Real estate developers who lack the funds to build their projects usually resort to pre-selling of units, which is an accepted practice in the industry.
Such practice in turn enables homebuyers to purchase the property at a cheaper value at the date set by the developer.
Mounting complaints on undelivered projects from homebuyers, however, prompted the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB) to tighten its rules to prevent the scams and protect buyers.
HLURB Chief Executive Officer Antonio Bernardo, in a statement issued Monday, said the agency is now requiring real estate developers, brokers and contractors to strictly comply with rules on requisite permits before they can sell housing units.
Bernardo earlier met with officers of the Subdivision and Housing Developers Association (SHDA) and discussed the various complaints of homebuyers.
The HLURB is the national government agency tasked to regulate the real estate industry.
Bernardo noted that some developers market lots or housing units of their projects even without having complied with certain HLURB requirements.
For his part, Vice President Jejomar C. Binay, concurrent head of the HLURB, in his capacity as chairman of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) said that the law has set certain guidelines to safeguard the interest of the buying public.
“Some developers offer attractive and lower prices and incentives to prospective buyers during the pre-selling stage. This is done to ensure a successful marketing strategy while at the same time avoid paying a premium for the cost of developing and completing the project,” Binay said.
He reminded developers that under Presidential Decree 957, or the “Subdivision and Condominium Buyer’s Protective Decree,” a project developer, owner or dealer may not sell any subdivision lot or condominium units unless it first obtains a license to sell from HLURB.
The same law defines “sale” or “sell” as “every disposition, or attempt to dispose, for a valuable consideration, of a subdivision lot, including the building and other improvements thereof, if any, in a subdivision project or a condominium unit in a condominium project.”
Binay said this mode of disposition includes a contract to sell, a contract of purchase and sale, an exchange, an attempt to sell, an option of sale or purchase, a solicitation of a sale, or an offer to sell, directly or by an agent, or by a circular, letter, advertisement or otherwise.
Meanwhile, the SHDA promised to cooperate with HLURB and to remind its members to comply with the rules on registration and issuance of license to sell for residential subdivision or condominium project.
For latest update on real estate
development and its RA 9646, the Real Estate Service Act of 2009, visit
www.ra9646.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment