Ali: Real estate agents among those involved in ‘elaborate schemes’ to sell house lots unlawfully

As the government hopes to realise ambitious housing targets, one growing issue is the unlawful sale of house lots, President Dr. Irfaan Ali told reporters on Friday.

“Many times, the Ministry of Housing has to deal with elaborate schemes where people are selling house lots and all of these things.

“So in the future, and planning ahead, more emphasis will be placed on the actual construction of homes,” President Ali said at a press conference hosted at the State House in New Amsterdam, Region Six (East Berbice- Corentyne).

The Head of State said this while addressing challenges to the government’s nationwide housing programme.

In fact, housing issues were aplenty at Dr. Ali’s two-day outreach in Berbice. This prompted the President to directly intervene in some issues.

Ultimately, however, he acknowledged that the Ministry of Housing and Water is confronted by a tall task of executing the government’s housing agenda while grappling with these schemes.

The problematic sale of house lots is becoming increasingly prevalent in Region Four (Demerara- Mahaica).

“We have seen real estate agents and agencies are part of the problem…and it is becoming, I would say, a major issue on the Linden Soesdyke Highway because of the value and the now greater net realisable value of the land on the highway,” Dr. Ali explained.

What happens there, in many cases, is that lands leased by the Guyana Lands and Survey Commission (GL&SC) are sold.

He, however, assured people that the government is keen on countering this growing issue. Offering people more completed houses, instead of land allocations, is viewed as one solution to the problem.