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statement in writing made on oath or
affirmation, in such form and containing
such information as the Controller may
from time to time determine, on the
progress of the housing development
which the housing developer is engaged
in, carries on or undertakes or causes to
be undertaken until the certificate of
completion and compliance have been
issued for all the housing accommodation
in that housing development;
(g) where he considers that he is likely to
become unable to meet his obligations to
the purchasers at any stage of the housing
development, before the issuance of the
certificate of fitness of completion and
compliance, forthwith inform the
Controller of such fact;
(h) undertake the following:
(i) within twenty-one days from the date
of receipt by the housing developer of
the certificate of completion and
compliance, submit such certificate to
the Controller; and
(ii) within twenty-one days after the date
of handing over of vacant possession
to the first purchaser of the housing
accommodation in the housing
development, inform the Controller
in writing of the handing over;
(i) inform the Controller of any refusal in the
issuance of the certificate of completion
and compliance;
(j) ensure that the development of the
housing accommodation has been carried
out in accordance with any requirements
prescribed under any law regulating
buildings and has exercised all such
diligence as may be required for the
issuance of the certificate of completion
and compliance and for the issuance and
transfer of the titles to the housing
accommodation to the purchasers; and
ON FRIDAY
DECEMBER 5, 2014
L
AST
week, our column highlighted the
fact that we have an adequate, in fact,
a most benevolent social legislation in
place – the Housing Development
(Control and Licensing) Act 1966, along with
its various regulations made thereunder.
Having briefly run through how the Build-
Then-Sell (BTS) systemwill deprive house
purchasers of complete legal housing
protection, and the fact that there is
sufficient legislative control, plus the
Housing Tribunal for Homebuyers Claims
where purchasers can put forward their
grievances and claims, this week, we analyse
the housing developers’ duties.
Duties of a licensed housing developer
includes the following:
(a) within four weeks of the making of any
alterations in or to any of the documents
submitted to the Controller under
subsection 5 (3), furnish to the Controller
written particulars of the alterations;
(b) exhibit at all times in a conspicuous
position in any office and branch office of
the licensed housing developer and at
any other place where a sale of housing
accommodation is conducted, a copy of
his licence, advertisement and sale
permit and a copy of his last audited
balance-sheet as soon as the same is
available and such information as the
present or former full name, usual
residential address, nationality,
nationality of origin (where the present
nationality is not that of origin), business
or occupation (if any) of each person who
has the control and management of the
business of the licensed housing
developer and particulars of any other
directorship held by that person;
(c) keep or cause to be kept in his office in
West Malaysia such accounting and other
records as will sufficiently explain the
transactions and the financial position of
the licensed housing developer and
enable true and fair profit and loss
accounts and balance-sheets and any
documents required to be attached
thereto to be prepared from time to time,
and shall cause these records to be kept in
such manner as to enable them to be
conveniently and properly audited;
(d) annually appoint an auditor or auditors in
the manner required under section 9;
(e) within six months after the close of the
financial year of the licensed housing
developer in question, send to the
Controller and also publish in the
Gazette, a copy of the report of the
auditor prepared under section 9
together with a copy of his balance-sheet
and profit and loss account;
(f) not later than the 21st day of January and
the 21st day of July of each year or at such
frequency as may be determined by the
Controller from time to time or upon the
request of the Controller, send to the
Controller a correct and complete
BY
PRETAM SINGH DARSHAN SINGH
(k) inform the Controller of the progress in
the issuance of separate or strata titles
for the housing accommodation and the
transfer of such titles to the purchasers at
such frequency as may be determined by
the Controller beginning from the date of
the handing over of vacant possession to
the first purchaser of the housing
accommodation in the housing
development until the separate or strata
titles for all the housing accommodation
have been issued.
DUTY IN RELATION TO
ADVERTISEMENTS
No advertisement or sale shall be made by
any licensed housing developer without an
advertisement and sale permit having first
been obtained from the Controller.
Any advertisement and sale shall be in
accordance with the advertisement and sale
permit as approved by the Controller. (Reg
5).This means that no advertisement can be
carried out, including registration exercises,
unless that advertisement is first submitted
to the Controller of Housing for approval.
The following mandatory information
have to be provided in all advertisements,
namely:
(1) any advertisement (other than those
conveyed by means of broadcast sound
receivers or through television receivers)
made by any licensed housing developer
shall include the following particulars:
(a) the housing developer’s licence
number and validity date;
(b) the advertisement and sale permit
number and validity date;
(c) the name and address of the licensed
housing developer and his authorised
agent, power of attorney holder or
project management company, if any,
as approved by the Controller;
(d) the tenure of the land if the land is
leasehold, its expiry date, restriction
in interest and encumbrances, if any,
to which the land is subject;
(e) the description of the proposed
housing accommodation;
(ea) any parking lot which is an
accessory parcel to the housing
accommodation in a parcel and
which does not form part of the
common property of the
accommodation;
(f) the name of the housing development,
if any;
(g) the expected date of completion of
the proposed housing development;
(h) the selling price of each type of
housing accommodation;
(ha) where applicable, the minimum and
maximum selling price of each type
of housing accommodation;
(i) the number of units of each type
available; and
(j) the name of the appropriate authority
approving the building plans and the
reference number.
(Reg 6)
Email your feedback and queries
to:
propertyqs@thesundaily.comX
DID YOU KNOW?
Duty to open and operate a housing
development account
Section 7A of the Act requires all
developers to open and maintain a
Housing Development Account, unless
the developer is implementing a “Build
& Sell” system, with a bank or a
financing company for each housing
development undertaken by him. There
is also a strict regime on what ought to
be deposited and withdrawn.
THE STANDARD SALE AND PURCHASE
AGREEMENT (SPA)
Every contract of sale and purchase (SPA)
of a housing accommodation, together with
the subdivided portion of land appurtenant
thereto shall be in the formprescribed in
Schedule G andwhere the contract of sale is
for the sale and purchase of a housing
accommodation in a subdivided building,
it shall be in the formprescribed in
Schedule H.
No housing developer shall collect any
payment bywhatever name called except as
prescribed by the contract of sale. (Reg 11)
CITY INVESTMENT SDNBHD v
SERBAGUNACUEPACS TANGGUNGAN
BHD [1985] 1 CLJ 131 Mohamed Azmi FCJ
“If you have required your homebuyer to
sign a contract that supplements the Sales and
Purchase Agreement, it bemay be an offence
as there can only be one agreement between
homebuyer andDeveloper.”
“... the parties may not contract out of the
contract and to do so is an open defiance of
the Housing Developers legislation”.
This standardisation of SPA is themost
effective way to ensure that purchaser’s rights
are protected. In a BTS system, there will be
no standard SPA to accord protection. Hence,
there will be calls for a Fair Housing Act.
PART2
>Principal duties of a licenseddeveloper
Purchaser
grievances