Housing Development Corporation HDC has begun taking rent payments for the Hiya Flats starting yesterday despite calls by flat owners to further delay the payments.
HDC said that flat owners can use its online platform "Payment Portal" to pay the rents but the portal would now only accept Bank of Maldives cards.
The Corporation said that it would open rent payment counters at its main office and that the counters would accept cash, cheque as well as cards when paying the rent money.
The rent payments have been deferred three times.
While many flats in the Hiya Towers have now been inhabited, flat owners have had to finish and furnish the flats. This has promoted Hiya Unions to call on the government to extend the rent deferral and the latest development saw 1,500 flat owners sign a petition calling for further delay in rent payments.
Flat owners had been subjected to the condition of making the full payment for the flat within 25 years with monthly installments of MVR 7,500. HDC is also taking MVR 1,000 from each housing unit as a flat management fee which means the total rent has been set at MVR 8,500.
