What changed
Developer drawdowns from the escrow account are now tied more tightly to verified construction milestones rather than elapsed time. In practice this narrows the window in which a stalled project can continue drawing buyer funds.
The retention held back until after handover has also been clarified, which gives buyers a clearer route to remedy on snagging that is not resolved.
The protection is real. It is also conditional — on a registered project and an escrow number that appears on your agreement.
The two clauses that matter
First, the completion definition. Some agreements define completion as the developer obtaining a building completion certificate; others tie it to actual handover. The gap between those two can be months of service charges you did not budget for.
Second, the variation clause. Most agreements permit a tolerance on delivered area — commonly around five per cent. On a large unit that tolerance is a meaningful sum, and it is rarely negotiated because buyers do not read it.
Practical checks
Confirm the project is registered and that the escrow account number appears on the sale agreement. Both are verifiable before you transfer a deposit.
Model the payment plan against a realistic handover date rather than the announced one. A two-quarter slip is common and rarely fatal; planning for zero slip is what causes problems.
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