Beginning in May next year, standard contracts will provide pre-sale homebuyers better protection in disputes with developers who get into financial difficulty.
In the past, disputes over sales of uncompleted housing property — known as pre-sales real estate — between developers and homebuyers occurred when residential projects scheduled to be completed by a certain date were not delivered as promised, or when developers ran out of money and collapsed.
With the introduction of official standard contracts by the Consumer Protection Commission and the Ministry of the Interior that clearly establish contract guarantees, the government hopes to minimize disputes surrounding pre-sale homes, the commission’s legal division director Chiu Hui-mei (邱惠美) said.
Real-estate developers can agree to the ministry-established contract guarantee or provide an alternative form of guarantee, as long as the developer obtains consent from the homebuyer. For instance, a developer could promise in the pre-sales real-estate contract to refund homebuyers in the event the firm fails to deliver the property.
Another alternative is for the developer and buyer to agree that the money paid by the homebuyer goes directly into a trust fund to avoid buyers running the risk of having the funds siphoned off or not returned if the terms of the sales contract are violated.
The developer could also provide contract guarantees by partnering with another developer and guaranteeing that the partner company would deliver the product in the event of bankruptcy. In return, the developer could also guarantee to deliver on the partner company’s contract in the event the partner developer goes bankrupt.
The ministry said it would begin counseling businesses, including real-estate developers and construction companies, on the new regulations.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it