TWO months after PRD Real Estate launched an investigation into its Newcastle franchise following "serious and concerning" allegations about its operations, the Newcastle Herald can reveal the businesses are cutting ties.
Speculation has been rife for sometime that PRD Presence Newcastle's franchise agreement would not be extended when it came up for renewal at the end of May, after insiders revealed it had been shopped around to other potentially interested parties.
But exactly who has ended the 18-year association is unclear as embattled real estate agent Mark Kentwell, who heads the Newcastle franchise, and PRD head office have both gone to ground on the issue.
The parties have repeatedly refused to answer questions from the Herald over several weeks about why the agreement was not being extended and the outcome of the internal investigation.
In a statement to clients, PRD Presence Newcastle sought to put a positive spin on the move.
"Our decision to make this change has been carefully considered and is a natural evolution of our growth and progress...," it reads.
"We are thrilled to be sharing our news of this decision to make this transformation and look forward to unveiling our direction at the appropriate time."
A month-long Newcastle Herald investigation into the franchise earlier this year raised questions about PRD Presence's dealings, including allegations of conflicts of interest, lack of transparency, data sharing and possible privacy breaches.
The potential conflicts of interest could cast doubts on the appropriateness of millions of dollars' worth of property deals done across the Hunter.
Mr Kentwell said his businesses complied with all the relevant laws and acted in the best interests of its clients.
NSW Fair Trading, the state's property services watchdog, confirmed PRD Presence Newcastle and another real estate firm linked to Mr Kentwell, Future Property Co, which trades as Henderson Advocacy, are the subject of "active inquiries".
It's understood the regulator's inquiries centre around a number of property sales where PRD Presence represented the sellers and Henderson Advocacy, run by Jack Henderson, a 26-year-old former construction worker who boasts he has a $26 million property portfolio, represented the buyers.
Agents in NSW are not permitted to act for the buyer and seller of a property at the same time, or to profit from both sides of a sale.
A NSW fair Trading spokesman confirmed that the inquiries were ongoing.
Mr Kentwell has denied any wrongdoing, saying he does not work for Henderson Advocacy, has not profited from a 50 per cent stake in the business that is linked to him and PRD made "adequate disclosures" about the business relationship to clients.
For weeks PRD head office has dodged questions about its fractured relationship with the Newcastle franchise and what has fueled the split.
At the company's annual awards night in Sydney in March, where Mr Kentwell was conspicuously absent, his franchise was named top office and senior agent Ryan Houston, who is also a partner in the Newcastle business, was awarded the gong for number two sales agent across PRD's 80 locations.
Less than a week later, PRD Real Estate's headquarters launched an investigation into the franchise.
PRD Real Estate, which is owned by global property giant Colliers, said at the time it was aware its top-performing franchise was embroiled in allegations about conflicts of interest in some of its property sales.
"The recent allegations in the Newcastle Herald regarding our Newcastle franchise are serious and concerning, and PRD is currently conducting an investigation into the matter," a spokeswoman said.
"As the matter is under investigation, we are unable to provide further comment at this time."
The region's three PRD franchises, which are owned and operate independently, consistently rank among the company's highest performers.
Mr Kentwell started the first PRD franchise in the Hunter in 2005, which was known at the time as PRD Nationwide Newcastle.
He introduced the word "Presence" into the Newcastle franchise name in 2021.
In April last year, Mr Kentwell registered a company called Presence Real Estate, which is owned by another one of his entities NEXR Pty Ltd.
Exactly what his plans are for the real estate firm remains unknown.
It's understood that the deadline to resign an agreement with PRD was the end of May, but the current franchise deal extends until later in the year.
"For the moment, we are keeping the specifics under wraps," PRD Presence's statement to clients reads..
"We have many great relationships within the PRD network that will continue after our change, though our internal networks in the industry reach far beyond a single brand.
"We are grateful for the support PRD provided us in our developmental years and wish them all the best in their onward journey in this wonderful industry."
Read Mark Kentwell's full statement here and a second statement here.
Do you know more? Donna.page@newcastleherald.com.au
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