In recent years, many people have chosen to rent instead of purchase a property. In order to rent their favourite units as soon as possible, prospective tenants may overlook some potential risks in their selection of properties. To strengthen the protection of consumers, I would like to remind prospective tenants of some important points to note in renting properties.

Due to the high number of non-local students coming to Hong Kong to study and the scarcity of hostel places at universities, some non-local students are unable to find accommodation in campuses and need to look for accommodation elsewhere. These young non-local students may not be familiar with the tenancy practice and also the services and duties of estate agents in Hong Kong, which might bring them difficulties in the process of renting a flat.

The EAA attaches great importance to enhancing the professional standard of estate agents and upholding the principle of equal opportunities in their practice. I therefore would like to remind both estate agents and landlords not to commit discriminatory acts when handling property transactions.

The EAA held a public seminar titled “Smart Tips on Mortgage Application” on 25 March 2017 and attracted a large audience of 460. It has been the fourth large-scale public seminar since we organised the first one in 2015. I am glad to know that the response from the public has been getting better and better. The audience has become more interested in our topics and more eager to ask questions.

In my last article I wrote about the importance of appointing a licensed estate agent and the qualities of estate agents (such as whether they have participated in the Continuing Professional Development Scheme) that a consumer should focus on. This time I would like to bring up another issue that many people ask about – the payment of commission to the estate agent.

This is my first article in this column for the website of “Be Smart in Appointing Estate Agents”. I would like to welcome all readers and wish you all the best for the new year. I will write on different topics in this column every month and hope that you all learn some useful tips in appointing estate agents.