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Highly taken up-badly let down
By Teles Anandappa
Despite people paying colossal amounts to purchase apartments to have a comfortable abode to relax in, with maximum security, it seems some of them are not getting their money’s worth from most of the developers.

A joint venture project of the National Housing Development Authority (NHDA) and the Urban Development Authority (UDA) known as the Ocean View Development (Pvt) Ltd. at Park Road housing complex is one of the locations where some of those who paid huge sums are being put into inconvenience, a resident claimed.

The resident told The Sunday Times that she made a down payment of Rs 700.000 and made reservations for the apartment which was to be handed over to her for occupation in the year 2005. The plans presented to all prospective buyers stipulated that they would be given garage space at ground level for an additional payment when all the apartments were completed. They were also promised a waterproof and heatproof roofing in addition to a standby generator, three phase electricity, an inverter to illuminate the common area in case of a power failure and a modern pantry, but none of these were made available.

She said that though the original bill stated that Ocean View Developers will receive a 10% commission on its expenses, after the apartments were completed the final bill included a 20% charge from the company to the buyer.
She claimed the company produced a declaration which amounted to giving up all the rights which a buyer was entitled to, and wanted it signed, but many of the buyers including herself refused to sign it.

She said that as a result the company representatives had padlocked her apartment to prevent her occupying it. “The company then wanted me to pay Rs. 7 million within three days. With the greatest of difficulty I managed to raise the money. They on the excuse that I had left the keys with the caretaker I was told none of the complaints made by me in regard to the shortcomings of the apartment could be attended to”, she said.

She also said that there was no provision for disposal of garbage, no fire escape, no security and no management committee, as promised earlier.
Furthermore she said that though the company had originally agreed to give prospective buyers garage space on the ground floor this space had now been advertised for sale to open shops.

When The Sunday Times contacted an official of Ocean View Developers he said he could not comment on the matter at the moment.

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