Being an expatriate it is easy for a person to be duped easily by the natives. In case of finding a stay in the country, you may have to rely fully on the real estate agent, by putting your full trust on the agent as you are new to the place.
Chances are high that you might get fooled by them, because of this you might find yourself landed in hot waters because of them.
Many expatriates in looking for a proper stay in UAE have faced fraud and many are taken for a ride by their real estate agent.
Here are a few tips everyone should keep in mind while looking for houses for rent or buy in UAE through agents:
Before buying the place for rent or stay one must verify if the new premises are vacant before payment of any deposit money or handing over the rental cheques to the landlord or the real estate agent. Also, due diligence such as viewing the apartment and meeting the landlord before issuing the cheques.
One must ask the agent to provide you with a copy of the authority issued by the landlord in favour of the real estate agent to rent the premises and collection of cheques.
The functioning of the real estate agents falls under the jurisdiction of the Real Estate Regulations Agency (RERA). For any of the inconvenience caused to the tenant or the landlord by the real estate agent, the aggrieved party has the right to approach the Rera and file a complaint against the agent.
According to the law Article 21 of Bylaw No. 85 of 2006 regulating the Real Estate Brokers Register in the Emirate of Dubai (the ‘Real Estate Agent Law”) states: “A real estate broker will be deemed the trustee of any amounts, securities, bonds or any other items delivered to him by any of the parties for safekeeping or for delivery to the other party. The real estate broker must deliver such items as agreed and will be bound by the relevant trusteeship rules.”
The law further states: “A real estate broker will be held liable for any loss or damage suffered by the contracting parties as a result of his fraudulent act or deceit or as a result of failure to observe any relevant rules stipulated in this Bylaw or the code of professional ethics.”
The law means that a real estate broker will be held liable for any loss or damage suffered by the contracting parties as a result of his fraudulent act or deceit or as a result of failure to observe any relevant rules.
If one want to purchase an in-development property in UAE it is necessary that he should check and confirm that the developer has been registered with the Real Estate Regulatory Authority in the emirate. The Decrees of Properties, oblige a developer to register with the Real Estate Regulatory Agency as well as open an escrow account. He is supposed to deposit the money received from buyers into the escrow account of the project rather than on his own account.
This helps the buyer to effectively track the developer’s progress whilst being protected from fraud. If he have realised that a property developerfrom whom he bought from was not registered with RERA, file a real-estate case of fraud and breach of contract in the concerned court along with claims of compensation.
The security deposit is given by the tenant to the landlord to deal with deliberate damages made by the tenant and has to be returned if no damages are found, even if the tenant chooses to leave the premises before the period signed in the contract.The landlord has no right to withhold the security deposit. Also, the Dubai rental law does not give the property owner the right to hold back the security deposit in case a tenant breaches the tenancy contract.
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