Singapore Has 38,000 Registered Property Agents: Two-Thirds Have No Sale on Record — What Australian Borrowers Can Learn

In late 2024, Singapore’s Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) released a figure that made headlines across the region: Singapore has 38,000 registered property agents, and two-thirds have no sale on record. For a city-state of less than six million people, that works out to one agent for roughly every 160 residents — a density that dwarfs comparable markets like Australia. But the real story isn’t the total headcount; it’s the startling gap between licensed professionals and people who actively transact. In a market where property is the single largest financial commitment most households ever make, that gap matters.

For Australian mortgage borrowers, the Singapore statistic isn’t just a curiosity. It’s a prompt to ask a harder question: when you choose a property agent — or a mortgage broker — to support your home loan journey, are you picking a name from a register, or someone with a genuine track record of getting deals done? This article unpacks what Singapore’s numbers reveal, how Australia compares, and what you should check before entrusting one of the biggest transactions of your life to an agent.

Why two-thirds of Singapore’s agents are sitting on zero transactions

The CEA data shows that out of roughly 38,000 registered agents, only about one-third closed at least one deal in the period measured. Several structural factors drive this pattern.

First, Singapore has a multi-tiered licensing model. Professionals who pass the required exams and join an agency are labelled “salespersons”. Entry is relatively accessible, and many people hold a licence as a side credential, particularly in a culture where property knowledge is seen as a valuable supplement to a primary career. Some agents are full-time employees in banking, law, or project management who maintain the licence for personal networking or occasional referrals without ever intending to make it their main income.

Second, the commission structure is heavily skewed toward top performers. In a competitive residential resale and new-launch environment, the top 10–15% of agents capture a disproportionate share of listings, often through well-established networks, repeat-client systems, and aggressive marketing. The result is a long tail of part-timers and new entrants who spend years paying registration and continuing-education fees without closing a single transaction.

Finally, regulatory changes have made it more difficult to coast. The CEA now requires more granular reporting of transactions and has tightened rules around dual representation and advertising. While this encourages professionalism, it also makes it harder for inactive agents to fabricate a record, which is why the “two-thirds zero” figure is now clearly visible.

For consumers, the key takeaway is straightforward: a licence does not equal activity, experience, or expertise. In Singapore, if you pick an agent at random from a directory, you have roughly a 1-in-3 chance that they have done a deal at all.

What this means for the Australian property landscape

Australia doesn’t publish an identical national statistic, but the structural parallels are striking. State-based fair trading offices show that real estate licences and certificates of registration easily number in the tens of thousands. In New South Wales alone, more than 30,000 people hold a Class 1 or Class 2 real estate licence. Queensland and Victoria add similarly large pools.

However, industry insiders estimate that a significant proportion of these licence holders are not actively listing and selling property full-time. Data from CoreLogic and major franchise networks indicates that a relatively small group of high-volume agents handles a large chunk of total listings — a profile that echoes Singapore’s top-heavy distribution.

For Australian mortgage borrowers, this patterns holds direct consequences. When you are securing a home loan, you often encounter an agent at an open home or a mortgage broker recommended by friends. The agent’s contribution might seem tangential to the lending decision, but in a hot market where “subject to finance” clauses can be squeezed, an experienced agent who understands lender valuation processes, auction contracts, and time-of-the-essence clauses can be the difference between settlement and a collapsed deal. A low-activity agent who only occasionally assists buyers may not have that operational fluency.

More broadly, the comparison underscores the importance of transparency. In Singapore, the CEA data is now publicly accessible. In Australia, state registers allow you to check whether a licence is current and whether there are any disciplinary findings, but they do not typically show sales volumes. That means a consumer cannot easily distinguish between an agent who transacts 40 properties a year and one who has transacted one in the last three years. Asking the right questions matters.

Three questions every Australian homebuyer should ask an agent (or a broker)

Whether you’re looking at a real estate agent to buy a home, or a mortgage broker to help structure your loan, the “two-thirds zero” lesson applies: registration is the floor, not the ceiling. Here are three questions that can surface meaningful experience.

1. “How many transactions have you completed in the last 12 months in this postcode?”

Asking for a specific number — not a vague “I’ve been in the industry for X years” — forces the professional to quantify their recent activity. An agent who has closed eight sales in your target suburb is operating with current price data, active buyer databases, and relationships with local conveyancers and building inspectors. A broker who has settled 30 home loans in the last year will have a sharper understanding of lender credit appetites and turnaround times than one who processes a handful. When someone hesitates or gives a broad range, treat it as a signal.

2. “Can I speak to two clients from the last three months?”

References from years ago are of limited value. Recent testimonials confirm that the professional is not just licenced but active right now. In the mortgage broking world, a strong broker should be willing to connect you with a borrower whose situation was similar to yours — whether that’s a first-home buyer using the Home Guarantee Scheme, an investor refinancing across lenders, or a self-employed applicant with complex income verification. If a broker can’t produce a recent reference, ask why.

3. “What specific risks do you see with the property or loan I’m considering?”

Inexperienced professionals often default to reassurance because they lack the pattern recognition to spot potential problems. An experienced agent will proactively flag things like a building inspection issue common to a particular decade of construction, a planning overlay that could affect a future renovation, or a recent comparable sale that suggests the property may be overpriced. A skilled mortgage broker will identify the specific pain points in your application — perhaps a credit-file quirk, a mismatch between your employment letter and bank statements, or a lender policy nuance that would rule out the cheapest advertised rate for you. The willingness to surface risk instead of hiding it is itself a marker of someone who transacts often enough to know that managing expectations preserves their reputation.

Why the “two-thirds zero” story is also about the mortgage broker channel

While the Singapore statistic focuses on property agents, the underlying dynamic is relevant to Australia’s mortgage broker industry, which now originates more than 70% of all new home loans. The broker channel has grown rapidly, and new entrants arrive every month. The Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia (MFAA) reports that there are more than 20,000 accredited mortgage brokers in the country. Anecdotally, a subset of those accreditations are held by people who write very few loans — sometimes only for family or friends — while operating primarily in another field such as accounting or financial planning.

There’s nothing illegal or unethical about a low-volume professional who stays current with education and compliance. But from a borrower’s perspective, volume often correlates with better lender panel access, sharper pricing negotiations, and more efficient processing. A broker who lodges 10 applications a month has a different relationship with a credit assessor than one who lodges 10 a year. That familiarity can matter when an application hits a borderline serviceability situation and needs a well-argued submission.

Therefore, the same scrutiny you would apply to a property agent when you read headlines like “Singapore has 38,000 registered property agents, two-thirds have no sale on record” should extend to the person handling your loan application.

How Australian regulators are nudging toward greater transparency

Australian state and federal bodies have taken steps toward the kind of transparency that made the Singapore statistic possible in the first place. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) now publishes broker-level data on loan volumes and remuneration in its aggregated industry reports, though not at a publicly searchable individual level. The major aggregators have also begun benchmarking their brokers’ activity internally to identify compliance risks and drive professionalism.

In the real estate space, some states have discussed publishing agent sales volumes, similar to the U.S. model, where Multiple Listing Services make performance data widely visible. Victoria’s recent updates to estate agent regulations included stronger continuing professional development requirements, a move that industry groups hope will reduce the number of licence holders who train up but never practise meaningfully.

For consumers, the strongest lever remains individual due diligence. Until every jurisdiction makes sales volumes public, the onus lies on buyers and borrowers to ask the questions outlined above and verify the answers where possible. Cross-checking an agent’s name against sold listings on major portals can give you a rough idea of their recent activity, and asking a broker for a breakdown of settled loans by lender over the past quarter can quickly separate the active from the merely accredited.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the Singapore statistic mean those agents are breaking the law?

No. The two-thirds of agents with no sale on record are fully licensed and compliant with Singapore’s CEA requirements. They simply haven’t transacted a property in the reporting period. Many hold the licence as a secondary qualification or use it for non-sales activities like research or property management consultancy.

How does Australia’s real estate agent count compare?

Australia has a fragmented licensing system across states, so an exact national count is difficult. However, with more than 30,000 licence holders in New South Wales alone and large pools in Victoria and Queensland, the total number of people with a real estate licence is likely in the six figures. Not all are active, and industry estimates suggest a long tail of low-volume practitioners, similar to Singapore.

Is a low-volume mortgage broker riskier for a borrower?

Not inherently, but a low-volume broker may have less current familiarity with lender policies, slower processing times, and weaker negotiating posture. A high-volume broker is likely to be better positioned to resolve complex applications efficiently. Borrowers should view activity levels as one factor among many, alongside qualifications, references, and expertise with their specific borrower profile.

What should I do if I suspect my agent or broker is not experienced?

Start by asking for transaction counts and recent references, as detailed above. If the answers are vague or you feel uncomfortable, it is perfectly reasonable to seek a second opinion. The best professionals welcome scrutiny because it differentiates them from the inactive majority.

Will Australian regulators ever publish individual agent sales records?

Several industry bodies and consumer groups have advocated for greater transparency, but there are no current legislative plans to make individual agent sales volumes publicly searchable. Some states may move in that direction over the next few years as part of broader professionalisation efforts.

Summary

The Singapore data point — Singapore has 38,000 registered property agents and two-thirds have no sale on record — is a powerful reminder that a licence does not equal performance. For Australian mortgage borrowers and home buyers, the insight is immediately actionable. The professionals who will guide your property purchase and finance journey are registered, but that is only the beginning of the story. By asking targeted questions about recent transactions, checking references, and listening for candid risk discussions, you can sort the truly active professionals from those who hold a credential but little else.

In a market where a single property deal can hinge on a finance clause deadline, a specialist valuation appeal, or a building-and-pest finding, an experienced partner on your side isn’t a luxury — it’s a necessity. Singapore’s statistic may have originated on a small island, but its lesson travels all the way to every Australian open home and loan appointment.