Article by Lim Peng Huat
The current economic slowdown has prompted many real estate developers to consider holding back developments. In order to assist the developers, the Government has announced measures which will give the developers more flexibility to stage the construction and sale of their projects in accordance with market conditions.
- Applications can be made for a one-year extension of the project completion period. The extension is similarly made available to private residential projects undertaken by foreign housing developers.
- Applications can be made for a one-time re-assignment of Government sale sites and private land owned by foreign developers. The re-assignment can be either through the disposal of the land or the disposal of the controlling interest in the company which owns the land.
- In view of the current weak property market, developers can now apply for extension of time from two years to four years from the date of issue of Temporary Occupation Permit (TOP). TOP is required for all completed properties before they are considered fit for occupation.
- To provide developers with greater flexibility in managing their unsold units, they can now apply for approval to rent out such unsold units for up to four years.
- With effect from 22 January 2009, property tax payable on land which have been approved for development, can be deferred for up to two years. This is intended to provide cash flow relief to developers.
- No new sites will be added to the Government Land Sale (GLS) programme for at least the first half of 2009. Currently, the GLS programme consists only of sites in the Reserve List. Under the Reserve List System, the Government will release a site for sale only if an interested party submits an application for the site to be released for tender with a minimum price that is acceptable to the Government. This system provides greater flexibility for the market to adjust to the current economic conditions.
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