Sometimes I wonder whether we all live in the same world. For instance, the government is allocating €10 million to assist in the regeneration of village cores. The scheme is also meant for owners of private residences wishing to upgrade their properties. Recently the government also found €5 million for Puttinu Cares. There’s nothing wrong with all this and the government can be praised for such acts.
However, other sections of the population appear to be penalised when attempting to deal with a number of government departments. For instance, the Lands Authority makes it difficult and expensive for anyone wanting to redeem the government perpetual lease on a property.
The rules state that one has to go to a notary to make a declaration of how much is being paid for the lease. Then a copy of the last lease payment has to be submitted with the application together with three plans acquired by an architect from the Lands Registration showing the property and when the property was bought. A payment of €52 has to be made with the application, together with €100 for the preparation of the plans. These expenses are besides any tax to be paid and before even knowing how much is to be paid for redeeming the lease. Before the Lands Authority took over the procedure to redeem such a lease was a lot simpler and not as costly as it is now.