Industry Reform

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GUEST OBSERVER
The retail leasing industry and small businesses throughout NSW have been let down by the government’s failure to introduce a standard mandatory lease for strip shops.
Reforms introduced into state Parliament last night were a major opportunity to make doing business easier for tenants, agents and landlords on the retail strip.
REINSW pushed for a standard mandatory lease for strip shops, a similar concept to the residential tenancy agreement (RTA), which would allow for a lease to be entered into on the spot and would make dispute resolution easier.
If retail leasing had gone this way the retail sector would have enjoyed huge economies and efficiencies. Instead, leaving this out of the reforms is an opportunity lost.
The Retail Leases (Amendment) Bill 2016 was passed through NSW Legislative Assembly last night (21 February 2017) following a lengthy review process with the some 44,500 retail businesses throughout NSW affected by the legislation.
REINSW put forward a submission, which included the key recommendation of a mandatory lease. The submission is available on request. 
John Cunningham is president, REINSW and can be contacted <a href="https://www.reinsw.com.au/imis15_Prod/web" target="_blank">here</a>. 
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Retail lease reforms a lost opportunity: John Cunningham

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The NSW government will legislation to exempt large commercial property managers, such as Scentre Group and Vicinity Centres, from holding real estate licenses. 
After 15 years debate, the NSW government decided that requirement is little more than red tape.
The government will amend the Property, Stock and Business Agents Act in coming months. 
"These changes are long overdue and form part of the NSW government's real estate reform agenda," Minister for Innovation and Better Regulation, Victor Dominello said. 
"Training for training's sake is a drain on productivity. We must be always be vigilant to ensure that mandatory CPD is fit for purpose."
The Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal's 2015 Reforming Licensing in NSW report recommends that large commercial property managers who manage an estimated property value of at least $40 million, or a gross floor area of at least 20,000 square metres, or are managing properties for a related corporate entity should be exempt. 
The Department of Fair Trading rarely receives complaints from large commercial property owners such as Westfield or Stockland about their managers who adhere to legally enforceable commercial contracts, but the cost to managers to obtain licenses is $4 million a year, the Australian Financial Review noted.
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