First Vice-Chairperson of the Real Estate Development and Contracting Committee at Egyptian Businessmen Association (EBA) Alaa Fekry stated that 95% of real estate in Egypt is not registered. This has affected real estate wealth and the possibility of preparing a strong database in the local market that in turn contributes to achieving many of the goals the state aspires to, which include exporting property and attracting foreign investments to the market.
Fekry said that bureaucracy and lengthy procedures were one of the main reasons for not registering, and highlighted the importance of confronting these obstacles and developing solutions to them. Accordingly, some procedures have been taken recently after amending some laws, including the issuance of Law No. 9/2022 amending some provisions of Law No. 114/1946 regulating real estate registration, and Law No. 177/2022.
He added that the real estate market needs an integrated online system at the latest level, which in turn organizes all real estate transactions and monitors buying and selling dealings and projects available in the local market, which in turn creates a database that contributes to preserving real estate wealth.
He elaborated that the current period requires a revolution in procedures and the final elimination of bureaucracy just as the New Urban Communities Authority developed land sale system, and this reflected positively on the real estate sector.
“We need to facilitate procedures and change the ideas of some employees, which have contributed over the past years to limiting the use of facilities granted by the state to create an attractive investment climate. Moreover, facilitating land registration procedures will have an important role in easing the buyer’s task in registering units,” Fekry noted.
Additionally, the most important ingredients for the success of real estate export is the existence of a database that shows size of the market, number of projects and opportunities, which is achieved by creating a strong system for registration, and data facilitates studies for developers to ensure the completion of a successful project, he disclosed.
He concluded that digitizing property documents through a government database gains the confidence of foreign buyers through which trading takes place, as well as the transfer of ownership to foreign buyers in a very short period.
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