A Canberra realtor has left the profession and been banned from obtaining a licence for two years after withdrawing client trust funds to bankroll his "severe" gambling problem.
An ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal decision, published on Monday, publicly reprimanded Ivan Tasic for unlawfully using trust account funds for private purposes.
Tasic withdrew a total of $77,250 in 53 transactions over a period of about six weeks between September and October 2021.
Realtors commonly hold client money in trust for real estate transactions such as sale deposits, rent or commercial bonds.
Tribunal senior member Mark Hyman said Tasic's withdrawal patterns, done over three short periods, suggested "his struggle with a gambling problem, as acknowledged in his interview, had become severe".
The tribunal found the man quickly repaid funds taken during the first two withdrawal periods, which would have been caught in any case by an annual audit of the trust.
Tasic eventually admitted his wrongdoing after the third and by far largest withdrawal period to Steven Thomas, who had licensed him to use the Edge Real Estate group name.
Mr Thomas, the real estate group's founder in turn reported the matter to the ACT government's Access Canberra agency.
"This suggests that until the problem became so large and uncontrollable that he could not hope to resolve it on his own, Mr Tasic acted as if it was something he could manage without outside help," Mr Hyman said.
"Only when it got totally out of hand did he do what he should have done at first instance - he told someone what had happened and faced the consequences."
Tasic has left the real estate profession and the licences he operated under have been expired since June 2022.
He did not oppose being disqualified from applying for a licence for a two-year period but argued a public reprimand was an "extreme" form of additional punishment.
The tribunal found other realtors should be made aware of the man's transgressions and "the consequences that flowed from them".
Tasic had pleaded guilty to a criminal charge of unauthorised dealing with trust money and paid a fine of $1500, already making the matter public.
Mr Hyman said the man's concerns were "somewhat exaggerated" and disciplinary actions helped protect the public, upheld professional standards and maintained public confidence in the profession.
The realtor told investigators he needed money to pay household bills but that most of the funds were used for online gambling.
"In withdrawing funds for his own purposes, without the direction or consent of the parties to the relevant transactions, Mr Tasic jeopardised property transfers that were likely to be vital to the interested of those involved," Mr Hyman said.
Despite this risk, the tribunal gave Tasic some recognition for ensuring no clients or settlements were directly affected by the withdrawals.
"But it should also be recognised that it was his actions that put that outcome at risk in the first place," Mr Hyman said.
Tasic repaid the trust account in full by December 1, 2021, thanks to funds advanced to him by his family.
"Mr Tasic has done what what he can to accept responsibility and to make amends," Mr Hyman said.
"My intention is that my orders should not hinder Mr Tasic in establishing himself in a new field."
