Deception by developers needs to be checked
Wednesday, 24 December 2008
Sarwari Syed
Both the government as well as the REHAB have the responsibility to ensure a monitoring mechanism to stop developers from deceiving buyers of flats.
I bought an apartment in 1999 in a towering building in the city's Maghbazar area being overwhelmed with the computer printed design and plan. The developer also convinced my two sisters to buy apartments giving exaggerated pictures of apartments with open space facing a wide road and showing the land in front of the apartment building to be its.
Unfortunately, after we brought the apartments all our dreams just vanished. We did not get what the developers had promised. We have been living in an incomplete building as the builders left the apartment tower incomplete without even removing construction materials. Not only that, they even did not hand over the garages to the apartment owners.
Now, 72 owners have to live in a half-done apartment lower, structure. We find inconsistencies between what the buyers got and the designs of apartments offered them at the planning stage. As 50 per cent payment was done at the outset of the deal, we had no option but to keep patience. The builder later made us to pay more than the price at the time of paying rest of installements on the excuse of escalating construction material prices. Even then, the builder left the reception, stairs and some major parts of the building incomplete. As we had made full payments by that time, there was nothing we could say.
At the time of purchase, we had trust on the real estate company, which as a member of REHAB, had other built housing units and impressive offices in the city. If reputed developers like this company can cheat the buyers what happens with smaller companies, who are not REHAB members?
I think there should be a strict monitoring by the government to thwart such deception by real estate companies. It is only natural for people to think of buyers in the city. It is quite shocking of real estate companies deceive buyers luring them with imaginary apartment designs using advertisement.
REHAB should also closely monitor what the real estate companies advertise to offered and what they actually handover to the buyers. It should look onto whether it is possible to ensure that the apartments sold match what the buyers are offered.
Both the government as well as the REHAB have the responsibility to ensure a monitoring mechanism to stop developers from deceiving buyers of flats.
I bought an apartment in 1999 in a towering building in the city's Maghbazar area being overwhelmed with the computer printed design and plan. The developer also convinced my two sisters to buy apartments giving exaggerated pictures of apartments with open space facing a wide road and showing the land in front of the apartment building to be its.
Unfortunately, after we brought the apartments all our dreams just vanished. We did not get what the developers had promised. We have been living in an incomplete building as the builders left the apartment tower incomplete without even removing construction materials. Not only that, they even did not hand over the garages to the apartment owners.
Now, 72 owners have to live in a half-done apartment lower, structure. We find inconsistencies between what the buyers got and the designs of apartments offered them at the planning stage. As 50 per cent payment was done at the outset of the deal, we had no option but to keep patience. The builder later made us to pay more than the price at the time of paying rest of installements on the excuse of escalating construction material prices. Even then, the builder left the reception, stairs and some major parts of the building incomplete. As we had made full payments by that time, there was nothing we could say.
At the time of purchase, we had trust on the real estate company, which as a member of REHAB, had other built housing units and impressive offices in the city. If reputed developers like this company can cheat the buyers what happens with smaller companies, who are not REHAB members?
I think there should be a strict monitoring by the government to thwart such deception by real estate companies. It is only natural for people to think of buyers in the city. It is quite shocking of real estate companies deceive buyers luring them with imaginary apartment designs using advertisement.
REHAB should also closely monitor what the real estate companies advertise to offered and what they actually handover to the buyers. It should look onto whether it is possible to ensure that the apartments sold match what the buyers are offered.