Stricter guidelines for foreign property ads take effect next week

The guidelines for property investment advertisements have been enhanced to eliminate advertising claims that are misleading, speculative and cannot be substantiated, reported Channel NewsAsia.

Recommended by the Advertising Standards Authority of Singapore an advisory council under the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) the new guidelines are aimed at raising the standards of disclosures like warnings and qualifications to sufficiently highlight potential investment risks to investors.

CASE revealed that Singaporeans are one of Asias top real estate buyers. In recent years, the number of foreign property purchases by Singaporeans have dramatically increased, with more overseas properties being advertised in the city-state.

At the same time, the number of complaints relating to such transactions has also increased. CASE has received 23 complaints since 2013, most of which involved consumers not receiving the promised returns on their investments.

The Advertising Standards Authority of Singapore received 41 complaints relating to advertisements on financial services and products, such as foreign property investments as well as investment training seminars over the past two-and-a-half years. Promising high, guaranteed returns, the advertisements lack sufficient warning against risks, noted the consumer watchdog.

Under the changes, foreign property advertisements must clearly provide information about the development and features of the property, including tax liabilities and potential ownership restrictions.

We want to ensure that the consumers are not given false hope, said CASE Executive Director Seah Seng Choon.

For example, the higher returns investors put in their advertisement has to be substantiated. The main objective is really to ensure that advertisements are legal, accurate and ethical. In a nutshell, we want to see transparency in their disclosure and the advertisements should reflect the factual information that consumers should receive.

The new guidelines will take effect on 12 August. Media owners and advertisers with contracts signed before the effective date of the enhanced guidelines will be given three months grace period to fulfil existing contractual requirements and adhere to the changes.

Those who fail to comply will be asked to withdraw or revise their advertisements. They may also lose advertising space and face negative publicity after investigation by the authorities.

Romesh Navaratnarajah, Singapore Editor at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact him about this or other stories email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg

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