SARAJEVO, 27 April (FENA) – The President of the Chamber of Economy of the Federation of BiH (PKFBiH), Marko Šantić, said today in Sarajevo that the Law on Real Estate Brokerage of FBiH, whose full implementation began on 1 April this year, will certainly improve the situation on the market in this branch and minimize the gray zone.
Šantić said at a press conference at PKFBiH that the Association of Real Estate Market Participants at PKFBiH was the initiator and made a significant contribution to the drafting of that law.
– We continue cooperation with the Federal Ministry of Trade as the Chamber and the Association. We have public authority from the Government of FBiH, that is, from that ministry, regarding the conduct of professional exams for those who want to engage in this business and become licensed agents, which is one of the conditions for a company, an agency, to be able to register, that is, enter the Register of Brokers, which is public and can be seen on the ministry’s website – Šantić said.
Through the chamber association and together with the Federal Ministry of Trade, he added, they sent a message that it would be good for the inspection to start doing its part of the job.
– Only when the inspection authorities have done their part of the job, and they are already working on it, will we send a clear message that we want an orderly market in real estate transactions that provides security to all interested parties – Šantić added.
The President of the Association of Real Estate Market Participants at PKFBiH, Naida Ćerimagić, recalled that they organized themselves in 2016 with the aim of, above all, making their work easier, and creating a more positive business environment, making business more transparent and enabling security for all participants, buyers and sellers. She recalled that the Law entered into force on 1 October 2021, but 18 months were given for agencies to adapt.
– The goal is to reduce the gray economy, increase tax collection, VAT and contributions, increase the number of jobs and create a healthier business environment for us who already do this – Ćerimagić said, adding that this market is in constant expansion.
Since the adoption of the law, as the vice president of the Association, Maho Taso, said, a new legal framework has been established that defines the minimum conditions for someone to engage in this business.
– Currently, we have just under 100 entries in that register, which is significant for FBiH, but we believe that this number will increase significantly. People have the possibility of choice and can see who the registered companies or crafts are, as well as the registered agents – Taso added.
After the start of the application of the law on 1 April this year, only legal and natural persons registered to perform brokerage activities who have their headquarters or branch in the territory of FBiH, employ at least one person who has passed the professional exam, have concluded an insurance contract and are entered in the Register of Brokers, may perform real estate brokerage activities.
Taso commented that the abolition of VAT on the purchase of the first property is one of the better initiatives that would be especially useful for young people in BiH.
