Hafnarfjörður Municipality facilitates development in the town
The municipality of Hafnarfjörður has taken a step to boost the development of residential and commercial property. The mayor says the groundwork has been laid to see more projects brought to fruition.
Construction in Hafnarfjörður
The Municipality of Hafnarfjörður has taken a step to boost the development of residential and commercial property. This is a step that makes it easier for people to build in the town. With the change, for the next two years it will be permitted to offer a more flexible payment arrangement for street construction and building rights fees than has been the case. The town council approved this at its meeting earlier this month.
It will be permitted to spread the payment of street construction and building rights fees over up to four instalments, over a period of up to 24 months. Previously, the payment was generally made in one lump sum. The authorisation may cover detached houses, blocks of flats, commercial premises and larger development projects. It will also be possible to link payments to the progress of the works or to specific project milestones.
„We want to respond to the current situation in the construction market and create better conditions for work to start sooner. The aim is to support continued development in Hafnarfjörður,“ says Mayor Þórður Þórarinsson.
Higher interest rates, increased funding costs and tighter lending conditions have made it more difficult for many developers to embark on new projects in recent quarters. „By spreading the financial burden in the early stages of a project, it is hoped that more projects will get underway and that development in the municipality will continue, despite the challenging economic conditions,“ says Thórður.
The proposal does not involve a reduction or abolition of streetworks and development charges, but only a change to when payments become due. The municipality therefore retains its full right to collect the charges, and the spread of payments will be subject to clear rules on matters such as guarantees, index-linking and other conditions that protect the financial interests of the City of Hafnarfjörður.
It is proposed that the authorisation will be temporary and will be valid for two years. After that period, the outcome will be evaluated and a decision will be made on whether the authorisation will be extended, made permanent, or revoked.