Nuca rolls out fee cuts and penalty waivers for real estate developers

The New and Urban Communities Authority (Nuca) is offering another round of relief for investors and buyers in new cities — cutting assignment fees, waiving some late-payment penalties, and giving stalled projects more time to deliver, according to a statement. The package extends several existing facilitations for another year while keeping Western North Coast land outside most of the breaks.

The fee cuts: Nuca is offering up to 70% off unit assignment fees and up to 90% off land assignment fees in 10th of Ramadan, 10th Gardens, New Obour, New October, and Upper Egypt cities. Land assignment fees in other new cities will be cut by 50%, excluding Western North Coast plots. A new 1% administrative fee will apply to study assignment requests.

Debt settlement: Clients who clear all overdue dues within three months get a 70% waiver on late-payment penalties, with the penalty on the final installment waived in full if paid in the same window. The waivers cover active allocations and residential units cancelled for non-payment between 2024 and 2026 — provided the buyer still holds the asset and drops any litigation against Nuca. Repossessed land and public-private partnership plots are excluded.

Stalled projects: Investors facing documented execution obstacles — utility delays, debris, cables, high-voltage or gas lines, or transformers — can claim extra time equal to the disruption, capped at one year, and have late penalties for that period waived.

Carving out the North Coast

Mortgage lenders can now register financing contracts for North Coast properties, thanks to a carve-out from the disposition restrictions that had frozen them out. The Real Estate Registration and Notarization Authority issued a circular exempting mortgage transactions from the property disposition restrictions in force across the coastal strip between New Borg El Arab and New Ras El Hekma, according to a statement from the Egyptian Mortgage Federation. Lenders can now establish contract dates and secure the powers of attorney they need to register their collateral on existing units in the area, provided they get prior approval from Nuca.

IN CONTEXT- Over the past year, the government moved against North Coast land flipping, setting construction deadlines, retroactive improvement levies, and transfer fees for developers re-selling unbuilt plots. Those disposition restrictions also blocked retail buyers from registering mortgage contracts or issuing the powers of attorney lenders needed to secure their collateral.

Why it matters: The carve-out reopens retail mortgage lending on the coast without loosening the curbs on developer land sales. Banks and finance firms can secure their claims on units already sold, so consumer financing can resume in one of the country's hottest property markets — while the restrictions targeting speculative flipping stay in place.