Source: Original article by Cyprus Mail, October 3, 2025

Between Order and Overreach: How New Bills Could Reshape Cyprus’s Property Market

While we at RealtyHub.cy acknowledge the government’s efforts to modernize property legislation, we believe that several of the proposed changes now being debated in Parliament could unintentionally slow down — if not paralyse — the Cyprus real estate market in certain segments.

Introduction — A Market at a Crossroads

In the world of real estate, regulation walks a delicate line: too little invites chaos, too much suffocates progress. Cyprus is now confronting that balance. A series of new legislative proposals—designed to reform how shared buildings are managed—has triggered an unexpectedly fierce debate among professionals, investors, and policymakers.

While the government aims to bring order to thousands of apartment blocks plagued by unpaid communal fees and neglected maintenance, real estate experts warn that these reforms, if adopted in their current form, could paralyse property transactions and undermine investor confidence.

At RealtyHub, we believe this moment represents a turning point. To understand where Cyprus stands—and where it might go next—we must first look at how other countries have solved similar challenges.

Global Lessons: How the World Governs Shared Property

Across the world, multi-unit buildings are managed through variations of a simple idea: collective ownership balanced by democratic governance. Yet each system reflects a different cultural and legal philosophy.

In the United States, homeowners’ associations (HOAs) combine strong enforcement with corporate-style discipline. Every unit owner is a member; boards can file liens against non-payers, ensuring financial stability but often sparking disputes over excessive control.

Australia’s strata committees excel at proactive planning. Every building must maintain a sinking fund—a reserve account for long-term repairs—helping prevent costly emergencies. Yet participation fatigue sometimes weakens small communities.

France’s syndicat des copropriétaires and Italy’s condominio assemblies embody continental cooperation, with annual votes, transparent accounting, and proportional cost-sharing. These systems promote inclusivity but can falter when consensus is slow to reach.

China’s building ownership committees, by contrast, show what happens when state supervision replaces self-governance—efficient on paper, but prone to bureaucratic rigidity.

From this global perspective, one pattern emerges: the best models combine clear legal powers, professional management, and digital transparency.

The Cyprus Context — A Need for Modernization

Cyprus already mandates Management Committees for jointly owned buildings under Chapter 224 of the Immovable Property Law. In theory, these committees maintain common areas, collect communal fees, and keep the building functional. In practice, however, many suffer from absent foreign owners, poor attendance at annual meetings, and inconsistent bookkeeping.

The government’s 2025 reform bills attempt to fix these gaps by strengthening oversight and introducing stricter certification. The intentions are noble:

Yet, as the Cyprus Real Estate Agents Registration Council (CREAC) warns, implementation may create more problems than it solves.

The Controversial Certificate Clause — A Bureaucratic Bottleneck

One clause has drawn particular scrutiny: before selling a property, owners must obtain a certificate from the Management Committee confirming that all communal fees are paid. Without it, the contract cannot be filed or transferred.

In theory, this guarantees fairness—buyers won’t inherit unpaid debts. In reality, it may trap thousands of transactions in administrative limbo. CREAC president Marinos Kineyirou cautioned that this rule could “open the door to blackmail by mismanaged committees.”

Imagine an owner ready to sell, but the committee delays issuing a certificate due to an internal dispute or missing records. The sale stalls, the buyer walks away, and confidence in the system erodes.

This is not a hypothetical risk. Similar bottlenecks have appeared in other jurisdictions whenever certification replaces digital verification. Once bureaucracy becomes the gatekeeper, efficiency becomes the casualty.

Burdening the Wrong Institutions

Another concern lies in assigning responsibility for supervising Management Committees to local building authorities—already overloaded with permit backlogs.

Handing them thousands of additional files risks creating a chain reaction of administrative paralysis. Project approvals could slow further, new developments might face longer delays, and both buyers and developers would pay the price in uncertainty.

In behavioural-economic terms, this is a classic “friction cost”—small procedural delays that accumulate into systemic drag. Daniel Kahneman’s research shows how such frictions silently discourage participation. In real-estate terms, they discourage investment.

A Smarter Path — Learning from International Models

Instead of multiplying paperwork, Cyprus can look abroad for simpler and more scalable solutions.

Professionalized management: As in Australia and Italy, larger complexes could be required to hire certified property managers through transparent tenders. These professionals handle fee collection, maintenance contracts, and reporting—freeing volunteer committees from burnout and ensuring accountability.

Mandatory sinking funds: Creating reserve accounts for long-term repairs builds financial stability. When buyers see an active sinking fund, they perceive lower risk—a key factor in valuations and bank financing.

Digital transparency: Modern HOAs in the U.S. use cloud dashboards and apps where owners can view budgets, pay fees, and access minutes instantly. Cyprus’s heavy reliance on paper records leaves too much room for error and mistrust.

Together, these practices shift the focus from bureaucratic control to operational performance—a mindset that rewards good governance instead of punishing non-compliance.

The CondoHub Vision — Digitizing Governance

To eliminate human error and accelerate transactions, RealtyHub proposes a national digital backbone: a secure platform tentatively called CondoHub.

Think of it as a smart governance layer connecting property owners, committees, and authorities. Each building would have its own digital ledger for payments, budgets, and certificates—all verified in real time.

Key features could include:

By linking CondoHub to RealtyHub MLS, buyers and agents would see whether a property is “compliance-verified” before even scheduling a viewing. Transactions could finalize within hours—not weeks.

This would mark a paradigm shift from manual bureaucracy to digital governance—turning compliance into a feature, not a hurdle.

eIDAS: The Trust Framework Behind Digital Property

Under EU Regulation 910/2014 (eIDAS), electronic IDs and qualified electronic signatures hold the same legal weight as handwritten ones. Cyprus has already transposed this framework through Law 55(I)/2018, yet its potential in real estate remains underused.

In a digitized property ecosystem:

Beyond convenience, eIDAS injects trust—the currency of any real estate market. It assures every participant that the document they see is genuine, signed by the rightful party, and tamper-proof.

The Real Stakes — Efficiency, Confidence, and Reputation

As Cyprus continues to attract international investors, efficiency becomes its most valuable export. The island’s appeal lies not only in sunshine and tax incentives but in the ease of doing business.

Every additional signature, certificate, or approval delays liquidity—the oxygen of the property market. When liquidity dries up, prices stagnate, and sentiment turns cautious.

The 2025 bills risk creating precisely such a choke point. By contrast, digitization offers a self-enforcing discipline: transparency through data, accountability through automation. It is both faster and fairer.

A Call for Collaboration, Not Confrontation

The Cyprus Real Estate Agents Registration Council has wisely called for dialogue rather than defiance—urging lawmakers to craft a “practical, fair, and effective” framework. This cooperative tone should define the next phase of reform.

The goal is not to resist modernization but to modernize intelligently:

If policymakers, agents, and developers collaborate, Cyprus could emerge not as a market trapped in red tape but as a regional benchmark for smart governance.

Turning Regulation into Advantage

Legislation, when thoughtfully designed, can become a competitive asset. The current debate is not merely about certificates and committees—it is about the future efficiency of Cyprus’s property ecosystem in certain segments.

By blending the discipline of global best practices with the precision of digital tools, Cyprus can turn a potential bottleneck into a breakthrough.

At RealtyHub, we see this as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to:

If done right, the result will not just be tidier ledgers—it will be a smarter, faster, and more resilient property market, where every participant, from homeowner to investor, benefits from clarity and confidence.

Aiming for Order, Risking a Bottleneck

The Cyprus Real Estate Agents Registration Council recently raised serious concerns about three draft bills that aim to reform the management of jointly owned buildings.

According to the Council, these reforms, although well-intentioned, “could create a bureaucratic bottleneck and overburden already understaffed building authorities.” In our opinion, this concern is justified. Cyprus’ building authorities are already operating under heavy workloads and chronic understaffing. Adding layers of certification and supervision could make property transactions slower, more complex, and costlier for both local and international buyers.

The Controversial Certificate Clause

At the heart of the debate lies a particularly sensitive proposal: property sellers would need a certificate from the building’s management committee confirming that communal fees have been fully paid — both to file a sales contract and to complete the property transfer.

Council President Marinos Kineyirou warned that this clause alone “will obstruct thousands of transactions, cause endless delays, and open the door to cases of owners being blackmailed by mismanaged committees.” From our perspective, such a measure risks replacing one administrative issue with another. While enforcing communal fee payments is necessary, tying these to property transfers could trap owners and discourage new investors.

Investment Confidence at Stake

“The economy and the attraction of investments rely on speed and security of transactions,” Kineyirou emphasized — a point that perfectly reflects the sentiment of the wider real estate community.

At RealtyHub, we think that slowing down transfers through additional procedural requirements might harm Cyprus’ reputation as an investment-friendly destination. Foreign buyers, in particular, value transparency and efficiency — any sign of bureaucratic stagnation can redirect interest toward competing Mediterranean markets.

Burdening the Wrong Institutions

Another red flag in the bills is the plan to assign building authorities the task of registering and supervising management committees.

As the Council highlighted, these offices are already burdened with permit backlogs, sometimes delaying projects for months or even years. Giving them oversight of thousands of new committees would, in our opinion, only make the situation worse — potentially paralysing not just the committees themselves, but also the wider construction sector.

Between Control and Functionality

The government argues that these reforms will finally address the disorder in how shared buildings are managed. Indeed, many apartment blocks across Cyprus suffer from unpaid communal expenses, neglected maintenance, and ongoing resident disputes.

We understand and agree that change is necessary. However, we believe that legislation must balance accountability with practicality. If the solution adds new choke points without addressing the real operational challenges — like enforcement, mediation, and transparency — the market will pay the price.

A Call for Constructive Dialogue

To its credit, the Cyprus Real Estate Agents Registration Council has expressed readiness to collaborate with lawmakers in shaping a “practical, fair, and effective” solution. This collaborative spirit is crucial. The goal should not be to resist reform, but to refine it so that efficiency and investor confidence are preserved.

At RealtyHub, we think this is an opportunity to modernize without stifling progress — to streamline governance in shared buildings while keeping property transactions fluid and Cyprus competitive as a real estate hub.

Why This Matters for Cyprus Real Estate

These legislative changes go beyond administrative reform — they touch the core of how easily properties can be sold, purchased, or inherited in Cyprus.

A property market that is easy to navigate attracts buyers; one that becomes mired in bureaucracy risks losing momentum.

As the island continues to draw attention from international investors, we believe that efficiency, clarity, and speed must remain top priorities.