Opinion / Columnist
Thousands scammed in house stands?
24 Dec 2015 at 13:13hrs | Views
Two years ago an announcement was made concerning house stands that were available at Emganwini (Nkosilathi Township) in Bulawayo. Thousands of desperate prospective residents were told that the stands which were said to cost around $4000 could be purchased by depositing $600 and then paying instalments of $81 to MSN Developers at Jason Moyo and 12 Avenue.
The $81 was just a minimum instalment but those who were able to pay bigger instalments were encouraged to do so. If you pay bigger monthly instalments you would have a discount on your total payments or you would pay less than those who payed with lesser monthly instalments.
Two years later, desperate house seekers have paid ridiculous amounts of money, but they have been told not to build on those stands they purchased. Countless excuses have been given by MSN Developers as to why prospective residents cannot build as yet. It has been said that they should wait for the area to be serviced (to have water available) before they can be cleared to start building. And the MSN Developers says that the area where stands are, is under Mguza District Council and should be handed over to Bulawayo City Council first, for the servicing to start. Why the hand over of stands from uMguza to Bulawayo City Council is necessary, it's unclear. Why the handover is taking over two years to happen, it's still a mystery. Why the MSN Developers didn't inform the buyers all the facts concerning the stands before they invested hundred of thousands of dollars into the stands , it's mind - boggling.
The MSN keeps giving the buyers some hope that everything will be sorted, months after months and they don't refund the frustrated buyers. Frustrated buyers are told to look for their own people who can buy their stands if they want to resell them. And who would want to buy a stand where there is no hope of progressing with building houses? Isn't time for the MSN Developers to be seriously investigated and arrested for the "scam" worth hundreds of thousands of dollars?
The $81 was just a minimum instalment but those who were able to pay bigger instalments were encouraged to do so. If you pay bigger monthly instalments you would have a discount on your total payments or you would pay less than those who payed with lesser monthly instalments.
The MSN keeps giving the buyers some hope that everything will be sorted, months after months and they don't refund the frustrated buyers. Frustrated buyers are told to look for their own people who can buy their stands if they want to resell them. And who would want to buy a stand where there is no hope of progressing with building houses? Isn't time for the MSN Developers to be seriously investigated and arrested for the "scam" worth hundreds of thousands of dollars?
Source - Bheki Zulu
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