Jakartans 'buy' property in Mecca<\/p>\n
Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
While Indonesian property developers are seeking support for an
\namendment to the property law in a bid to give a chance to
\nforeign nationals to own property in the country, some Jakarta
\nMuslims have set their sights on property far from home in the
\nholy land of Mecca.<\/p>\n
Only recently the Saudi Arabian government endorsed a property
\nownership scheme called Sukouk al-Intifaa (space-sharing
\nownership) designed in compliance with sharia, which allows
\nMuslims worldwide to enjoy the privilege of owning a residence in
\nMecca for 30 days in one year for 25 years at the most.<\/p>\n
The opportunity was taken by chain hotel Le Meridien, backed
\nby the royal family and Amjad holding company as developer, to
\ndevelop Le Meridien Towers Apartments in the heart of Mecca, only
\nfive minutes from the Kaaba inside the Great Mosque via King
\nAbdul Azis tunnel.<\/p>\n
The five-star serviced apartments will have 2,400 rooms in
\neight towers -- each of 20 stories, but only 1,335 suites would
\nbe available to the public worldwide.<\/p>\n
The ongoing construction is expected to be completed later
\nnext year and will be ready for occupancy in early 2007,
\naccording to the sales and marketing manager of the towers
\napartments' sole distributor PT Properti Tanah Suci, Denny
\nElvando.<\/p>\n
Since the new property scheme was launched in Jakarta last
\nSeptember, at least 100 residents have bought the ownership
\ncertificate out of the targeted 150.<\/p>\n
\"In this time of crisis, people tend to turn to God. While
\nthey are on haj pilgrimage or umroh (minor haj) pilgrimage trips,
\nthe lack of proper accommodation in Mecca has become a problem,\"
\nDenny told a press conference over the weekend.<\/p>\n
According to the company, the buyers in Jakarta had gone to
\nMecca for either haj pilgrimage or umroh -- usually during
\nRamadhan -- five times on average and they earn about Rp 300
\nmillion per year on average. Their occupations ranged from
\nbusinesspeople to government officials, said Denny.<\/p>\n
The price of the apartments begins at around US$6,000
\ndepending on the type of rooms and the period of stay of the
\nfamily package.<\/p>\n
\"Most of the buyers are in their forties. Most of them opted
\nto buy a family package for 10 days, some took the longest term
\nof 30 days to join the haj pilgrimage,\" Denny said, adding that
\nthe company would soon look for more buyers in other big cities
\nacross the city, such as Surabaya, South Sulawesi's capital city
\nMakassar and North Sumatra's capital of Medan.<\/p>\n
According to national data, at least 500,000 people from the
\ncountry, which has the world's highest Muslim population, visit
\nMecca every year including those who visit outside the haj
\nseason. The Saudi Arabian government imposes a quota of 205,000
\nIndonesians for the haj pilgrimage season each year.<\/p>\n
Buyers will have the privilege of entering Mecca during the
\nstay period they have chosen, either using the six-day package
\nfor umroh or the one month package during the haj season.<\/p>\n
They can also buy more than one Sukouk ownership certificate
\nand resell it at their own price or move their right to stay in a
\nparticular year to the following year, or \"borrow\" the right from
\ntwo years ahead to stay longer or to use more than one apartment
\nunit.<\/p>\n
\"We have also developed cooperation with the Indonesian haj
\npilgrimage trip agencies to help buyers obtain appropriate haj or
\numroh guidance services upon arrival in Mecca,\" Denny said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/jakartans-buy-property-in-mecca-1447899208",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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