International Real Estate News Newsletter of the Real Estate Section of the International Bar Association Legal Practice Division 8TH REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT CONFERENCE 14–15 APRIL 2016, COPENHAGEN IN THIS ISSUE Contributions to this Newsletter are always welcome and should be sent to Roland Müller or Laine Skopina at the From the Chair 4 addresses below: From the Editors 5 Newsletter Editor Committee officers 6 Roland M Müller VISCHER AG, Basel Conference reports [email protected] IBA Annual Conference Assistant Newsletter Editor Vienna, 4–9 October 2015 8 Laine Skopina Articles Skopina & Azanda, Riga [email protected] AUSTRALIA New laws for strata apartments in Australia 11 Terms and Conditions for submission of articles AUSTRIA 1. Articles for inclusion in the newsletter should be sent to the Newsletter Editor. 2. The article must be the original work of the author, must not have been previously published, and must not currently be under consideration by Tax reform in Austria: heavy burden on share deals another journal. If it contains material which is someone else’s copyright, involving real property 12 the unrestricted permission of the copyright owner must be obtained and evidence of this submitted with the article and the material should be clearly CANADA identified and acknowledged within the text. The article shall not, to the best of the author’s knowledge, contain anything which is libellous, illegal, or infringes anyone’s copyright or other rights. Foreign investment in Canadian real estate: are controls 3. Copyright shall be assigned to the IBA and the IBA will have the exclusive or special taxes for foreign buyers on the horizon? 14 right to first publication, both to reproduce and/or distribute an article (including the abstract) ourselves throughout the world in printed, electronic CZECH REPUBLIC or any other medium, and to authorise others (including Reproduction Rights Organisations such as the Copyright Licensing Agency and the Copyright Unique unbundling telecoms and its distinct real Clearance Center) to do the same. Following first publication, such publishing rights shall be non-exclusive, except that publication in another journal will estate aspects 17 require permission from and acknowledgment of the IBA. Such permission may be obtained from the Director of Content at [email protected]. FINLAND 4. The rights of the author will be respected, the name of the author will always be clearly associated with the article and, except for necessary editorial changes, no substantial alteration to the article will be made without Real estate news from Finland 19 consulting the author. MEXICO Foreign ownership of Mexican residential real International Bar Association estate in the Restricted Zone 21 4th Floor, 10 St Bride Street London EC4A 4AD, United Kingdom NIGERIA Tel: +44 (0)20 7842 0090 Fax: +44 (0)20 7842 0091 Leveraging the Nigerian diaspora to exploit the www.ibanet.org vast investment opportunities in mass housing: © International Bar Association 2016. the regulatory issues 23 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or SWITZERLAND transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in any retrieval system of any nature without the prior permission of the copyright holder. Application for permission should be made to the Director of Content at the IBA address. A new law on secondary residences in Switzerland: a new era for the real-estate market in the Swiss Alps 26 Lex Koller: restrictions for foreigners acquiring Advertising real estate in Switzerland 28 Should you wish to advertise in the next issue of the Real Estate Committee newsletter, please TURKEY contact the IBA Advertising Department. [email protected] Acquisition of residential properties by foreign individuals in Turkey – enjoying consumer protection 30 UNITED STATES Printed in the Lights, camera, action! Property owner beware film United Kingdom location release agreements 33 by Hobbs the Printers Ltd Totton, Hampshire Investments in the US student housing market: SO40 3WX six insights to help the investor 34 www.hobbs.uk.com Scholarship essay The challenges posed by the rule of law, or lack thereof, in developing countries when seeking This newsletter is intended to provide general information inward real estate investment 36 regarding recent developments in real estate law. The views expressed in this publication are those of the contributors, and not necessarily those of the International Bar Association. REAL ESTATE NEWSLETTER APRIL 2016 3 FROM THE CHAIR Nikolaus Pitkowitz The real estate investments Graf & Pitkowitz, Vienna conference [email protected] s Chair of the IBA Real Estate Copenhagen, Denmark. Our Conference Committee, the world’s largest Chair, Jakob Schou Midtgaard – supported association of international real by a dedicated team of leading Danish real Aestate lawyers, it is with great estate lawyers – has designed an outstanding pleasure that I present our newsletter. Our programme with exceptional speakers and committee offers to our members various unparalleled networking opportunities. You platforms to communicate and exchange will find more information on this inside the views on topical issues of international real newsletter. We are expecting more than 150 estate law. One of these platforms is our participants and I sincerely look forward to newsletter. As of this edition, thanks to welcoming you in Copenhagen. our Newsletter Editor Roland Müller, the Please also mark your calendars for the newsletter is not only distributed by email IBA annual meeting from 18–23 September but will also be available in hard copy at 2016 in Washington, DC, where our our upcoming conference. This newsletter committee plans to schedule exciting sessions offers insight into remarkable legal on complex real estate transactions and developments around the world, as well as innovative billing models, as well as a dinner a picture of the past and future work of our on Tuesday 20 September and a real property committee. The reports on our exciting tour. I also use this opportunity to inform you sessions during the annual conference in that our next real estate annual conference Vienna and, especially the picture gallery, will take place from 29–31 March 2017 in Rio give you a great demonstration of our de Janeiro, Brazil. fruitful and enjoyable sessions. Our committee is powered by a team of It is a tradition of our committee to outstanding and dedicated officers from all organise a real estate investments conference around the world. There is, however, still room for early each year. In previous years, the for those interested in supporting our team, event has alternated between Europe and and as of 2017 we will be allocating new officer the Americas. This year we are back in positions. Please do not hesitate to contact me, Europe, and the venue of our conference, or any of our officers if you are interested in scheduled for 13–15 April 2016, is one taking an active role or have any other questions of the most exciting real estate markets: regarding our committee and its work. 4 INTERNATIONAL BAR ASSOCIATION LEGAL PRACTICE DIVISION FROM THE EDITORS Roland M Müller VISCHER AG, Basel [email protected] Welcome to the newsletter Laine Skopina his is the second newsletter published The next newsletter will be published Skopina & Azanda, during our 2015-2016 term as in August 2016 (prior to the IBA Annual Riga Newsletter Editors of the IBA Real Conference in Washington, DC). We strongly [email protected] TEstate Section. You receive it just encourage each of you to not only attend these before one of our section’s annual highlights, two great events, but also to grab the opportunity the Annual Real Estate Investments to place an article from your country in the Conference in Copenhagen, which shall take forthcoming editions of the newsletter. place from 13–15 April 2016. We look forward to meeting many of you in Copenhagen and in Washington, DC. COMMITTEE OFFICERS Committee officers Chair Conference Quality Officer Nikolaus Pitkowitz Catherine Martougin Graf & Pitkowitz, Vienna Jones Day, Luxembourg [email protected] [email protected] Senior Vice-Chair Conference Coordinator Boris Babic Pedro Nicholson Babic & Partners, Zagreb Estudio Beccar Varela, Buenos Aires [email protected] [email protected] Vice-Chair European Forum Liaison Officer Rossana Duarte Peter Kunz Mattos Filho Veiga Filho Marrey Jr e Quiroga, Kunz Schima Wallentin Rechtsanwälte, Vienna São Paulo [email protected] [email protected] Asia Pacific Forum Liaison Officer Secretary Jiong Zhang Gerardo Carrillo Valadez Zhong Lun, Beijing Haynes & Boone, Mexico City [email protected] [email protected] Young Lawyers Liaison Officer Treasurer Juan Jose Lopez de Silanes Duarte de Athayde Basham Ringe y Correa, Mexico City Abreu Advogados, Lisbon [email protected] [email protected] Website Officer Scholarship Officer Eduardo Martin Michael Lunjevich Carey, Santiago Hadef & Partners, Dubai [email protected] [email protected] Latin American Liaison Officer Journal Editor and Special Projects Officer Marco Cannizzo Saetta Corrado Rampini Cannizzo Ortiz y Asociados, Mexico City Baer & Karrer AG, Zurich [email protected] [email protected] Real Estate Hospitality Liaison Officer Communications Officer Bernat Mullerat Nancy Zhang Cuatrecasas Goncalves Pereira, Barcelona Beijing Jincheng Tongda & Neal, Beijing [email protected] [email protected]