Aggrieved house buyers can also turn to civil court, says lawyer

 

House buyers not satisfied with their units can seek remedies not only at a housing tribunal but also at the civil courts, a lawyer says.

PETALING JAYA: House buyers who feel aggrieved for not getting what they were promised could go to the Sessions Court to seek remedies, a lawyer said.

Jadadish Chandra said the civil courts had jurisdiction and power to grant relief for breach of contract of up to RM1 million compared to a housing tribunal which could only allow maximum compensation of RM50,000.

“The Sessions Court could also vary an agreement, depending on how the plaintiff pleads his or her case,” Jadadish told FMT.

Further, he said, buyers had more latitude in relying on the existence of a collateral contract, apart from the usual sale and purchase agreements that they would have signed.

“One could rely on the scale model of a house or condominium unit on display in the showroom if it was found to be different as stated in the agreement,” he said.

He also said the civil courts were not as constrained as the housing tribunal, “which is a creature of a specific statute”.

Jadadish was responding to a Federal Court ruling last week which held that a housing tribunal could only decide on disputes between purchasers and developers as expressly stated in the sale and purchase agreements.

The court said it could not be based on the buyer’s expectation of the unit purchased corresponding with a display model at the developer’s showroom.

The three-member bench chaired by Zaleha Yusof also said a purchaser was prevented from making any claims before a tribunal against the developer if they had taken vacant possession and renovated the unit.

The bench, which also comprised Zabariah Mohd Yusof and Rhodzariah Bujang, made these judicial pronouncements in allowing an appeal by Johor-based property developer Country Garden Danga Bay Sdn Bhd (CGDB).

The developer had appealed against a compensation award to the buyer of a RM1.6 million condominium apartment who said it had delivered the premises without a sheltered balcony.

Ho Chee Kian, a Singaporean, was handed the keys to the apartment in 2017.

The housing tribunal in Johor Bahru awarded Ho compensation of RM50,000 in 2018 although he had renovated his property.

CGDB applied for a judicial review but lost in the High Court and Court of Appeal. - FMT