Post-Completion Sale System for Stores and Officetels May be Implemented This Year

At the earliest, a post-completion sale system affecting stores and officetels will be implemented before the end of the year.

The Ministry of Construction and Transportation announced June 6 that a bill regulating building sales that was recently confirmed by the cabinet council will be submitted to the National Assembly within a month. It could be enacted into law in the latter part of this year or at the latest in early 2005, since the waiting period after announcement is typically six months.

The MCT bill specifies that the sale of stores and officetels larger than 3,000 square meters should be carried out after completing two-thirds of the entire framework and the formal submission of reports to the relevant municipal offices. However, in case the builder makes a contract with the trust executors who oversee the premise and capital management or pays guarantee money amounting to one to three percent of the total construction fund, to the insurance companies, sales can be carried out simultaneously with the report of starting of work.

In addition, the government declared that in the case of large-scale construction work, the rights of ground possession should be secured before the report of sales. Advertising must state clearly whether or not the construction work is officially permitted and the rights of ground possession are secured. The contract document must also specify the location of the construction site, scheduled completion day, floor space, and means of payment.

Although the MCT originally planned to initiate the bill in July, a six-month delay in National Assembly proceedings has moved the timetable forward.

Kwang-Hyun Kim kkh@donga.com