(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Residential buildings lying vacant in Dubai are charged housing fee by default. But the developers or owners will be refunded if they prove the unoccupied status of the units, a senior official of the Dubai Municipality has said.
Abdulla Hashim Abdul Ghafoor, head of Marketing and Housing Fees Unit in DM's Finance Department, was responding to the concerns of the CEO of a real estate firm, who complained to Khaleej Times that the municipality had recently come up with a new rule to charge housing fee even for unoccupied buildings.
The official clarified that no new rule has been issued with regards to housing fee, which is levied on all civic services that the municipality provides to the emirate.
"The housing fee is for the municipal services we are providing for the entire emirate," Director-General of Dubai Municipality Hussain Nasser Lootah had told Khaleej Times in 2010, when the municipality devised a system to unify the collection of the fee through the monthly utility bills from the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa).
"We are the ones who keep the city clean, keep the pollution at bay, ensure food safety, and provide waste management services and recreational facilities like parks and even the burial ground for the community. That is why everyone has to pay the housing fee," Lootah had said, maintaining that the housing fee was not connected to the service fee collected by developers.
Referring to the complaint raised by the CEO, who did not wish to be named, Abdul Ghafoor said: "There is no rule to charge unoccupied buildings or units. Now, all residential units are charged housing fee from the time they take Dewa connection. So, it happens by default."
Only homes of Emiratis exempted
Abdul Ghafoor said this is done irrespective of the nationality of the owners. "Emiratis are also charged for the residential properties they own. They are exempted from housing fee only in the case of their own homes."
He said the municipality would stop charging the vacant buildings, provided owners or developers prove that the units are lying vacant.
"They can provide us the Dewa bills. We can understand if the units are not rented out or not sold " (or are) totally empty and there is no consumption of water and electricity by occupants. Then, we will remove the housing fee."
Asked if the municipality would also refund them in such cases, Abdul Ghafoor said: "Yes, we will."
The official added that the same consideration will be given in the case of ready-to-occupy building that maybe receiving very minimal power and water bills because they are used when aspirant occupants visit them for checking out the facilities.
"But this exemption is not given to those people who stay in the country for two or three months in a year and are usually out of the country for the rest of the time," he clarified.
All expat tenants are now charged a five per cent of the rent of their housing units and owners of freehold residential properties are charged five per cent of the rental value of their property as per the rental index of their areas issued by the Real Estate Regulatory Agency (Rera).
When there is any discrepancy in the amount charged, customers can approach the Al Twar and Al Manara centres of the municipality to make necessary corrections in the system with supporting documents like Dewa bill, Ejari certificate etc.
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