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Property Developers Back Suspension of Issuance of Special Land Titles
Property developers and landowners have backed the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development's three-month suspension of the issuance of special certificates of title, while calling for longer-term legal reforms.
Key takeaways
The suspension was introduced following concerns over abuse of the replacement-title process.
Stakeholders say the system has been exploited in cases involving fraudulent multiple sales of the same property.
Developers are calling for tighter legal and verification requirements rather than relying solely on the temporary suspension.
Parliament is separately scrutinising the government's decision and its implications for landowners and transactions.
A special certificate of title is issued when an original owner's duplicate certificate has been lost, destroyed or completely damaged. The Ministry suspended routine issuance after receiving complaints that replacement titles had in some cases been obtained even while the original duplicate titles remained in existence.
Property developers have welcomed the suspension of the issuance of special intervention but argue that the underlying problem requires changes to the legal and administrative framework governing replacement titles.
The issue has wider implications for the property market because land titles underpin transactions involving developers, purchasers, lenders and investors.
Why it matters: Greater scrutiny of replacement titles could affect the due-diligence process for property acquisitions and development projects. The outcome of the review and any subsequent legal changes will therefore be relevant to developers, lenders, consultants and landowners.
