Work for us

The Role
As an intern at REA, you’ll gain work exposure to working in a regulatory environment and help us to drive diverse thinking in our work at REA.  
The internship rotates between our inhouse legal team, and our Engagement, Insights and Education Team. 
You’ll have the opportunity to work with and learn from experienced regulatory lawyers, and communications and engagement professionals and also share your own insights and perspectives.  Work will range from legal research and writing, supporting the administration of legal cases and regulatory services, to the writing of communications and content for REA’s digital and non-digital communication channels. 
You’ll be supported in your time at REA, with guidance from your assigned leader as well as a dedicated buddy, and plenty of mentoring and development opportunities. You will gain knowledge of a regulatory public service environment, the real estate profession, professional communications, and legal systems and processes.

About You
We welcome applications from students who can bring a diverse perspective that will enhance our knowledge and workplace. 
Our ideal intern will:

• Be currently undertaking tertiary study within New Zealand, having completed at least three years of a tertiary legal degree, with papers in communications or marketing
• Have strong written and verbal communication skills, and be well organised
• Be highly competent across the Microsoft office suite – Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint
• Understand or have experience in working with diverse groups of people and may bring a Māori or Pacific Peoples perspective to our work
• Have a genuine interest in working for a regulator or the wider public sector
• Ability to work as part of a team
• Ability to work independently and take own initiative

Benefits
The REA team is welcoming, super friendly, collaborative and committed to making a difference for New Zealand.  You can expect rewarding and complex work in an exciting sector that is critical to New Zealand. A great central Wellington CBD location, commitment to staff professional development and an active social club are amongst many benefits of joining the REA team! 
This will be a paid internship for up to 10 weeks, working 32 hours per week, based in our office in Central Wellington.  There may be flexibility in hours worked within our standard office hours (as we want to ensure that you are fully supported). 
The internship commences on 17 November 2025 and ends on 13 February 2026.  Please note no work will be available during our Christmas office closedown period (approx. 24 December to 8 January, exact dates to be confirmed). 
Please note it will be the intern’s responsibility to arrange and pay for accommodation for the duration of the internship.
Please let us know if you have any specific access needs to allow you to participate in our recruitment process.

To Apply:
Please send your CV, Cover Letter and a completed application form [DOCX, 118 KB] to recruitment@rea.govt.nz.
Please include in your cover letter, your motivation for applying for the REA Internship, your current area of study (subjects of relevance) and interests and how you would contribute to our work as a regulator serving the needs of all New Zealanders.
The job description can be found here.  [PDF, 96 KB]

Closing date 6 May 2025
Please note, you must have a legal right to work in New Zealand. Successful appointment is conditional upon police vetting and verification you are currently studying at a tertiary level within New Zealand.

Role Purpose
As a member of Complaints Assessment Committees (CAC) appointed by REA under s75 of
the Real Estate Agents Authority Act 2008 (the Act), the role is required to perform the
functions set out in s78 of the Act, including inquiring into and investigating complaints and
allegations about any licensee, laying and prosecuting charges before the Real Estate
Disciplinary Tribunal, and making final determinations about complaints, inquiries or
investigations.

Key accountabilities

The accountabilities for of the CAC panel members are to:

• perform the key functions of Complaints Assessment Committees in accordance with
  agreed timelines which are:
  • Inquire into and investigate complaints made under section 74 of the act.
  • On its own initiative, inquire into and investigate allegations about any licensee.
  • Make final determinations in relation to complaints, inquiries or investigations.
  • To lay, and prosecute, charges before the Disciplinary Tribunal.
  • In appropriate cases, to refer the complaint to another agency.
  • To inform the complainant and the person complained about of its decision, reasons for the decision, and appeal rights.
  • To publish its decisions.
• work as a committee to make and return timely decisions and determinations to REA
• ensure observance of the rules of natural justice, procedural fairness and evidence
• ensure decisions and processes are in accordance with the object and purpose of the Act
• ensure that all written decisions and determinations are in compliance with REA
  guidelines and the Act
• be available for all scheduled CAC remote hearings and any face-to-face meetings
• participate in induction, training days and keep knowledge up to date
• be responsive to requests and enquiries from REA
• maintain open and regular communication with REA staff in all aspects of CAC
  processes
• record and submit monthly timesheets to REA

Qualifications, skills, knowledge and experience

The following qualifications, skills and experience are required:

• experience and knowledge of one or more of the following:
  • law (7+PQE)
  • the real estate industry
  • consumer affairs
• ability to work within tight time frames
• excellent written and oral communication skills,
• plain English, drafting and editing experience
• sound reasoning and logic
• ability to make decisions that may be subject to review
• collective decision-making and/or decision writing experience
• strong leadership and communication skills
• a good understanding of Microsoft products and ability to manage electronic documents
• Knowledge and commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and an understanding and awareness of
  the needs of New Zealand’s diverse communities

Each appointment is for a five-year term. Remuneration for panel members is set in accordance with the Cabinet Office Fees Framework and is currently between $56 and $92 per hour depending on the position held (Chair, Deputy Chair or Member)

We have 4 positions available. The Consumer role is to start right away. The other 3 roles (Lawyer, Consumer, Real Estate) will have a starting date in October 2025. 

The job description can be found here.  [PDF, 230 KB]

Expression of interest 

 Apply by sending your CV, covering letter and expression of interest form [DOCX, 113 KB] to recruitment@rea.govt.nz

For any support with the application process, please contact recruitment@rea.govt.nz

Questions

For more information about the roles, please contact Sue Johnston, Investigation and CAC Manager at Sue.Johnston@rea.govt.nz. 

Applications have now closed.