How to check a managing agent is PPRA-registered and compliant

Body corporate disputes often start quietly: levies collected late, compliance notices ignored, financial records messy. Months in, schemes realise their managing agent isn't properly regulated or has let critical deadlines slip. By then, fixing it costs time, money and trust. Checking a managing agent's PPRA registration and compliance standing upfront takes an hour and prevents months of headaches.

The Property Practitioners Regulatory Authority oversees managing agents in South Africa. Registration isn't optional—it's a legal requirement for anyone managing sectional title schemes. Yet many schemes book an agent without ever verifying this, or assume an agent who seems professional must be compliant. That assumption is risky.

Find the agent on the PPRA register

Start at the PPRA's public search portal on their website. You'll need the agent's full name or company name. Search, and you should see their registration status, registration number, and any disciplinary history or conditions attached to their licence. If the agent doesn't appear, they're not registered—full stop. Do not proceed. If they appear but their status shows as suspended, cancelled or lapsed, that's a red flag. Ask the agent directly why; some may be in the process of renewing, but it's still a gap in their compliance during which they should not be managing schemes.

Note the registration number and take a screenshot. When you ask the agent to provide proof of PPRA registration (which you absolutely should), you can cross-check it against what the register shows. Mismatches—wrong name, outdated number, or no registration document at all—mean walking away.

Request their compliance record and PIC number

Ask the agent for their Property Practitioner's Certificate (the document proving PPRA registration), their registration number, and their Personal Identity Code (PIC) as it appears on the PPRA register. They should have these to hand; if they seem evasive or say they'll "get back to you", that's telling. A compliant agent keeps these documents accessible because they expect to be asked.

While you have them on the phone or in writing, ask whether they have any open complaints or conditions on their registration. The PPRA register may show this publicly, but the agent's own candour matters—it shows whether they take compliance seriously. If you spot any disciplinary history on the register, ask them what happened and what they've changed as a result. Their answer won't disqualify them automatically, but it should be honest and specific.

Check their Fidelity Fund and crime-stop insurance

Managing agents handle trust money: levy deposits, reserve-fund contributions, service-provider payments. By law, they must maintain Fidelity Fund coverage and crime-stop insurance to protect client funds. Ask the agent for proof of current policies from an insurer. Don't accept vague reassurances; you need to see policy schedules with current dates. Call the insurer directly if you have doubts—they'll confirm coverage in seconds.

Verify the coverage limits cover the scheme's likely trust balance. A small scheme with modest levies might need less cover than a 200-unit complex; ask your trustees or look at recent financial statements to estimate how much client money the agent will hold at any one time.

Speak to their current or recent clients

Ask the agent for three to five references—trustees or scheme managers from schemes they currently manage or have managed in the last two years. Call them. Ask whether the agent has met compliance deadlines (tax clearances, financial statements, audits, sectional title conveyancer updates), whether money is accounted for transparently, and whether disputes or complaints arose. Listen for hesitation, vagueness or backtracking. Satisfied clients will speak readily and specifically.

If an agent refuses references or offers only names from schemes managed years ago, that's a warning. Compliance should be current and verifiable.

Once you've confirmed PPRA registration, checked their credentials, and spoken to real clients, you have a solid foundation. Verification takes effort, but it's far lighter than untangling a scheme's finances or compliance after hiring the wrong person. On Strove, you can find verified managing agents in your area and compare their credentials and client feedback in one place, making this step smoother.