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ussie real estate agent Josh Tesolin is known for his high-energy auctions and lucrative commissions. Last year, he earned over $9 million in net commissions, making him one of Australia's highest-earning agents. His sales team documents their progress on a group SMS chat, where they discuss the day's results and share emojis.

    Tesolin's business model relies heavily on an incentivized commission scheme, which is not common practice but is allowed if agreed upon by the client at the start of the sales campaign. However, in several instances, the scheme was introduced to sellers only days or nights before the auction, raising concerns about transparency and potential coercion.

    One seller, Sue Roughley, claims that Tesolin presented his incentivized commission scheme as a way to drum up buyers for her Quakers Hill home. The scheme involved an extra 20% commission on any sale over $1.55 million, which ultimately resulted in a cost of almost double the usual commission to the sellers.

    Another seller, Jim Del Rosario, alleges that Tesolin introduced his incentivized commission scheme just before the auction and even made up a vendor bid during the auction. The house sold for $1.18 million, earning Tesolin a total commission of $78,450.

    Tesolin's spokesperson claims that all agreements are unique to each sale and that vendors decide whether they want to pay the incentive commission. However, correspondence and texts seen by this masthead show that the scheme was introduced to sellers in the days or nights before the auction.

    The NSW Office of Fair Trading is investigating Tesolin and his Ray White Quakers Hill office following a proactive compliance blitz into underquoting and complaints from affected parties. The investigation is ongoing, but it has not slowed down Tesolin's business, which continues to thrive with multiple billboards and ads on local bus stops.

    Tesolin has been the selling agent for half of the dozen properties he owns, including two purchased on the outskirts of Brisbane when he was 23. His property portfolio totals $15 million in acquisition costs alone, raising questions about potential conflicts of interest.

    Ray White Group's NSW chief executive, Tim Snell, acknowledged that a bonus scheme must be fully transparent and agreed upon in advance with the vendor. However, Tesolin's spokesperson claims that all required disclosures and procedures were followed when he purchased properties through his agency.

    The investigation into Tesolin's business practices is ongoing, but it has already raised serious questions about his ethics and potential conflicts of interest.