The Jersey Consumer Council believe that developers who are inviting buyers to reserve properties with thousands of pounds are keeping half in administration fees.Some properties on offer will not be built for years, but people are being told that in order to secure the apartments or houses they must pay ‘option agreements’.These come with a 28-day ‘cooling-off’ period, but if people pull out before then, they are not all getting their full deposit back, claim the council.’People should not commit themselves to these sort of option agreements,’ said Deputy Alan Breckon, the chairman of the Consumer Council.
‘Firstly, they are committing themselves to buying a property that may not be built for years, and in that time a lot can change, like personal circumstances and interest rates.’But more importantly, we have heard that some people who claim their money back before the 28-day cooling-off period ends are losing up to half of their deposit in administration fees, which is basically paying for stuff to be printed from a computer and signed.’
