Reduction of registration charge, tax cut and holiday facility sought to boost real estate business
Naim-Ul-Karim | Tuesday, 3 June 2008
The country's realtors have sought reduction of flat registration charge, tax cut and holiday facility in the upcoming financial bill so that they can build cheaper residences outside the capital, a senior official said Sunday.
Apartment businesses in the country marked a healthy rise in the last one- decade on the back of the hefty growth particularly in the urban areas with affluent buyers.
But sector insiders warned the growth that has already been affected for various reasons would slowdown sharply in the next fiscal if they fail to woo more buyers from the largely untapped sections.
"Our future growth will come from construction of cheaper flats outside the capital targeting the less affluent section of the society," Tanveerul Haque Probal, chief of realtors' association, told the FE Monday.
Around 500 realtors have proposed the National Board of Revenue (NBR) recently to offer them tax holiday facility particularly outside the capital and urged the government to bestow the sector status of industry.
Under the existing revenue tax-revenue collection rules, a realtor is required to pay government Tk250 for construction of structure on per square metre of area.
"Apart from this, we need to pay 15-20 per cent duty on import of construction equipments and 16.5 per cent on sum of the flats value as registration fee," Probal, president of Real Estate and Housing Association of Bangladesh (REHAB), said.
"A sharp cut in these taxes and other charges would help the realtors construct flats at cheaper prices enabling the country's millions of people to bring their long cherished dream of own home in reality," he said.
Probal said REHAB has proposed the NBR to allow the realtors bring secondhand expensive construction equipments, import of which is presently restricted.
"We have also proposed to the NBR to reduce registration cost of secondhand flats to make their market popular," he said.
Last year, a source said realtors sold around 7000 flats. Half of the sold flats, he said, were not registered as most of the time buyers showed reluctance due to higher fee.
Reducing cost of registration, Probal said the government can boost its revenue earning from this segment.
Probal said private sector home building companies also sought reduction in land and transfer taxes and an abolition of a proposed laws that stipulate a minimum seven years punishment to guilty realtors.
Reduction in land and transfer taxes in the next budget, which realtors argue are essential for keeping the prices of apartments affordable in the country.
"We are moving with our a 21-point plan of action for the next two years aiming to take housing sector to a new height by implementing those if we get support of the government," he said.
Inflow remittances from around 5.6 million expatriate Bangladeshis could record further hefty growth, Probal said, if the realtors can build cheaper flats.
"We have already contributed in inflow of remittances as many expatriates purchased flats in the country after we arranged fair in many foreign cities," he added.
Apartment businesses in the country marked a healthy rise in the last one- decade on the back of the hefty growth particularly in the urban areas with affluent buyers.
But sector insiders warned the growth that has already been affected for various reasons would slowdown sharply in the next fiscal if they fail to woo more buyers from the largely untapped sections.
"Our future growth will come from construction of cheaper flats outside the capital targeting the less affluent section of the society," Tanveerul Haque Probal, chief of realtors' association, told the FE Monday.
Around 500 realtors have proposed the National Board of Revenue (NBR) recently to offer them tax holiday facility particularly outside the capital and urged the government to bestow the sector status of industry.
Under the existing revenue tax-revenue collection rules, a realtor is required to pay government Tk250 for construction of structure on per square metre of area.
"Apart from this, we need to pay 15-20 per cent duty on import of construction equipments and 16.5 per cent on sum of the flats value as registration fee," Probal, president of Real Estate and Housing Association of Bangladesh (REHAB), said.
"A sharp cut in these taxes and other charges would help the realtors construct flats at cheaper prices enabling the country's millions of people to bring their long cherished dream of own home in reality," he said.
Probal said REHAB has proposed the NBR to allow the realtors bring secondhand expensive construction equipments, import of which is presently restricted.
"We have also proposed to the NBR to reduce registration cost of secondhand flats to make their market popular," he said.
Last year, a source said realtors sold around 7000 flats. Half of the sold flats, he said, were not registered as most of the time buyers showed reluctance due to higher fee.
Reducing cost of registration, Probal said the government can boost its revenue earning from this segment.
Probal said private sector home building companies also sought reduction in land and transfer taxes and an abolition of a proposed laws that stipulate a minimum seven years punishment to guilty realtors.
Reduction in land and transfer taxes in the next budget, which realtors argue are essential for keeping the prices of apartments affordable in the country.
"We are moving with our a 21-point plan of action for the next two years aiming to take housing sector to a new height by implementing those if we get support of the government," he said.
Inflow remittances from around 5.6 million expatriate Bangladeshis could record further hefty growth, Probal said, if the realtors can build cheaper flats.
"We have already contributed in inflow of remittances as many expatriates purchased flats in the country after we arranged fair in many foreign cities," he added.