Purchasing of property

My wife and I, Johan and Liluth have bought a new property from a prominent developer here in Mauritius and are about to take possession to live here permanently The property is exclusive and expensive. Our problem is that the finishes and workmanship inside the property is beyond poor and unacceptable. Is there any Government or regulatory body who we can turn to.


The problem is that the finishes, tiling, painting etc, is exceptionally poor. What kind of recourse is available against the developer.


Johan K

Hello Johan K,


You may contact the Construction Industry Development Board :


https://www.cidb.mu/quick-access/com


https://www.cidb.mu/about-the-cidb-page


Regards

Bhavna

Thank you Bhavna

Hello Johan K


i dont think CIDB can help you so far, they can intervenne in construction phase, Contractor v/s Client in contract or breach of Contract.

however i know the promotor should give you a guarantee of 10years in Structure of building,

you can seak a help of a Quantity Survyor, to assess the defctive works, and back claim to promotor, or if your house is insured you can claim for reparation works.

try to inquire more about.

Hello Johan


Indeed, regulatory bodies cant be of much help in resolving quality issues.

Your recourse is your deed of sale and the conditions included therein. You have bought off-plan which means your contract conditions are based on the Mauritian civil code - this allows for the following:

  • a 2 year warranty on defects
  • 10 year warranty on structure.

If you are about to take delivery, has the developer has notified you to pay the balance of 5% and key handover?


If yes, I recommend that you appoint a qualified professional who can do a proper and technical quality inspection. There is a process of establishing a 'reservations list' etc. It's unfortunately a tedious process, but can be addressed.


I have been through this extensively and can assist further.   

@Anandcyp This is interesting news. Of course before buying any property, expat or not, you should carefully research the developer and builder - these are statutorily listed.


Sadly, I have discovered  that for PDS and other expat properties, it is  hard to get info out of many immobiliers ( real estate agents) apart from what they want to sell. However the legal listings must include the builder, architect, developer etc information.


I actually used an AI site (Bard) to get info on some Mauritian properties that no agent was unwilling or unable to tell me ( i.e historical price at off-plan launch, developer and so on). It was an eye opener.