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Joint Real Estate Development Investments: Controlling Legal Risks

Investing in land-use rights is a special form of land-use-rights transfer. It refers to an investment in land-use rights by a land owner involved in a new project company engaged in joint real estate development.

In China, if land-use-right owners intend to get involved in a real estate project using land-use rights as an investment, they must consider Chinese special land policies, rules and regulations concerning the practice and its legal risks. Several legal problems arise in practice:

1.    Land-use-right pricing is a must before investment.

The value of the land-use right must be determined via an objective and fair appraisal by relevant authorities. A land-use-right price is required before beginning a joint real estate development.

Article 27 of the Corporate Law makes it legal to invest in land-use rights and other property rights which can be priced in currency. In addition, it also specifies the necessity to appraise the value of a land-use right. Land-use right owners must also accept a land-use-right value appraisal and a land-use-right transfer procedure. Otherwise, the land-use right provider shall be liable for not being able to provide capital.

2.     State-owned land-use rights as an investment must be approved.

State-owned land-use rights as investments must be approved by State-owned assets supervision authorities and people’s government at the proper level. Appraisals of the value of a land-use right shall be conducted only after such approvals. The value appraisal for the land-use right shall be in accordance with State-Owned Asset Evaluation Management Method and other regulations. Such procedures as specified are as follows: project establishment, assets assessment, evaluation and estimate, verification.

3.     Land use right assignment shall be in accordance with relevant law and regulations.

There are two ways to make land-use rights as an investment in form of land-use-right assignments: one way is to go through land-use right assignment approval by relevant department and pay compensation. Such land-use rights can be converted from an allocation to a rights transfer. The other way is to retain the allocation feature of such land-use right after approval by the relevant department.

In accordance with Interpretation of the Supreme People’s Court on the Application of Law for the Trial of Cases of Disputes on Contracts Involving the Right to Use State-Owned Land, when land-use rights owners intend to get involved in joint real estate developments relying on a land-use right as an investment, the land-use-right owner must get the approval of a relevant department in government. Unless otherwise approved by the government, the joint real estate development contract between the land-use-right owner and other developers is invalid.

房地产项目土地出资中的法律风险防控

土地使用权出资是土地使用权转让的特殊形式，是指土地使用权人将其享有的土地使用权作价，作为其资本金投入到新成立的公司中，或与他人合资、合作开发房地产项目。

以土地使用权作为出资与他人合作开发房地产项目的，要特别注意中国土地制度的特殊性，以及中国的法律、法规对不同性质的土地使用权出资的限制条件，及时对土地使用出资的可行性风险进行评估。在操作中应特别注意以下方面的法律问题：

1、 土地使用权出资必须评估作价

土地使用权究竟价值几何，需要进行客观、公正的地价评估加以确定。土地价值的确定成为供地方与合作方进行项目合作的价值基础。

《中华人民共和国公司法》第27条明确规定：“以土地使用权等可以用货币估价并可以依法转让的非货币财产作价出资”是合法的出资方式；同时还规定：“对作为出资的非货币财产应当评估作价”。 因此，供地方必须对其持有的土地使用权作价评估，并依法办理土地使用权的转移手续。否则，出资人应承担出资未到位的责任。

2、国有企业以土地使用权出资应经审批

以国有企业的土地使用权作价出资成立公司，出资方应上报主管国有资产监督管理机构审查后再上报同级人民政府批准。否则，不能实现土地使用权的出资。经批准后，对作为出资的土地使用权亦必须进行评估作价。此时，土地使用权的评估作价应当依照《国有资产评估管理办法》的有关规定办理。需要经过申请立项 、资产清查、评定估算、验证确认等程序。

3、划拨土地使用权出资应符合相关规定

以划拨方式获得的土地使用权出资有两种途径：一种是经有批准权的人民政府审批，办理土地使用权出让手续，补交土地使用权出让金，出资后的土地使用权从划拨取得转为出让取得。另一种是经有批准权的人民政府批准，保留划拨用地的性质，出资后的土地使用权仍为划拨用地。

对于以划拨土地使用权作为投资与他人订立合同合作开发房地产的，根据《最高人民法院关于审理涉及国有土地使用权合同纠纷案件适用法律问题的解释》的规定，土地使用权人未经有批准权的人民政府批准，以划拨土地使用权作为投资与他人订立合同合作开发房地产的，合作合同无效。但起诉前已经办理批准手续的，合同有效。