Developers are under mounting pressure following the Ministry of Housing, Utilities, and Urban Communities’ decision to temporarily suspend dealings with 74 real estate entities, citing failures to meet allocation conditions and delays in payments.
The crisis deepened when authorities imposed retroactive fees for land transfer and improvement—ranging from EGP 500 to 1,000 per square meter. Developers strongly objected to what they described as an abrupt and uncoordinated move, especially given the challenging economic climate, marked by rising construction costs and significant currency fluctuations.
Meanwhile, inspection committees uncovered multiple cases of land held without proper ownership documents, alongside licensing complications arising from overlapping responsibilities among government entities. In response, the state has moved to centralize land oversight under the New Urban Communities Authority (NUCA). While 162 companies have been formally urged to rectify their legal status, many developers have called for the new fees to apply only to future projects, and for legislative dialogue to reassess