PT Mitra Kusala Pertiwi

Developer PT Mitra Kusala Pertiwi's pre-sale promotion in December 1993 created my interest in acquiring one of the houses on offer at the housing exhibition sponsored by the REI (Indonesian Real Estate Association).

The house was to be located at the Pondok Indah Pancoran Mas (Poinmas), Rangkapan Jaya, Pancoran Mas, Depok.

On the basis of the purchase agreement dated Dec. 9, 1993 and legalized by Notary Public E. Sianipar, the developer agreed to hand over the house, the land and the administrative documents at the end of February 1994. The agreement also mentioned the developer's willingness to pay a fine of two percent of the total payment made for every monthly delay in the transfer of the house.

The developer made the transfer 30 months late, precisely on Nov. 5, 1996. That was the result of two years of continuous lobbing by both myself and my lawyer.

The house was unlivable. The rooftiles were not straight due to the quality of the wood supporting the roof. The house leaked. The walls were not straight either. The door and window frames made all sorts of angles due to the low quality of the wood.

The developer was elusive in his response to complaints. I decided to repair the house to make it livable. The cost was Rp 25 million, half of the price of the house.

The problem is now that the developer PT Mitra Kusala Pertiwi has not handed over the title deed and the building permits. The developer defaulted from his written commitment to submit the documents on Jan. 14, 1997 at the latest, two months after the transfer of the house. The developer also agreed to settle the matter of fines at the same time.

I am in the dark as to when the documents will be given to me. Every time I asked Mr. Iskandar Suardi, president director of PT Mitra Kusala Pertiwi, he always said that the matter was being settled with the Bogor Land Agency, Mrs. Masnah Sari's notary office in Bogor, the Public Works office of Bogor regency, the Bogor branch of Bank Tabungan Negara and several other offices and agencies.

I am writing this letter because the problem of the HGB and IMB documents pertaining to land use and construction permit is not exclusively mine, other buyers must cope with the same problem.

I would like to appeal to the People's Housing Ministry, the National Land Agency/the Agrarian Ministry and of course the Indonesian Consumers' Foundation to look into the matter and to hopefully find a speedy solution.

In conclusion, a word for REI. I deeply regret that REI membership is not a guarantee for house buyers to obtain satisfaction. REI should upgrade its members especially the small-scale developers. The upgrading by REI of its members like PT Mitra Kusala Pertiwi will certainly benefit many people with limited financial means.

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