Stiff penalties for violations of new real estate law

March 12, 2014 - 3:09:09 am Doha: Real estate developers and builders will face stiff penalties for violating norms, according to a new law issued yesterday. According to the law, a builder who fails to hand over units to buyers within the deadline mentioned in the agreement without justifiable reasons, or if the sold units do not fulfil the technical standards mentioned in the contract, will be subject to one year jail or a fine not more than QR50,000, or both. The same punishment will be applicable to anyone who sells real estate units showing fake designs or anyone who receives loans without approval from the authorities concerned. The Emir H H Sheikh Tamin bin Hamad Al Thani issued yesterday the Law No 6 2014 for regulating the real estate sector. The law stipulates that a fine of not more than QR200,000 will be imposed on any real estate developer who does not start the project within six months of getting the approval without acceptable reasons. The developer could even lose his licence. It is not allowed for anyone to operate in the real estate sector without licence from the department concerned. The law says that if a developer wants to sell units on paper (pre-launch sale), he must get approval from the authorities concerned. If anyone signs a contract to buy real estate unit on paper, the payment should be made through the bank and direct payment by cash will be not be considered. Also, the developer should apply to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to register the real estate units. Each real estate project should have an independent bank account and if the developer is running more than one project, it should have an account for each one. Withdrawal of any amount from the account should be with the agreement of both parties — the bank and the developer. In case the completion of a project is delayed due to some emergency, the bank, in coordination with the concerned body, will have the right to take the required measures to protect the rights of buyers/investors. Sale advertisements or participation in exhibitions need approval from the authorities and developers must furnish the commercial name, address, details of the project, the prices for each type of units and mode of payment. The Peninsula