22.06.2023
The House Labor Committee concluded on Wednesday that it was time to find a comprehensive solution to the “trapped shoppers” problem. The deputies stressed their determination to take care of the almost 100,000 property buyers who were left without documents confirming their ownership.
Committee Vice Chair and Disy MP Fotini Tsiridou said that MPs are currently studying an amendment to the current legislation that could help these people in buying and transferring property.
Most trapped buyers are unable to obtain title deeds because developers have mortgaged the land to a bank. This led buyers, unaware of this situation, to purchase property on this mortgaged land, paying in full for its value. However, they were denied title deeds, which put them in a difficult position. In other cases, title deeds were not issued due to violations by developers not complying with building permits.
Tsiridu noted that resolving the long-standing problem is a prerequisite for the recovery scheme and the sustainability of the real estate market. “This bill does not completely address the issue of trapped buyers, whether it be because buyers are trapped by mortgages or other illegal activities, but these are changes in the right direction. We are discussing this to see if we can improve the process.” She added that this issue will be discussed again at the committee level with the participation of people who can help create the best conditions for buyers.
Asked to comment on the severity of the problem, Ciridu said nearly 100,000 buyers were trapped, and most of them were trapped for reasons other than mortgages. She added that there are daily complaints from members of the public who have been trying to fix the problem for decades without success. “We hope to see this issue holistically along with statistics and learn how best to apply the law. Wherever there might be a gap, we want to add whatever is needed as a parliament.”
MP Aristos Damianou described the issue as “a scourge suffered by thousands of Cypriot citizens, as well as third-country nationals, due to the bad and wrongful acts that have been committed by banks and developers.” The deputy added that the committee discussed an additional bill developed by the government, the purpose of which is to adopt a number of new provisions on the procedure for obtaining and transferring property documents.
Akel expressed some concern, while the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of the Interior took on the role of studying this issue.
MP Diko Panikos Leonidou said that the amendment to the law would be a positive contribution to solving the problem, but there were still some gaps that could be addressed. He explained that a current account can only be useful if there is an agreement and if 95% of the payment has been transferred to the bank. Otherwise, problems may arise.
“The purpose of the bill is to prevent other buyers from being trapped, but we need to make sure there is no abuse in the resulting system.”
