Real estate reforms do not go far enough, says Institute

Everyone engaged in real estate should be covered by measures reforming the industry, the Real Estate Institute says.
That included property managers, letting and leasing agents and companies which charged a marketing fee rather than a commission for the sale of property, it said.
In May the Government announced proposals to shake up the industry, including setting up an independent body with investigative powers to better protect consumers. The shake-up came after criticism of the industry for failing to take a tough lines on complaints.
Real Estate Institute president Murray Cleland yesterday released the institute's submission on the proposed reforms, saying it supported most of the Government's proposals including the establishment of a Real Estate Agents Authority.
It also backed:
* The transfer to the authority of responsibility for disciplinary and complaints procedures;
* Extension of the range of remedies and sanctions available;
* Increasing the maximum fine - it recommended raising it to $30,000 in line with that for lawyers and conveyancers;
* Raising entry standards to the industry and ensuring standards remained high with a requirement for compulsory continuing professional development;
* Extending the rules relating to disclosure of conflicts of interest.
But Mr Cleland said that if regulation was to be effective it needed to cover everyone involved in real estate "who posed a potential risk to consumers including property managers, letting and leasing agents and companies which charge a marketing fee rather than a commission for the sale of property".
The Government was not proposing to bring these groups into the regulatory regime on the same basis as real estate agents and sales people, he said.
"Yet one in five complaints to the institute concerns letting, leasing and property management and there is no difference in principle between charging marketing fees and charging commissions."
Mr Cleland also said the institute was concerned additional costs incurred in establishing the new authority were kept in check and said the industry should be consulted on any levies or fees imposed.
Members felt the industry should continue to be responsible for setting educational and industry standards and for the provision of consumer information.

property

The third-largest property project in Hanoi has finally re-started after three-years on ice.The Northbridge Development joint-venture was set up between Thai Northbridge Communities and Vietnam's Construction Corp No.9 in 1997 with total pledged investment of US$236 million over 45 years, 60% of that coming from Thailand.Nguyen Van Huong, general director of the joint-venture, told Vietnam Investment Review that Hanoi Mayor Nguyen Quoc Trieu recently issued an order to municipal agencies to resurrect the project and develop new plans."This assignment is very crucial for our joint venture, permitting us to continue the project, which has been delayed for too long," Huong said.The project made sporadic progress until 2003 but since then it has been held up, awaiting an official letter from the Hanoi People's Committee to continue. City officials cite several unspecified reasons for the delay."We also have studied the project site and finished the initial plan for land clearance and compensation already. The company will need a land use right certificate before implementing the compensation," Huong said.The project is located in Dong Anh district on the outskirts of Hanoi, beside Kim Chung commune's Van Tri Pond, north of the Thang Long Bridge. It was first delayed in 1998 during the Asian financial crisis and was then resumed in 2002 when Northbridge reaffirmed its commitment.Based on Huong's research, in 1998 the joint venture would have had to pay about 40 billion dong (US$2.5 million) for land compensation, and now it must pay 200 billion dong. However, he said that the two partners strongly believe in the potential of the current property market."We were permitted to recover expenses through other commercial constructions, such as residencies, offices and trading sites," he added. The project is now expected to be complete in three-years.With US$236 million in investment capital, the joint venture will develop an area of 86 hectares involving construction of residential units, medical facilities and a commercial centre. Based on a feasibility study, it plans to offer 220,000 square metres of villas, 13,000 square metres of semi-detached houses and 52,000 square metres of apartments.Northbridge Communities operates international schools and other property developments in Thailand and Cambodia. Other large real estate projects in Hanoi are Ciputra International, International Exchange City and the West Lake City. Of those, only the Indonesian-backed Ciputra is underway