BUILDING a home has become so strenuous that many Fijians are selling their undeveloped land, Housing Authority of Fiji CEO Isikeli Navuda has revealed.
He said the authority has shifted from constructing ready-made homes to developing serviced residential lots, giving families flexibility to build according to their finances and timeline.
“Some do not build due to difficulty with obtaining building plan approval and the hassle associated with securing engineering and statutory approvals. Many sell their land to whoever pays the highest price, defeating our initiative to help low- to middle-income earners,” he said.
The authority is now reintroducing model homes after 30 years, starting with two-bedroom designs and planning three-bedroom homes and row houses for those earning $50,024 and below.
Real estate expert Vyas Deo Sharma said slow approvals and bureaucratic hurdles pushed people towards buying houses instead, fuelling rising rents in prime locations.
He agreed the process of building a home was time consuming.
“The waiting period for getting a building plan approved by the approved authorities takes so much time,” said Mr Sharma.
“It is a hassle and people have to go from Point A, to B, to C and D then back to A for one single approval. That’s why people would rather buy a house. But when they buy a house, they want to get a return on their investment.
“So, they put it up for rent and you see the rent prices going up because not only are they buying houses in prime locations, they also want to repay their loans.
“It is a never-ending cycle which needs to be addressed.”
