Real Estate Developers Urged to Register to Avoid Penalties

Real estate developers are being urged to seek authorisation before executing projects to avoid stringent penalties, including imprisonment.

Acting Chief Operating Officer of the Real Estate Board (REB)/Commission of Strata Corporations (CSC), Cresfroid Brown, made the appeal recently while speaking with JIS News.

The call specially applies to practitioners engaging in more than one development over a 24-month period and those pursuing projects involving more than five lots or units.

Failing to register is a criminal offence under the Real Estate (Dealers and Developers) Act (REDDA). The Act considers developers as persons engaged in the business of development of land, whether in part or whole.

“The application process is not difficult, and there are actual benefits from being a registered developer, as you can legally collect money prior to the scheme being complete,” he said.

Getting registered as a developer involves paying the requisite fee, obtaining the necessary approval from a municipal corporation, and providing evidence of secured funding for the project.

Registration should also be renewed annually on April 1.

Mr. Brown said the REB will continue to employ a proactive approach in reaching out to developers and encouraging them to abide by the rules.

This, he said, has resulted in several more persons becoming authorised, and a minority being prosecuted for non-compliance.

“We want developers to understand that we are here to regulate the industry. We need them in terms of the business they provide, as they add to national development… but it’s better to comply than hide,” Mr. Brown said.

More information on the registration process for developers can be found on the REB’s website at www.reb.gov.jm.