Emaar owes $15m,' say Pakistani investors
Emaar Pakistan, a subsidiary of Dubai-based property developer Emaar Properties, is in a dispute with investors who claim they are owed more than $15m after buying off-plan properties in its stalled project in Karachi.
Emaar launched the Crescent Bay mixed-use community in July, 2008, as part of its multi-billion dollar investment into the country.
The 108-acre development was due to be built with the Pakistani Defence Housing Authority (DHA) and completed by 2013-14, featuring high and mid-rise towers for residential and commercial use, a shopping centre and five-star beachfront hotel.
However, construction is still yet to start.
The delay led investors to stop paying instalments on their properties, eventually causing Emaar to cancel their contracts until a Pakistani court issued a stay order on the bookings, preventing them from being cancelled.
About 300 investors claim Emaar, which built the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest tower, abandoned the project, making it liable to refund their deposits plus interest at a rate of 12-17 percent, as well as pay 10 percent compensation. The amount claimed totals Rs1.5bn (US$15.2m).
http://www.arabianbusiness.com/-emaar-owes-15m-say-pakistani-investors-498686.html#.VFdVHTTF9nH
500cr scam: Emaar MGF dupes 560 buyers
It may well go down as one of the biggest real estate scams in the country. The controversial Commonwealth Games village builder, Emaar MGF, has fraudulently sold off over 560 plots it did not own to unsuspecting buyers in Mohali (Punjab). The land, sold from 2006 on, is still owned by local farmers. The market value of these plots is estimated at Rs.500 crore.
Located in three Greater Mohali sectors — 105, 108 and 109 — just 4 km from the international cricket stadium in Mohali, these plots have been sold to gullible buyers, allegedly in connivance with the Punjab Housing Department officials and the police.
The market value for a 300 sq yard plot is around Rs.75 lakh, while a 500 sq yard plot costs up to Rs.1.5 crore.
Interestingly, the scam has been in the knowledge of some top officials close to both the Capt. Amarinder Singh Government as well as the Badal regime, but no action was taken against the company purportedly due to the developer’s proximity with political leaders.
Although about 90 per cent of the buyers of these plots have paid full amount to Emaar MGF during the past six years, they have yet not been given possession since the title of the land does not exist in the name of the company, revealed documents in possession of Daily Post.
A 7-point questionnaire was mailed to the company’s local representative, Ragini Gulati, on October 27, 2011. Despite repeated calls, no response was received till date.
Punjab’s Chief Town Planner (CTP) Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal, when contacted, said the company played mischief in the beginning by not informing the government that large chunks of land shown in the township plan did not belong to it. He said what the company did was illegal and immoral. “No company can sell plots if it does not own it. When it came to my notice, I took a stand against the company on file,” the CTP added.
Suspecting foul play and fraud, some buyers have been running from pillar to post to secure the title, and making frantic calls to Emaar MGF to inquire about the status of the land. Little do they know that they may still not be able to easily get possession of the land they had paid for.
http://www.track2realty.com/500cr-scam-emaar-mgf-dupes-560-buyers/