Audit & assurance
Real estate agent trust account audits
Trust account audits for real estate agents, property and strata managers and conveyancers, lodged with NSW Fair Trading.
Licensees in New South Wales who hold trust money must have their trust account audited annually and the audit lodged with NSW Fair Trading through the Auditor's Report Online portal. The audit period runs from 1 July to 30 June, and the report is due by 30 September. The audit is conducted under the Australian Standards on Assurance Engagements — principally ASAE 3000 and ASAE 3100.
What the engagement covers
Audit of the trust account
We test receipts, disbursements, trust ledgers, monthly reconciliations and the treatment of unclaimed money, and assess whether the licensee has complied with the relevant Acts and Regulations in all material respects.
Assurance standards applied properly
The engagement is performed under ASAE 3000 and ASAE 3100, which is what Fair Trading expects to see and what distinguishes a compliant audit from a bookkeeping review.
Online lodgement
We lodge the audit through the Fair Trading Auditor's Report Online portal so it is filed on time. The portal accepts the current year's audits from 1 July.
Multi-entity and multi-account groups
Agencies with several licensed entities, rental and sales trust accounts or a rent roll acquisition mid-year are handled as one engagement with one timetable.
Who this is for
Typical clients: Real Estate Trust Account Audit
- Real estate agencies holding sales deposits and rental money
- Property managers operating rental trust accounts
- Strata managing agents
- Conveyancers holding trust money
- Business and stock and station agents
- Licensees who have received a Fair Trading reminder or a late-lodgement notice
Real Estate Trust Account Audit — common questions
We held no trust money this year. Do we still lodge?
If no trust money was received or held for the whole audit period, a full audit is generally not required — but you usually still need to notify Fair Trading rather than simply lodging nothing. We will confirm your position before you do either.
What happens if we lodge after 30 September?
Audits lodged from 1 October are recorded as late and may attract a penalty. A late audit also tends to draw closer scrutiny of the following year. If you are already past the date, lodging quickly is better than lodging perfectly.
What will a qualified audit report mean for our licence?
A qualification is a disclosure, not a determination. Fair Trading reviews qualified reports and may follow up — the outcome depends on the nature of the breach and whether it has been corrected. Common qualifications relate to late reconciliations, overdrawn ledgers and unclaimed money not being paid to Revenue NSW.
What records do you need?
Trust account bank statements for the full period, monthly trust reconciliations, the trust receipts and payments records, tenant and landlord ledgers, sales deposit records, the unclaimed money register, and details of any trust account opened or closed during the year.
Also from our audit practice
Other audit services
External / Statutory Audit
Independent financial statement audits for companies, not-for-profits, charities and grant recipients.
SMSF Audit
Independent financial and compliance audits of self-managed super funds under the SIS Act.
Solicitors' Trust Account Audit
External examinations of law practice trust records under the Legal Profession Uniform Law, lodged with the Law Society of NSW.
Need a quote or a second opinion?
Tell us the entity, the deadline and the type of audit. You will have a fixed-fee proposal back quickly — usually the same day.