Good deals on flooded houses

Good deals on flooded houses

Damar Harsanto and Debbie A. Lubis, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

After the recent floods, many residents of Jakarta and its
surrounding areas, traumatized by the deluge and concerned
similar floods may reoccur in the near future, appear to be
determined to say goodbye to their properties.

Notices reading "House for sale" can be seen in front of many
properties in the areas hit by the floods.

And for those interested in the houses and unconcerned about
the floods, the prices are really cheap.

For instance, Rachmawati, 65, a resident of Kelapa Gading,
North Jakarta, whose house was flooded up to 1.5 meters deep, was
ready to sell her house 40 percent cheaper than its selling price
several years ago.

"I want to sell as soon as possible, even at a low price.
I want to move to an area which does not flood.

"I bought it at Rp 500 million a couple years ago, but now if
someone has Rp 300 million cash, I'll let go of the house," she
said.

She and her maid were trapped on the second floor of the house
during the floods, without food and clean water for days.

Meanwhile, Susi, a resident of Bintaro, in Tangerang said that
she wanted to sell her house as she feared more serious floods.

"The price is Rp 575 million cash. But, don't worry it's
negotiable," Susi said, adding that she bought the house at a
higher price several years ago.

According to Susi, the recent floods did not reach her house
but her neighbors' houses which are ten meters away.

"But had larger floods come, it would have swamped my house.
That's why I am willing to sell," Susi said.

Property consultant Era Prima said many flood victims are now
opting to sell their homes and move to safer places, causing
property prices in flood-prone areas to drop and flood-free areas
to increase.

"Flood victims are ready to abandon their houses and offer
them for sale at lower than the market prices -- around 20
percent to 30 percent less. But if they really want to move as
soon as possible, they will let go of their houses for a price at
40 percent below the market price," Era Prima director Paternus
told The Jakarta Post over the weekend.

The company is located in Pluit, an area which was badly hit
by the recent floods.

He added those people are now planning to move to the South
Jakarta areas that are free from floods such as Kebayoran Baru
and Pondok Indah. He predicted that housing prices in those areas
would increase significantly.

Ipung Rachmaningtyas, research manager of property consultant
Koll IPAC, said many flood victims were now looking for
properties in Cibubur and Depok areas, which were completely
untouched by the recent floods.

Meanwhile, a senior official of the Indonesian Consumers
Foundation (YLKI) said house owners could sue their housing
developers for failing to guarantee that their properties were
free from floods.

If house owners have purchasing agreements which clearly
stipulate that their houses will be free from floods, home owners
can use the documents to support their lawsuit, YLKI law expert
Sudaryatmo said.

However, in case there is no such document, house owners can
use the developers' marketing brochures as evidence.

"The lawsuit will be strong if there is purchasing agreement
mentioning the free-flood guarantee. But, the fact is that no
developers put the guarantee clause in the sales and purchase
documents," he said.

"In that case, house owners can use brochures or other
evidence to show that the developers have assured them that the
residential areas will not be affected by floods," Sudaryatmo
said.