Colombia. The Minister of Housing, Luis Felipe Henao Cardona, announced that he will file in the coming weeks, the draft law through which the obligation to acquire insurance by the builders of new housing is established and measures are established to increase the safety of buildings.
"After the emergency experienced in the Space building in Medellín, and holding several working tables with builders, municipal administrations and experts, today we present to the country the draft law document that we will file in the coming weeks so that through four specific measures the heritage of home buyers is protected," said Minister Luis Felipe Henao Cardona.
Among the measures that will be put to the consideration of parliamentarians are the requirement of mandatory policies for new housing projects: both the builder and the alienator will be obliged to acquire insurance that covers the owners and third parties who are affected in the event that the building perishes or threatens ruin as a result of deficiencies in: construction, soil, materials, or designs.
"This measure will apply to the construction of new housing that must be subject to the horizontal property regime or when it comes to fifteen (15) or more housing units and will not cover natural persons who build a home for their own use," said Minister Henao Cardona.
The Minister pointed out that the insured value of the policy will be equal to the commercial value of the property, which will be adjusted annually in accordance with the Property Valuation Index certified by DANE.
"The insurance will be valid for 10 years from the issuance of the technical certification of occupation. In the case of new buildings with use other than housing, a non-contractual civil liability insurance will be required, "revealed the head of Housing.
Regarding the impact that the mandatory construction stability insurance will have on the quotas of the housing credit of social interest VIS and not VIS, the Minister of Housing explained that it is estimated to be marginal for the scenarios proposed. "In the VIS the impact would be between $1,434 and $2,868 and in the non-VIS between $4,229 and $12,685," he said.
He also argued that the marginal impact of the implementation of the mandatory construction stability insurance in the country will not generate an adverse effect on the dynamism of the construction sector, which has as catalysts among others: the interest rate of housing loans, a single payment at the time of issuance, issuance costs and favorable in the management of economies of scale and reinsurance.
Technical supervision of projects: the elimination of all exceptions that allow municipalities or curators to authorize builders to control the execution of the works themselves will be proposed.
"The supervision will be independent, external and will report directly to the insurance company, which will give greater demand in the supervision of the work, which among other functions will control the construction, the work log, material control, control over design plans, etc. This will definitely eliminate the self with me in this type of process," the Minister said.
"Professionals who carry out tasks of review of studies and technical supervision will be subject to a regime of incompatibilities, that is, supervisors may not be partners, the properties may not belong to relatives up to 4 degree of consanguinity or second degree of affinity and may not have a contractual relationship or commercial interests of any nature in the specific project", said the Minister, who added that anyone who fails to comply with the measures will be sanctioned by the Professional Councils of Architecture and Engineering.
Within this point, a single national registry of accredited professionals will be proposed to carry out design, review or supervision tasks.
Technical certification of occupation: it will be a document issued, under the gravity of oath, by the independent technical supervisor of each project, in which it will be stated that the work complied with all the technical and design specifications and can be habitable.
"This provision, once endorsed, will be annexed to the supervision minutes and must be notarized by means of a public deed that will be registered in the real estate registration sheet of the property. For holders of construction licenses and builders who allow the occupation of buildings without this requirement, they will be subject to successive monthly fines of 25 legal minimum monthly wages in force.
Urban curators: the bill provides for incompatibilities and inabilities for urban curators and will also be monitored through the Superintendence of Notaries and Registry. Hence, a Delegated Superintendence will be created for the control of urban curators.
"In addition, a regime of inabilities and incompatibilities will be established to be appointed urban curator and for the exercise of the function. It will correspond to the Superintendency of Notaries and Registry, to advance the merit contest for the appointment of urban curators, "said the Minister of Housing, Luis Felipe Henao Cardona.
