The Bhutanese Leading the way.
The old saying goes that ‘information is power’, but in today’s age, information is also money.
It is no secret that land in Thimphu is very valuable and highly coveted. In some aspects, the Australia Rush was triggered by the need to own that plot or building in Thimphu.
The sale and purchase of land have picked up considerably over the last few months in Thimphu, and an army of real estate agents are all over social media advertising the latest plots on sale.
There are enormous amounts being poured into buying those lands, and more will be poured in the months and years ahead.
However, many land buyers and sellers are operating based on outdated and wrong information about their land based on the area type given in their Lagthrams.
This is visible with real estate agents quoting the old land types and uses that no longer hold ever since the Thimphu Design Code was implemented in November 2024.
Areas where five storeys are allowed on the Lagthram under the Design Code may allow only two storeys, like in Serbithang.
Apart from the land type, the Thimphu Design Code aims for lesser built-up areas, and thus buildings going ahead will be much smaller, slimmer and even shorter.
Another major misnomer is real estate agents selling plots and calling them commercial when, under the code, most of Thimphu falls in residential areas and there are only a few select commercial areas.
It is understandable if the buyer and seller are both ignorant of their land status, but it is not ethical if real estate agents are selling land under the old classification while being aware of the new one.
Land buyers also have to be vigilant and, instead of going by word of mouth, should visit the Thromde office and actually check the records.
Importantly, the Lagthrams need to be updated; otherwise, the confusion will continue, and people may lose millions in the process and also face litigation later. Here, the National Land Commission, Thimphu Thromde and the MoIT must work together to update the Lagthrams quickly and create public awareness on the issue.
“Trust, but verify.”
— Ronald Reagan
