Thomas Aloysius banned from the real estate industry after he was busted mishandling client funds

A dodgy Hallam real estate agent has been banned from the industry after he was busted mishandling clients’ money – again.

Consumer Affairs Victoria took Hallam real estate agent Thomas Aloysius to VCAT for mishandling clients’ money.

A dodgy real estate agent has been banned from the industry after he was busted mishandling clients’ money – again.

Thomas Aloysius, 49, of Hallam, was reprimanded by VCAT after Consumer Affairs Victoria commenced disciplinary proceedings against him, arguing he was “not of good character or otherwise not a fit and proper person to hold a licence” after he breached the Estate Agent Act”.

Aloysius traded without a licence as a director of his company Hills and Fort, trading under the companies and deposited money into his personal account rather than into a trust between December 2020 and August 2021.

Hills and Fort Real Estate traded under the business names Freedom Realtors, Smart Negotiators and freedomproperty.com.au – Smart Negotiators.

Thomas Aloysius was banned from the real estatea industry for mishandling client funds.

He was subject to sanctions at the time after he was criminally convicted in the Dandenong Magistrates’ Court in July 2021 for mishandling client money back in 2017 while a representative of estate agency Area Specialists Aspendale Gardens.

Between May and June 2017, Mr Aloysius advised the vendors that he had received an offer of $600,000 to purchase their property, when the offer made by the purchaser was $620,000.

He then accepted a $20,000 partial deposit from the purchaser into his personal bank account, instead of the required trust account.

He pleaded guilty to the unprofessional conduct that caused “stress and financial loss” to his clients, and was fined $8000.

Thomas Aloysius’ unprofessional conduct caused consumers “stress and financial loss”, according to Consumer Affairs Victoria.

Consumer Affairs Victoria called for Aloysius’ licence to be cancelled for 12 months, that he be fined $5000 and he be required to complete further industry training before he can practice again.

Senior VCAT member Reynah Tang ruled it “appropriate” to cancel Aloysius’ licence, but did not fine him because the ban would “likely to have significant financial implications for Mr Aloysius in and of itself”.

“Given there has been no suggestion that his conduct resulted in any particular loss to his clients, I do not consider it appropriate to also impose a penalty,” he wrote.

Mr Tang also didn’t deem it necessary to order the crooked agent undergo further education to address the “evident gaps in his understanding as to his duties under the Estate Agency Act”, and his understanding of “ethical practice and compliance more generally”.