The Ministry of Housing has authorized 29 of its employees to serve as enforcement officers for violations of regulations governing the sale and lease of off-plan real estate units in the Kingdom, in order to strengthen oversight of real estate development projects in accordance with the Cabinet’s decision regarding the regulation of off-plan sales and leasing activities.

Mohammed bin Saud Al-Ghazwani, Secretary-General of the Off-Plan Sales and Leasing Committee, explained that the decision grants enforcement officers the authority to enter project sites and seize related documents, records, and evidence, and grants them the authority to call upon security personnel if necessary. He noted that the enforcement officers are deployed across various regions of the Kingdom as part of the Ministry of Housing’s regulatory role regarding off-plan real estate projects.

Al-Ghazwani confirmed that the enforcement officers have completed training courses through the “Wafi” to familiarize themselves with the mechanisms, systems, and regulations governing the licensing and oversight of real estate development projects that engage in the sale, marketing, or display of off-plan real estate units, noting that the course covered the instructions and controls of the off-plan sales and leasing program, as well as the frameworks and parameters governing it, as well as the conditions and requirements for granting licenses, the rights of beneficiaries, and the penalties for violations, including referral to the Public Prosecution.

He emphasized the importance of implementing the principles of oversight, compliance, and monitoring in one of the most critical sectors that contributes to providing suitable options for those wishing to own residential units in this type of real estate development project, through inspectors and staff qualified to perform this role and enforce thesystem that safeguards the rights of all parties.

It is worth noting that the enforcement and oversight teams supervising off-plan sales and leasing projects have suspended more than 40 non-compliant real estate projects over the past six months through a number of inspection tours and complaints received by the “Wafi” program via its website, as well as through the phone number 920004831 and various social media platforms.