The parliamentary economic committee has approved a new amendment to the Investment Law on Monday.
The amendment, submitted by MP Mohamed Akkad and 60 other parliament members, stipulates the adoption of Egyptian criteria for real estate appraisal and the assignment of property or land valuation process to real estate appraisal experts accredited by the Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA). That is in the case of the establishment of investment projects.
A real estate source told Daily News Egypt that the new amendment will serve the state’s interests in some areas that witness great demand, as the real estate appraisal is expected to increase the prices of the new areas in which the government operates, such as New Alamein, New Administrative Capital, and New Mansoura.
The expected hike in property valuation will come as a result to the recent and upcoming increase in fuel and construction material prices.
He noted that the new amendment would also increase the demand on areas that suffered low demand before as the prices of neighbouring areas will increase.
For example, if prices in Ain Sokhna increased, it will motivate customers to buy in other nearby areas, such as Ras Sedr. Moreover, the real estate prices in New Cairo are unreasonably high, so appraisers may devaluate its property prices to encourage sales movement in other areas.
Article 64 of the current investment law stipulates, “In application of the provisions of this Chapter, the sale price, rent, or consideration of usufruct shall be estimated by one of these entities: General Authority of Government Services, Supreme Committee for Pricing of State-Owned Lands at the Ministry of Agriculture, New Urban Communities Authority, Tourism Development Authority, and the Industrial Development Authority, based on the nature of the target activity.”
Meanwhile, the new amendment stipulates that the appraisal agency is committed to adopting the Egyptian standards of real estate appraisal. This includes representatives of experienced members from the evaluation committees of real estate appraisers registered in the FRA. It also includes the completion of the appraisal within a period not exceeding 30 days from the date of submission of a request.
