At a historic event today, Yang Berhormat Tan Sri Noh bin Haji Omar, the Minister of Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government officially launched the much-awaited Register of Property Managers with the amendment of Act 242 - Valuers, Appraisers and Estate Agents Act, 1981, gazetted on 17 October, 2017.

With this amendment, Act 242 is now known as the Valuers, Appraisers, Estate Agents and Property Managers Act, 1981, that was passed last 17 October and gazetted 2 January this year.

The launch was also witnessed by Yang Berhormat Datuk Seri Johari bin Abdul Ghani, the Minister of Finance II, signalling an unprecedented joint effort between two ministries with a shared goal under the National Blue Ocean Strategy (NBOS) towards regulating the practice of property management for strata properties in Malaysia.

To date, there are at least 19,000 strata schemes throughout Malaysia in which 7.5 million people have made their homes. That's 30% of the total urban population. That is a significant number of homeowners.

The number of complaints that the Board of Valuers, Appraisers, Estate Agents and Property Managers (BOVAEP) received on mismanagement and malpractice by registered property managers last year was only 10 while the cases involving illegal practitioners were around 116. While the numbers may not seem staggering, experts believe this is just the tip of the iceberg of many unreported cases.

"Property Management that is well-governed will lead to the wellbeing of the nation and confidence from investors" said Yang Berhormat Tan Sri Noh bin Haji Omar at the recent launch of the Register of Property Manager.

The amendment of Act 242 effectively brings the practice of property management under the ambit of BOVAEP. Going forward, all practitioners of property management will be regulated by the Board. This will ensure that property managers entrusted with the management of properties worth millions of Ringgit are regulated by a professional body, safeguarding the public from unscrupulous and illegal property managers.

"The responsibilities of the property manager are indeed very challenging because they will need to manage all kinds of situations, having to be wise with many parties apart from having solid technical expertise to solve problems. I need to emphasize that property managers need to be Jack of All Trades to maintain that respect for the profession" said Yang Berusaha Sr. Haji Nordin bin Daharom, the Yang Dipertua of the Board of Valuers, Appraisers, Estate Agents and Property Managers, during his welcome speech.

The establishment of the register of property managers, brings multi-tiered benefits to the profession and ultimately to Malaysian homeowners.

It firstly elevates the professional status of property management as it is now recognised by two Ministries. The compulsory continuous education and professional development for all registered property managers will also ensure expansion and versatility of skill-set that is so pertinent for the profession.

The launch of the Register means that practicing property managers i.e. those who have property management experience, are given a one-year grace period to register themselves as recognised professionals.

Practicing property managers can register with the Board by filling in Form C which they can obtain from http://lppeh.gov.my/WP2016/forms, and submit it to the Board.

Homeowners now have an avenue to escalate their grievances to BOVAEP. This will ensure that the safety and wellbeing of homeowners living in strata properties are in the good hands of well-informed and highly capable property managers, nationwide. They can lodge a report by writing directly to the Board at info@lppeh.gov.my.

Peace of mind and better community strata living are just some of the plus points that homeowners will enjoy, which lead to better value retention and creation of their properties.