The Minns Labor Government's crackdown on misleading property agents is continuing to deliver stronger protections for renters.
A NSW property manager who stole more than $180,000 from renters and landlords has been given a 12-month community sentence and ordered to pay $135,399.23 in compensation.
This unlawful behaviour was first uncovered by the NSW Fair Trading's Rental Bond team within the NSW Rental Taskforce, which initially identified suspicious bond activity and referred it on to Fair Trading investigators.
Sarah-Jane Watts, a former property manager at Ewing Real Estate in Gunnedah, pled guilty to two offences under the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) and was sentenced in Gunnedah Local Court after fraudulently obtaining more than $151,800 from agency's rental trust account and approximately $35,400 in rental bonds.
It was found Ms Watts had used Ewing Real Estate's rental trust account to transfer approximately $151,800 over 162 fraudulent transactions into six personal bank accounts she controlled.
Bank statements show the money was used on a variety of lifestyle items including food, visits to the pub, hairdresser, and holidays.
Ms Watts's deception occurred between 2 March 2022 and 15 July 2024, in which she submitted mid‑month and end‑of‑month landlord payments, concealing them among legitimate payments to cover her tracks.
Ms Watts was sentenced to serve a 12-month sentence in the community and will be subject to strict supervision by Community Corrections.
Ms Watts is also required to pay compensation of $35,399.23 to the Rental Bond Board and $100,000 to Ewing Real Estate (who had compensated their clients), the maximum available to be ordered in the Local Court and $750 in professional costs.
Ms Watts no longer has a real estate licence.
Ewing Real Estate Pty Ltd and its principal, Jarad Ewing, have entered into Enforceable Undertakings with NSW Fair Trading, requiring staff to complete additional training, to strengthen auditing processes to prevent funds from being misused in the future, and make a contribution to the NSW Consumer Law Fund.
Backed by an $8.4 million investment, the NSW Rental Taskforce is prioritising compliance action to give renters confidence that their tenancy protections are being actively enforced.
Consumers who suspect misconduct can report it to NSW Fair Trading online at www.nsw.gov.au/fair-trading.
Minister for Better Regulation and Fair Trading Anoulack Chanthivong said:
"Deceiving and stealing from people across the property market is deplorable. The NSW Government strongly condemns any attempts to deceive renters.
"This prosecution shows that our dedicated NSW Rental Taskforce is enforcing the rules and stopping irresponsible agents from doing the wrong thing.
"This is all part of the Government's commitment to delivering better protections for both renters and landlords in every corner of the state."
NSW Rental Commissioner Trina Jones said:
"Real estate agents handle large sums of money on behalf of consumers for payments such as rental monies and bonds and it's crucial that trust with consumers is maintained.
"Any agents who breach the rules will face serious consequences."
