
their own. It is designed so that the intern estate agent can easily complete the qualification at their
own pace within the allocated time.

The ideal scenario is to complete the academic qualification simultaneously with the practical logbook in
the workplace. The time frame for completion is 1 year for the logbook and 2 years for the academic
qualification.
The intern estate agent must maintain a [Portfolio of Evidence][14] (PoE) reflecting the various estate
agency functions and activities that have been undertaken and performed during the course of the
internship period. The PoE & Intern logbook is submitted to the EAAB for assessment and granting of
NQF 4 status:

Intern

estate agents holding relevant (certain subjects and experience) tertiary qualification, upon application
to the EAAB and having paid the required assessment fee, be granted an equivalency exemption against
the NQF Level 4 and/or 5 real estate qualifications.

If the intern estate agent has exemptions for NQF4, they must submit their logbook for assessment
together with the required documentation for exemption.

The Portfolio of Evidence (“PoE”)

The portfolio of evidence will be a separate file, carefully created and maintained by the intern estate
agent and should align with the prescribed logbook activities.

All naturally occurring workplace evidence generated over the 12 month internship period, and
reflecting the workplace learning experience of the intern estate agent, should be inserted.

The intern estate agent will be required to download and print the Portfolio Guides (questions) as they
form the Portfolio of Evidence (PoE).

Exemption:

Please refer to the exemption matrix for details on who could qualify for an exemption. Should the
intern estate agent apply for exemption, their application will also be included in their PoE. The
following documentation should be added:
A letter from the applicant indicating the NQF real estate qualification(s) against which the applicant
seeks an equivalency exemption as well as whether or not the applicant currently holds a valid fidelity
fund certificate issued by the EAAB and, if so, the status of that fidelity fund certificate (whether an
‘intern’, ‘non-principal or ‘principal’ fidelity fund certificate);

A copy of the candidate’s identity document;

The candidate’s full curriculum vitae;

Original(s), or certified copy(ies), of qualifications, either awarded to the candidate or in respect of

which the candidate relies for the assessment of the equivalency exemption application;

Original(s), or certified copy(ies), of the statement(s) of courses passed towards the attainment of the
relevant qualification(s);

Original(s), or certified copy(ies), of any other professional qualifications and/or designations that may
have been awarded to the candidate; and such further information as the applicant wishes to disclose to
the EAAB to properly assess the applicant’s equivalency qualifications.

Step 5: Write and Pass Your PDE4 (Professional Designate Exam)

The Professional Designation Examination (PDE) is an integrated knowledge and case study test for
estate agents. After the internship or after the 8th month, the intern estate agent may apply to take
their PDE4 exam with the EAAB. After successfully submitting the logbook and PoE, the intern will be
allowed to enrol and undertake the Professional Designation Examination for non-principal estate
agents (PDE4). The Education Regulations provide that no person may be registered as a full status
estate agent unless that person has successfully completed the PDE 4 conducted by the EAAB.

The criteria for PDE qualification

Only estate agents that have already qualified or been exempted for the NQF 4 (Non-Principals) and
NQF 5 (Principals) should apply to write the PDE;

Interns need to achieve 65% or higher to pass and be certified.

Upon passing PDE 4, the intern’s status will be automatically upgraded to a full status as well as the
designation, Professional Practitioner in Real Estate (PPRE).

Once the intern estate agent is upgraded to a Full Status Property Sales Advisor, they can operate
independently within the company they are employed by.

Earning CPD points

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is the future in real estate, as in most other professional
industries. This happens via roadshows and seminars presented by the EAAB across South Africa on
relevant topics, including new legislation, changes, updates and amendments. It helps all agents and
principals to stay abreast of ever-changing industry regulations relating to real estate, as well as new
laws and acts. To maintain status and professional designation, every registered agent/principal is
required to accumulate and maintain 60 CPD points in a rolling 3-year cycle (equivalent to 60 hours of
training).

The process of becoming a Professional Practitioner in Real Estate may seem to be a long, tedious and
intimidating one. Engel & Völkers understands that an intern estate agent must be provided with all the
necessary tools, guidance and ongoing training to assist them every step of the way.

Ooba

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