Real estate company owner Emad Essa launched an initiative called "Build it at its cost" to face the hike in property prices following the liberalisation of the exchange rate in November. Essa said that the initiative aims to combat excessive greed by some investors and contractors, who earn up to 100% of the housing units' construction cost as a profit. Essa added that some contractors applied an increase of EGP 1,500 in the price per square metre after the flotation, although the actual increase in the price per square metre was EGP 250. The initiative has been implemented in a number of projects during the past three months in 6th of October City, which proved successful because of its reliance on the principle of citizens' participation in building their units, in addition to providing 50% of the construction price through his company, according to Essa. He noted that the initiative will be implemented in Giza governorate and will be extended to other governorates. Essa called upon the government to provide lands at affordable prices to benefit the largest possible number of people looking for homes. Essa told Daily News Egypt that the initiative includes four projects. The first project consists of nine units with an area of 200 square metres per unit in the northern expansion area in 6th of October City in front of Porto October at a cost of EGP 440,000 per unit, although similar units are being sold in the same area for EGP 800,000. The second project consists of seven units and is being implemented in the northern expansion area as well with an area of 140 square metres per unit at a cost of EGP 378,000 per unit, while similar units are being sold in the same area for EGP 630,000. The third project, which is currently being prepared, targets youth in the Hadayek October area in front of the new Zewail University, where the market price for under-construction units is EGP 450,000; however, the initiative provides the unit at a price of EGP 270,000. The fourth project is also being prepared in front of Mall of Arabia in the area of palaces and villas in 6th of October City. The unit will be sold at a price of EGP 650,000, although its market price is EGP 1.1m. "If the state intervenes to provide lands at affordable prices, the initiative can provide housing units of 100 square metres for EGP150,000 in batches," Essa said. "The initiative proved successful in 6th of October City and it is able to reduce real estate unit prices by more than 40%."
