Realty meet moots speedy project approvals

It called for a system to control the supply and demand mechanism so that the building permits are granted in line with the population and economic growth

The Oman Real Estate Conference 2017 has suggested speedy approvals for development projects and allowing expatriates to own houses.

The conference, which concluded on Tuesday, put forward a number of recommendations keeping in mind the population and economic growth of the Sultanate. Recommendations include the need to evaluate the performance of Directorate-General of the Real Estate Development.

It suggested having an independent body for simplifying procedures for companies to register real estate projects. The conference said necessary approvals should be fast-tracked for implementing development projects through a one-stop system.

It suggested the speeding up of the process of setting up a legal and regulatory system for establishing investment funds and financial instruments of finance for the real estate sector.

Efforts should be made to link real estate brokerage offices online with the Ministry of Housing, Muscat Municipality, Ministry of Regional Municipalities and Water Resources and other licensing authorities. The meet recommended the establishment of a specialised institute for real estate studies to boost the sector with qualified young Omanis as statistics indicate better employment opportunities for Omani youth in the sector.

It recommended the adoption of a clear strategy to support the requirements of integrated housing complexes. The conference called for allowing expatriates to own houses keeping in mind the interests of all parties.

It called for a system to control the supply and demand mechanism so that the building permits are granted in line with the population and economic growth. It called for supporting the National Centre for Statistics and Information to launch the real estate index because of its importance in maintaining price stability.