Call for action to stop dishonest depictions in real estate brochures

Sales brochures for real estate should be regulated by the government, and buyers should have a cooling-off period after a purchase, a green group urged after finding that most brochures were misleading.

More than 80 per cent of brochures failed to illustrate reality, according to Green Sense president Roy Tam Hoi-pong, who examined more than 100 brochures in the past few months. Some claimed a property had a sea view without saying the view would be blocked by future developments. Others transformed nearby industrial areas into greenery through artists' illustrations.

'Even when you are buying vegetables, there are laws to prosecute cheating. Why are there no laws to regulate misleading brochures?' he said.

Most buyers did not have the time or know-how to carry out site visits and dig up information on future developments, and might totally believe the developers, he said.

Democratic Party legislator Lee Wing-tat said most buyers purchased flats during sales fairs, when the tense atmosphere could easily push them to rush their decision. He urged the government to introduce a cooling-off period of at least three days after striking a deal, to let people back out of a purchase.

As an example, Green Sense highlighted the case of Le Prestige, a Cheung Kong and MTR Corporation joint venture in Tseung Kwan O that will soon go on sale. Its brochure does not mention that the site is near a landfill and a sewage treatment plant, and the smell could easily spread to the property.