Brief:
On January 26, 2015, the Ministry of Justice opened a forum of realtors and owners of real estate offices licensed in Qatar offering a draft of the new real estate brokerage law (the "Bill") to receive opinions and suggestions on the Bill, and debate the most effective ways to promote the profession of real estate brokerage in Qatar.
Takeaways:
The Ministry outlined the issues faced by Qatar's market currently regulated by the Real Estate Brokerage Law No. (13) of 2011 and proposed their resolve via the following agendas;
1. Formation of a specialist real estate department that will receive license applications, follow the work of real estate brokers and receive feedback, as well as receive complaints dealing with them.
2. Control of the practice of the profession in a comprehensive manner for issues such as real estate auctions, real estate valuation, and property management on behalf of others.
3. Requirement that a real estate broker be of Qatari nationality, be fully competent and of good conduct, undertake a legal oath, and pass the training courses and tests that will be placed.
4. Commitment to a series of morals in transactions such as sincerity, honesty, confidentiality, professionalism, concern for the interests of customers, and to avoid any personal interests with all the data relating to the property and maintain the integrity of the documents and the documents submitted by a client.
5. Real estate companies must be owned by a Qatari national holding 100% or no less than 51% of its capital, and its commercial activity shall be limited to real estate brokerage business without any other activity registered at the Ministry of Economy and Commerce.
6. Practice of the profession must be by a real estate broker in a full-time manner and a broker may not engage in any government or other profession that may be in conflict with realty brokerage.
7. Delegates may be employed at a realtor's corporate office according to specific controls. The Bill determines the specific number of delegates, and the nature of the work to provide assistance to the real estate broker. The Bill however, in addition to other conditions specified, denies a delegated person to undertake real estate brokerage unilaterally.
8. Disciplinary action against a real estate broker in the event a real estate broker is in violation of the Bill is also stipulated. These sanctions would be a deterrent, and deportation for non-Qataris in the event of practicing without a license.
9. Adherence to the essentials of the Bill shall grant realtor's privileges such as access to government real estate data in electronic format, and authority similar to that of the Qatari real estate registry department.
0+
