Housing Development Corporation (HDC) has stated that a large number of the tenants at the Hiyaa flats are paying their rent in accordance with their agreement.
HDC began collecting rent and maintenance fees for the flats on April 1, as per the agreement signed by the tenants, after postponing rent collection three times. The government has allocated USD504 as rent for Hiya housing units, with an additional USD64 as a maintenance fee.
Hiya is the largest public housing project in Hulhumale' Phase II, which began as 7,000 housing units. However, the number of units has since decreased to 6,720 to accommodate over 25,000 people after reviewing allocated floor space for commercial purposes.
The agreement for the flats was signed with the owners of the flats in July last year. At the time, the government decided to start collecting rent after a period of three months for the finishing work of the flats. The government postponed the deadline until the end of October 2021. However, President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih extended the deadline until March 2022.
HDC began collecting rent this month and has provided means by which tenants can pay rent easily via an online portal after logging in using their e-faas account. However, currently, only Bank of Maldives (BML) customers can make the payment through the online portal. Tenants can also pay their rent at the collection counter at the main office of the HDC using cash, cheques, or cards.
A large population has shifted to Hulhumale' Phase II to live in the Hiya flats. HDC stated it has signed agreements for 6,331 units, out of which over 4,500 units are now occupied.