Who issues it and what each registration lets you do
South Australia calls it registration, not a licence, and Consumer and Business Services (CBS) issues it under the Land Agents Act 1994. There are three levels. A land agent can run a business that buys, sells or deals in land or businesses, including property management. A sales representative works for a land agent selling land and businesses. A property manager works for a land agent managing residential or commercial property.
A registered land agent does not need a separate sales representative or property manager registration. A sales representative who also manages rentals has to add the property manager condition to their registration. If you want to run a property management business yourself, you must be a registered land agent. Auctioneering is an add-on, and only people qualified as a land agent or sales representative can get it.
What qualifications you need
The current CBS list, dated July 2026, sets out the most common sales representative route: 19 units drawn from CPP41419 Certificate IV in Real Estate Practice and CPP51119 Diploma of Property (Agency Management). The list includes CPPREP5007 and CPPREP5008, so you need two diploma units as well as the sales and auction units. A registered property manager can qualify with 14 extra units.
Property manager registration needs 13 units, covering ethics, legislation, trust accounts, residential tenancy, commercial leasing and presenting at hearings. A sales representative can add property management with 8 units. Land agent registration is the largest step. It needs 36 units from the Certificate IV and the Diploma, including the units on compliance, trust account management, teams and finances. Holding sales representative or property manager registration reduces the number of units still to complete.
Working while you train
You can start before you finish. Show proof of enrolment in an approved qualification and CBS can issue a sales representative or property manager registration with an 'under supervision' condition. You are expected to finish the training within 12 months, then apply to vary your registration so the condition comes off.
A trainee sales representative must work under the direct supervision of a registered agent, or of a sales representative who has been registered for at least two years. The supervisor must be with you at all times when you perform registered work, and the supervision cannot be given online. You can do some tasks without a supervisor, including taking calls, handling trust money and helping prepare forms for the agent to approve.
Fees, renewal and moving from interstate
The SA.GOV.AU land agent page, updated October 2026, lists $864 for an individual's new application, covering a $388 application fee, a $476 pre-grant fee and one year of registration. A company pays $1,105. A property manager pays $643. A sales representative pays $693, made up of a $388 application fee and a $305 pre-grant fee, with one year of registration included. Varying a registration costs $165 on the current pages. Each first-year fee covers only one year, so you renew after that.
If you live in another state, Automatic Mutual Recognition lets you work in South Australia under your home registration. If you move your principal place of residence to South Australia, you need an SA registration, which you apply for through the standard Mutual Recognition process. A land agent recognised from interstate or New Zealand pays $670 in total.
Pay
AUD a year, before tax. Award rows are the official Real Estate Industry Award 2020 minimums from 1 July 2026. Sales figures are based on ABS Employee Earnings and Hours (May 2025), moved to 2026 with a wage index. The SA figure is modelled and not an official statistic. Commission and the size of your listings book change actual earnings a great deal. Refer to the Real Estate Sales salary guide for figures from live adverts.
What you need
- Approved qualification or enrolmentYou need to have completed the units on the CBS list for your registration level. For a supervised trainee registration, proof that you are enrolled is enough.
- National Police CertificateYour application must include a National Police Certificate issued no more than 12 months earlier. Some exceptions apply, such as having lodged one with CBS within the last year.
- No dishonesty convictionsA conviction for an indictable offence of dishonesty rules you out. So does a summary dishonesty offence in the past 10 years.
- Financial probity (land agents)You cannot register as a land agent if you are bankrupt, insolvent or in receivership. You are also ineligible if you were a director of a company wound up to pay creditors in the past five years.
- Age 18 (property managers)Property manager applicants must be at least 18 years old.
- Supervision for traineesTrainees must be accompanied by an eligible registered person at all times when doing registered work. Online supervision does not count.
How to get there
- Month 0Enrol in the qualificationEnrol in the units on the CBS sales representative list, which come from the Certificate IV in Real Estate Practice and the Diploma of Property (Agency Management). Get a police certificate at the same time.
- Month 0-1Apply for trainee registrationApply online through CBS with proof of enrolment and your police certificate. Your registration will carry the 'under supervision' condition.
- Months 1-12Work under direct supervisionSell under a registered agent or a sales representative with at least two years' registration while you finish the units.
- By month 12Remove the supervision conditionOnce you have completed the units, apply to vary your registration and pay the variation fee.
- Year 1-3Add property management or auctioneeringComplete the extra units to add the property manager condition. Apply to add auctioneer if you want to call auctions.
- Year 2 onwardUpgrade to land agentComplete the remaining diploma units to register as a land agent. You need this registration to run an agency.
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Questions people ask
Can I work in real estate in South Australia before I finish my course?
Yes. If you are enrolled in an approved qualification, CBS can issue a sales representative or property manager registration with an 'under supervision' condition. You are expected to finish the training within 12 months, and you must be directly supervised while doing registered work.
Do I need a separate registration to manage rentals as a sales representative?
You do not need a second registration. You add a property manager condition to your sales representative registration, which requires completing the property management units on the CBS list.
Who can supervise a trainee sales representative?
A registered land agent can, and so can a sales representative who has been registered for at least two years. The supervisor must be with you whenever you perform sales work, and the supervision cannot be provided online.
Can I use my interstate real estate licence in South Australia?
If you still live in another state, Automatic Mutual Recognition lets you work in South Australia under your home registration. If you move your principal place of residence to South Australia, you need an SA registration, which you apply for through the standard Mutual Recognition process.
Do commercial agents always need to be registered?
Not always. An agency acting for a large commercial owner is exempt if the owner's property has an aggregate market value of $10 million or more, or 10,000 square metres or more of floor area.
Do I need to be a land agent to open my own agency?
Yes. Any business that buys, sells or deals with land or businesses, including property management, needs a registered land agent. Companies must also nominate a registered manager for each office.
Sources
- SA.GOV.AU: Land agent registration
- SA.GOV.AU: Sales representatives
- SA.GOV.AU: Property managers
- CBS: Sales representative registration qualifications (July 2026)
- CBS: Property manager registration qualifications (July 2026)
- CBS: Land agent registration qualifications
- CBS: Working as a land agent in SA (interstate workers)
- CBS: Working as a property manager in SA
