Asha Askarly is the ‘property princess’ of Sydney’s eastern suburbs. But now questions are being raised about her empire – as she’s charged by police and an AVO is taken out for husband’s protection
Asha Askarly, dubbed the "property princess" of Sydney's eastern suburbs for renting luxury homes to the wealthy and visiting celebrities, is facing a NSW Fair Trading investigation into her agency, The Property Edit. The regulator has appointed an administrator to oversee the business amid allegations that landlords are owed months of unpaid rent and tradespeople have gone unpaid for work carried out on properties, raising concerns about the handling of trust money.
A former client alleged that recovering their rental bond from the agency was consistently difficult and claimed it may not have been lodged with the Rental Bond Board as required. Separately, Askarly, 40, has her own legal troubles: she was charged with common assault in June and is subject to an apprehended violence order protecting her husband, Danny Zammit, whose family runs a smash repair and towing business. Bail conditions bar her from contacting, threatening or harming Zammit or his associates, and the case returns to court in October. Askarly has denied allegations of fraud and declined to comment further on her private life.
- Sydney "property princess" Asha Askarly's rental agency faces a Fair Trading probe.
- Landlords and tradespeople claim unpaid rent and invoices.
- She also faces an assault charge and an AVO protecting her husband.
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Asha Askarly built a reputation as Sydney's "property princess", running a real estate agency called The Property Edit that let luxury homes in the eastern suburbs to wealthy tenants and celebrities. Her business is now under formal investigation by NSW Fair Trading, the state regulator for real estate agents, which has appointed an administrator to take control after claims that landlords were not paid rent owed to them and tradespeople were left unpaid for work on properties.
At the heart of the concerns is how the agency handled trust money, which is rent and bond payments that agents are legally required to hold separately on behalf of clients rather than use for other purposes. A former tenant has alleged their bond, a deposit meant to be lodged with the state's Rental Bond Board, was difficult to recover and may not have been properly registered.
Separately, Askarly is facing her own criminal case, having been charged with common assault, and a court has issued an apprehended violence order, a legal protection order, to safeguard her husband, Danny Zammit. These two matters, the business investigation and the personal legal case, are distinct but have emerged around the same time, drawing wider attention to Askarly's public profile and business dealings.