Apartment owners in an urban-renewal project that's stuck and going nowhere? Want to break free of an agreement with a foot-dragging developer? The significant new legislative amendment for urban-renewal projects is exactly for you.
Owners who find themselves bound in a contract with a developer — in pinui-binui as well as TAMA 38 and its alternatives — can now cancel the engagement if, over the years, the developer fails (and in some cases doesn't try, or doesn't want) to advance the project. That ability opens the door to advancing renewal with a different developer.
So when may owners cancel an urban-renewal agreement?
Under the amendment, in stuck projects a majority of the building's owners — including an owner who never signed the renewal deal — may resolve to cancel the transactions signed between the owners and the developer. Cancellation is available where the developer failed to complete signatures with the required majority by the statutory deadline, or failed to advance the pinui-binui plan at the planning institution, or failed to advance the building permit within the statutory timeframes.
The majorities and the deadlines, by track
- TAMA/reinforcement track: the developer did not reach 50% of owners within 18 months of the first signed deal, or 67% within 36 months.
- TAMA/reinforcement track: the developer did not file a permit application with the competent planning institution within 42 months of the first signed reinforcement deal.
- Pinui-binui track: the developer did not reach 50% of owners within 24 months of the first signed deal, or 60% within 48 months.
- Pinui-binui track: the developer did not file a pinui-binui plan with a planning institution within 54 months of the first signed deal.
What does cancellation mean? Is the developer entitled to anything?
An owner who cancels in these circumstances — after a resolution of the owners' majority at a general meeting and notice to the developer — is not treated as breaching the agreement. The developer, however, will be entitled to payment for the investment made in the project so far (likely borne by the incoming developer); the amount, a kind of expense reimbursement, is to be set by the Minister of Justice after consultation with the professional bodies.
Your building is caught in a project that hasn't moved for years — or you haven't started and want to set renewal in motion? We represent hundreds of apartment owners from the idea stage to the key.
The above is initial information only and does not constitute legal advice or a substitute for it. Consult an attorney specializing in the field before taking any action.
A question about this in your own file? Write to us — you will get an answer on the merits, not a brochure.
General information — not legal advice.