Developers will be allowed to pay the 20% down payment on both North Coast land transfer fees and Desert Road improvement levies over one year, instead of upfront, following lobbying off the New Urban Communities Authority (NUCA) by the Federation of Egyptian Industries’ (FEI) real estate division, according to a statement seen by EnterpriseAM. The remaining dues will be settled over five years at an annual interest rate of 10%, rather than the higher Central Bank of Egypt benchmark rate.

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REMEMBER- NUCA had initially mandated that developers pay 20% of their total due upfront, with the rest paid over five years at the central bank’s lending rate, while levies imposed on developers on the Cairo-Alexandria Desert Highway and along the Dabaa Axis were required to settle 50% upfront and the rest paid interest-free over three years.

There was also confirmation of exemptions to ease investor concerns, including for projects that have already been built, plots directly sold by NUCA (whose pricing already included road improvements), and agricultural land with building ratios between 2-7%. They will be excluded from the new fees.

The housing minister has also reversed plans to withdraw land from developers who fell behind on construction targets, FEI real estate division head Osama Saad El Din told EnterpriseAM. NUCA will instead allow companies to purchase extensions to their implementation timelines, including grace periods to resume building, industry sources told us. Developers will also be given more time to comply to take into account work stoppage.

Real Estate Developers Chamber Chairman Tarek Shoukry welcomed the ministry’s “swift and constructive response,” arguing that the new terms would help unlock stalled investments on the North Coast and Desert Road and reinforce investor confidence.

Several other developer requests remain under government review, including those related to projects transferred among affiliated companies and large real estate groups, insider sources told us. A final decision on these cases will follow once NUCA completes its assessments.

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