Confidence boost

Confidence boost

Rera attempts to boost investor confidence this week by announcing the launch of a monthly, independent progress report

February 26, 2009 1:04 by Dana El Baltaji

Property owners in Dubai will have access to monthly reports on the construction progress of projects, says Marwan bin Ghalita, CEO of the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (Rera) in Dubai. The Independent Progress Monitoring Report will be updated regularly based on information gathered by government engineers, reports The National.

The online report, which will be available on Rera’s website (www.rpdubai.com), will also include photographs of construction sites, as well as information on delays and cancellations. The report, however, will only monitor projects with Escrow accounts, thus excluding 180 projects already registered with Rera.

“In a booming market, everyone makes mistakes,” said bin Ghalita. “Now is the time to regulate.”

According to Rera, it has received 1,300 complaints due to project delays and contract issues. The independent report is designed to boost investors’ confidence in the property sector.

However, it seems to Kipp that investors lack in developers, and not in Rera.

Consider the following: why hasn’t Rera asked developers to publish monthly progress reports, instead of organizing an independent report of its own? The move questions the authority’s own confidence in Dubai’s developers.

If Dubai’s developers require independent regulation from Rera, then perhaps Rera should acknowledge that developers have treated their investors unfairly in the past, and provide legislative help to those who wish to break their contracts.

Indeed, Rera’s announcement last week that it will “name and shame” developers that do not deliver on their promises affirms our suspicion that Rera has little confidence in Dubai’s developers.

And finally, what will Rera do if developers fail to meet to their construction deadlines? What if the project is cancelled? What will happen to buyers’ investments?

In short, what’s the plan?