Bahrain developers facing action if they don’t get license by 1 September
From 1 September , it will be illegal for developers to operate without a RERA and off-plan sales project license
Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA), Bahrain’s property watchdog, has warned that the country’s developers must ‘regularise’ their activities by the end of this week or face ‘strict action’.
In a report by BNA, Shaikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, CEO of the authority, said that starting from September 1, it will be illegal for developers to operate without a RERA Developer license and an off-plan sales project license. He added that following the end of the six-month transition process – ending August 31 – given to developers to regularise their activities, all violators will face strict action.
However, he also pointed out that the response from real estate brokers had been largely positive, with more than 98% of firms already licensed. He said that it was now the turn of developers of off-plan sales projects to apply for a RERA license immediately, so as to avoid being in violation of the law.
“Starting from next month, operating without a RERA licence will be in breach of the real estate regulations and sanctions will apply to those who do not comply with the law,” he explained.
Shaikh Mohammed said that implementation of the Real Estate Sector Regulation Law 27 of 2017 had received a favourable response from investors, who said it had instilled greater confidence in the real estate sector, besides encouraging further local and international investment and stimulating demand for real estate properties in Bahrain, the BNA report added.
The RERA chief called upon buyers of units from these non-compliment developers to be cautious as they would not benefit from wide-ranging consumer protection mechanisms that have been safeguarded by the Real Estate Sector Regulation Law (Law 27 of 2017).
