Why not a condominium? |07 May 2020

To cater to the housing needs of different applicants while taking into account their current means, the Ministry of Habitat, Infrastructure and Land Transport (MHILT) through the housing department continues to improve and launch various housing products guided by respective policies to meet demands of various group of applicants.

Statistics from the ministry shows that among 3500 active housing applicants, more than 150 of those applicants earn a salary above R20,000. To ensure that such applicants are not left behind while managing the high demand for social housing, the condominium housing product was introduced. The ‘Condominium Allocation Policy’ clearly states the different criteria as to who can apply for a condominium and lays down a framework and guideline for the allocation of those units. To date, 42 condominium units at Union Vale have been made available to several Seychellois graduates.

As a means of finding alternative solutions to accelerate the provision of such housing products at an affordable rate to the graduates and young Seychellois professionals, the ministry engaged in a public-private partnership (PPP) with Green Tree Investment Company. An investment company created by Green Island Construction Company (GICC) – a subsidiary of IDC – to facilitate the condominium project in partnership with the MHILT. The project was baptised ‘Perseverance Point Condominiums’ following the government’s decision to make available land at Ile Perseverance for such a condominium project. The entire Perseverance Point Condominiums development project will consist of a total of 100 units under this partnership, with 50 two-bedroom and 50 three-bedroom apartments. Each block will have 10 units, therefore there will be 5 equal blocks of two and three-bedroom apartments.

On its part, GICC is responsible to market the condominium project by providing information to potential buyers from whom it also accepts applications. All applications are forwarded to the housing department for processing. Once the ministry gives endorsement for the applications as per the Condominium Allocation policy, the list of approved candidates is then returned to GICC. The staff of GICC meets the successful applicants to undertake necessary formalities for the payment of the units and undergo the signing of necessary agreements. The payment received from the applicants is also used to finance the construction of the units. Any new applications for a condominium under the GICC programme are enlisted for future phases of the remaining unconstructed units.

Since its inception, the Ile Perseverance Point Condominium project located on the northern side of Ile Perseverance on parcel H10952, bordering the lagoon facing Ile Aurore, a first block comprising 10 three-bedroom units is now home to ten successful applicants since August 2018.

In June 2020 a second block, also comprising three-bedroom units, is scheduled to be handed over to successful applicants while a first two-bedroom block is expected to be delivered towards the end of 2020.

The first 10 three-bedroom units were sold at R1.5 million while the two-bedroom unit will be sold for R1.2 million.

According to GICC, to date, 20 three-bedroom units and 10 two-bedroom units for professionals have already been sold. The graduates and young professionals being first-time home buyers are benefiting from a high-quality product at a subsidised price.

Furthermore, the partnership eases the pressure off the government who would have otherwise been burdened to finance the construction of housing for this target group from its capital budget.

As announced by President Danny Faure in his State-of-the-Nation address in February 2020, the government will also make available 42 condominium apartments located at Ile Perseverance 2, to be purchased from the Pension Fund. Subsequently, one site has been identified for the construction of 32 condominium units at Barbarons with an equal number of two and three bedrooms. It is projected that during the next three to four years, the ministry will make available a total of 102 condominium units. The target group will be first time buyers, mostly professionals, and graduates with the financial ability to meet the requirements of personal contributions. These endeavours towards addressing housing demand of various groups of the society are line with the government’s 2033 vision for the housing sector to achieve a dynamic real estate sector driven by the private sector and sorted by the government that delivers affordable diverse and quality homes.

Contributed by the Ministry of Habitat, Infrastructure and Land Transport

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