Minister stresses need for Title Deed solution

Nigel Howarth
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15
Neoclis Sylikiotis
Neoclis Sylikiotis the Cyprus Minister of the Interior - Source: sigmalive.com

INTERIOR Minister Neoclis Sylikiotis has called on everyone involved in the private and public sectors to work together to resolve the problems of withheld Title Deeds.

The problems, which affect tens of thousands of property buyers, have severely damaged the Islands’ reputation as a reliable place for overseas property investment and has contributed to the dramatic reduction in sales in recent years.

SPEAKING to a packed audience at the Palia Elektriki Cultural Centre in Paphos, Minister Sylikiotis said:

“This matter has, not without reason, challenged Cyprus real estate in recent years.

We are trying, after many debates and delays in the House of Representatives, to amend planning and building laws. With the enactment of new laws, the burden of responsibility will shift to the shoulders of us all; the relevant town planning and building authorities, local authorities, business development, engineering consultants and buyers alike, for preparing and submitting all necessary documents for transfer of deeds.

I urge all stakeholders to rise to the occasion and to act with prudence, flexibility and openness to restore the good name of our property sector.”

The most severe of the problems are “hidden mortgages” taken out by developers on properties they have subsequently sold and, in many cases, that have been paid for in full. These mortgages prevent buyers obtaining Title Deeds – and they also face the very real threat of losing their homes if the bank forecloses on the mortgages or if the development company fails.

A number of property development companies in Paphos, Nicosia and the Paralimni area have already collapsed, leaving hundreds home buyers to the mercy of the banks.

Simplifying co-ownership on property

Editorial
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7

THE HOUSE Legal Affairs Committee is examining a law proposal that will enable owners of a co-owned plot to develop their share of it as they wish, without having to present the signatures of the remainder of the co-owners.

The proposal, which was tabled by Committee Chairman, DISY’s Ionas Nicolaou, will be led to the Plenum soon, he said yesterday.

Until now, if a plot was co-owned, for someone to build in his part of the land, he would have to seek the approval of the other owners, otherwise the Town Planning Department would not grant authorisation.

But with the new law, which Nicolaou said had secured the approval of Town Planning and the Cyprus Land Registry Office yesterday, people will be able to develop without needing the co-owners’ signatures.

Bank starts action against developers and buyers

Nigel Howarth
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19

TODAY’S Cyprus Mail carried five notices advising that Alpha Bank Cyprus had started legal proceedings against three property developers and seven of their clients in matters involving the non-payment of Swiss Franc mortgages.

This first notice, No. 1499/10, names the defendants as:

  1. Bashir-Aboularhim Mochameo Mussa (Passport No. AB 110438), from Paphos
  2. Alpha Panareti Public Ltd of Paphos

The Paphos court orders that the defendant 1 files an appearance within 30 days from the publication date.

The second notice, No. 1565/10, names the defendants as:

  1. Martin Jeremy Rhodes (Passport No. GB304290956), from Paphos
  2. Raymond Maplethorpe (Passport No. GB650204983), from Paphos
  3. G & V Hadjidemosthenous Ltd

The Paphos court orders that the defendants 1 and 2 file an appearance within 30 days from the publication date.

The third notice, No 2692/10, names the defendants as:

  1. Benjamin Mark McGann (Passport No. 019373617), from Paphos
  2. Ruth Olivia Rachel McGann, from Paphos
  3. Alpha Panareti Public Ltd of Paphos

The Paphos court orders that the defendants 1 and 2 to file an appearance after the service of the writ of summons.

The fourth notice, No. 1671/10, names the defendants as:

  1. Christopher Manning (Passport No. GB800341271), from United Kingdom or Paphos
  2. Roseann Manning (Passport No. 800341270), from United Kingdom or Paphos
  3. J. Aristodemou Ideal Homes Ltd (Reg. No. 31893), from Paphos

The Paphos court orders that the defendants 1 and 2 file an appearance within 30 days from the publication date.

The fifth notice, No. 2883/10, names the defendants as:

  1. Raymond Maplethorpe (Passport No. 650204983), from Paphos
  2. Lisa Julie Maplethorpe (Passport No. 650638150), from Paphos

The Paphos court gives instructions that defendants 1 and 2 Respondents file an appearance within 30 days from the publication date.

In all the above notices, Alpha Bank Cyprus Ltd is named as the plaintiff.

These are the first stages in legal proceedings that may result in those named losing their homes in Cyprus. There is a strong possibility that they may not have read the notices, which were published in today’s Cyprus Mail, particularly if they are presently living in the UK.

Can you help?

If anyone know the whereabouts of Bashir-Aboularhim Mochameo Mussa, Martin Jeremy Rhodes, Raymond Maplethorpe, Lisa Julie Maplethorpe, Benjamin Mark McGann, Ruth Olivia Rachel McGann, Christopher Manning or Roseann Manning, will you please advise them of the situation and get them to contact their lawyer in Cyprus without delay.

Should they fail to comply with the court order and the court subsequently rules in favour of the plaintiff, Alpha Bank Cyprus Ltd, there is a risk that the Bank may seek to have that judgement enforced in the UK.

If a judgement is obtained in Cyprus it can be enforced in the UK automatically. I.e. there will be no opportunity to reconsider the merits of the case in the UK court; it will simply be enforced.

Appeal filed against Conor O’Dwyer ruling

Nigel Howarth
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8

LAWYER Yiannos Georgiades, acting for Conor O’Dwyer, confirmed to the Cyprus Property News Magazine that an appeal has been filed against the court ruling last month that cleared property developer Karayiannas and Michelle McDonald of any wrongdoing.

The long awaited verdict from the court has caused many people to doubt the protection afforded to those buying property on the Island.

According to the Island’s ‘Specific Performance Law’, the deposit of a contact of sale at a Land Registry prevents a property from being sold for a second time. The contract can only be withdrawn from the Land Registry with the agreement of the vendor (Karayiannas) and the purchaser (Mr O’Dwyer) – or by a court order.

In the O’Dwyer case, the judge accepted that Mr O’Dwyer’s contract had been lodged with the Land Registry and that the developer had resold the property to someone else without O’Dwyer’s consent or a court order instructing the Land Registry to remove his contract.

Successive Governments have promised to revise the Island’s antiquated property laws to provide those buying property with added protection.

In July 2009 the Interior Minister Neoclis Sylikiotis issued a statement that included the following:

“Despite our determination to cut this Gordian knot with the introduction of new legislation for the improvement and reformation of the planning system, as well as the system of issuing property titles, it must be clarified here that even the current system and the existing legislation protects buyers and their ownership status.”

Also in July 2009 the Permanent Secretary of the Interior Ministry wrote to Graham Watson MEP assuring him that:

“It is worth repeating that even under current legislation, buyers of immovable property are protected, once they deposit the Contract for Sale at the appropriate District Office of the Department of Lands and Surveys according to the Sale of Lands (Specific Performance) Law, Cap.232.”

However, the judge’s ruling the O’Dwyer’s case seems to contradict government assurances, as she did not believe that submission of a sales contract to the Land Registry was enough to guarantee a person’s property rights. As well as finding in favour of the defendants, she also ordered Mr O’Dwyer to pay their costs.

No date has been set for the appeal to be heard.

O’Dwyer decision another nail in the coffin

Editorial
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18

ALTHOUGH we are not legal experts and cannot express an informed opinion on the legal intricacies of court cases, there is a point raised in the judgement of the Conor O’Dwyer vs Karayiannas Developers case that makes no sense at all.

In her judgment, the judge noted that “the fact they (plaintiffs) submitted a sales contract to the Land Registry did not mean they automatically and in perpetuity have become the ‘owners’ (as they mean it) of the residence.”

This is a bewildering view that would suggest that the irrevocable right to property is not protected by the law in Cyprus. If a sales contract for a property that is submitted to the Land Registry does not mean the buyer has become the owner in perpetuity, then we have a serious problem with our laws.

How and when would a buyer become the legal owner of a piece of real estate in perpetuity? Are we to believe that our law does not always safeguard the right to ownership of property?

These are very important questions that nobody should be asking in a country in which there is rule of law. The protection of property rights is one of the fundamental principles on which democracies are built. Yet the judge in the above-mentioned case did not believe that submission of a sales contract to the Land Registry was enough to guarantee a person’s property rights. If this is the case, and the judge understands the law better than us, people should be told how their property rights are protected when they buy real estate.

Until this judgment was issued, most people were under the impression that once a sales contract was submitted to the land registry, the ownership of the buyer was indisputable. There is a Supreme Court decision supporting this position, but the judge in the O’Dwyer case either disagreed with it or was not aware of it. Whatever her reasons, her decision was another nail in the coffin of the Cyprus property market, as it served to reinforce the widely held view among foreigner buyers that Cyprus law offers little protection to property buyers.

There could not have been a worse advertisement for the Cyprus property market than this decision. When a judge rules that not even submission of a sales contract to the Land Registry safeguards property rights, what foreigner, in his right mind, would consider buying a holiday home in Cyprus?

Nail in the coffin

City law firm to protect Cyprus buyers rights

Nigel Howarth
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35

MANY people have run into problems when purchasing property in Cyprus because they have been given bad or misleading advice.

Healys LLP, a leading UK law firm in the City of London, has teamed up with the Cyprus law firm L.G Zambartas LLC, to advise on claims of mis-selling.

London

Healys LLP

Press Release

City Law Firm Healys LLP to Protect Rights of Cyprus Property Buyers

City law firm Healys LLP has announced that it will be working in association with leading Limassol based Cyprus firm L.G Zambartas LLC to advise on claims of misselling in the Cyprus property market.

The arrangement is part of the drive by Healys to become the leading UK firm to offer legal services to the Cyprus market in conjunction with its Cyprus contacts.

Chris Christofi, Healys’ Partner at the Cyprus and International desk said

”We are taking this step now because of the large number of enquiries we are receiving both from UK based buyers and also from Cyprus. In particular we are concerned that misleading advice is being circulated to buyers and who are often finding themselves in difficulties on their purchase through no fault of their own.”

He added

“We hope to work closely with all interested parties within Cyprus so as to avoid the exploitation of these vulnerable people. A healthy and buoyant property market is essential to the economic and political well being of the Republic Cyprus, and we feel that through our involvement we can help restore the integrity of the Cyprus property market.”

Healys LLP

76 Shoe Lane
London EC4A 3JB
T 0207 822 4000
www.healys.com

Direct Email: [email protected]

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