(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Mohamad Kadry on why unscrupulous landlords need to be given a crash course on Dubais rental laws
Photo: Corbis
Home is where the heart is. Unless of course you live in Dubai where home is where you must negotiate a fair rental agreement with a borderline abusive landlord while also avoiding eviction before even signing a contract.
Apartment hunting in Dubai: It’s a gruelling odyssey that most expats must endure. You’ll need a dose of courage a smattering of luck and enough patience to work against a system that often favours the greedy and unlawful.
There’s nothing even remotely enjoyable about this process compounded by confusing laws and regulation and intimidating tactics by unprofessional rental agencies. Money is the name of the game and agents/owners will do anything and everything to get their way even if it means brazenly flouting the law. The stress of renting and renewing can often make you feel like you’re facing a deep black hole with very little protection to count on.
More and more people are educating themselves on the basic rights that a tenant possesses even turning to committees like RERA to sort out their tenancy disagreements. Every potential tenant should take note that in the majority of cases landlords are desperate to remove you from their property after 12 months in order to increase the rent for the next tenant. This is illegal plain and simple. Unless an owner gets notorised approval from the land department for eviction no amount of intimidation should sway you to leave.
My housing history speaks for itself: six different apartments in seven years. I don’t know of anywhere else in the world where this might be found acceptable or even encouraged but here we are. While some of these shifts were due to fluctuating prices in the market that allowed me to find better deals (after the financial crisis for example when rental prices across Dubai plummeted) they were mostly due to a system that allows landlords to flip their tenants in order to earn a bigger return on their investment. It’s been an incredibly frustrating journey that thousands here face on a daily basis.
Fighting for your tenancy rights can feel like an uphill battle but it’s important to use the law in your favour. Many agents/owners will negotiate with their tenants once they realise the illegality of their course and claims a courtesy they reluctantly give. For example so-called “non-renewable” contracts are not recognised by the law so if you’re being asked to vacate after your first contractual year there’s absolutely no need to leave. The same holds true for rent increases that exceed what is allowed by the RERA Rent Calculator (www.dubailand.gov.ae) and a failure to notify the tenant within 90 days of contract renewal.
The arduous process of finding and maintaining residency seems to be getting worse year by year but backing up your defence using local laws can make a world of difference in your quest for fair housing. It may feel frustrating and even hopeless at times but studying your rights as a tenant is a necessity that will help protect all of us in the future.