Q: Dear Sir/Madam, I have not been served with a 90-day notice of any rent increase. The agent says that the landlord has changed, and that is why the rent is being increased. My assumption is that even if the landlord has changed, they still have to give me 90 days' notice of any rent increase. Is that correct? Also, this is only my first-year renewal. When I checked the RERA valuation, it showed that there is no rent increase allowed. Please help!

س: مرحبًا، لقد أعطيت المستأجر إشعار إخلاء لمدة عام واحد منذ 3 أشهر. وذلك لأن ابنتي ستنتقل إلى الوحدة. المستأجر الحالي يدفع 32 ألفًا بينما الإيجار الآن 65 ألفًا. ومع ذلك، فإن تجديد الإيجار قادم في غضون 3 أشهر. هل يمكنني زيادة الإيجار بما يتماشى مع زيادة الإيجار أم أن هذا سيجعل إشعار الإخلاء غير صالح؟

س: مساء الخير، أبحث عن شراء عقار مستأجر حيث أرسل البائع بالفعل إشعارًا بالإخلاء لمدة عام للمستأجر. أشتريه للاستخدام الشخصي وأريد الانتقال إليه بمجرد مغادرة المستأجر في مارس. هل إشعار الإخلاء الأصلي للبائع لا يزال ساريًا بعد بيعه لي أم يجب علي تقديم إشعار إخلاء جديد للمستأجر؟

س: مرحبًا، أرغب في شراء عقار ولكن يوجد مستأجرة بالداخل. تم إعطاؤها إشعار إخلاء في فبراير 2023، لكن عقد إيجارها ينتهي في أكتوبر 2023. تسير المعاملة بشكل جيد، بحلول ذلك الوقت يجب أن أكون مالكًا للعقار ونيتي هي الانتقال والعيش فيه. ومع ذلك، اتصلت بدائرة الأراضي والأملاك في دبي وأخبروني أنه في حالة قيامي بالشراء، فسأحتاج إلى تقديم إشعار إخلاء جديد، مما سيدفع المستأجرة لمدة 12 شهرًا أخرى. في هذه الحالة، لن أشتري هذا العقار وأبحث عن عقار شاغر. يبدو أن المستأجرة مستعدة للانتقال، ولكن قد تكون هناك دائمًا بعض المواقف غير المتوقعة، وفي هذه الحالة قد تمدد. لذلك، يسعدني المخاطرة ببقائها حتى فبراير من العام المقبل، ولكن ليس لمدة 12 شهرًا أخرى من لحظة شرائي للعقار. أرجو أن تخبرني ما هي خياراتي مع هذه الشقة، وكيف يمكنني تقليل مخاطر بقاء المستأجر لفترة أطول؟ شكرا لك!

Q: Hi I bought a residential property on 31-Oct-2023. It has already been on lease to tenants by the seller. The seller has already served a 1-year legal eviction notice from Dubai Courts on 25 August 2023. The tenancy contract expiry will be the 30th of June 2024, and the new owner/buyer wants to stay in the said apartment after the expiry of the contract and ensure that the property is vacated on time and does not get extended beyond 24 August 2024. (Q1) Kindly confirm if it is required by law that a new 1-year legal notice has to be issued by the buyer or if the old legal notice issued by the seller is still valid. (Q2) The tenant company has kept 6 bachelor boys from their company in the flat, which I heard was illegal for the JLT area to have bachelors and even more than 4 boys. Please confirm if anything can be done about that. (Q3) Due to 6 bachelor boys, the 5-year-old flat is not being well maintained and the condition worsening. Kindly advise on the action to take. Thanks

Q: Dear Sir/Madam, I am interested in buying a property that is currently tenanted. The agent has insisted that the tenant will vacate the property in two months; however, the current owner has not served any notice to the tenant. Is there an agreement we can ask the tenant to sign before we agree to buy the property, such as an undertaking in front of a magistrate? Can we include this in the MoU so that if the property is not vacated by a certain date, the MoU stands nullified?

Q: Dear Sir/Madam, I recently purchased a tenanted apartment in Dubai. The current tenant's rental contract with the previous owner is set to end in March 2025. I need your guidance on the legal process to notify the tenant of eviction so I can move in myself by the end of the existing contract. Specifically, I would like to know: - The legal process to notify the tenant of eviction. - The costs associated with initiating the eviction notice. - The required documents for issuing the eviction notice. Thanks in advance!

Q: Hi there! Our landlord sold the apartment we are currently staying in. We were aware they were on sale, but we never received any legal notice about it. We only received the title deed under the new owner's name and issued the rest of the cheques to him. Should we vacate the apartment at the end of our tenancy contract, or rely on the title deed's date (not sure if it is the correct document though)? Thanks in advance!

Q: My previous landlord served me a notice to vacate, stating he intended to sell the apartment, which he later sold to a private company. From what I understand, this notice should transfer to the new owner, who would only be allowed to either sell the unit or move in themselves and cannot ask me to vacate to re-lease for higher rent. We are closer to the 12-month notice expiry and the new owner (a private company) is now demanding a significantly higher rent—above RERA’s allowed increase—or insisting I vacate so they can lease it again at market rates. The demand is more than 50% of my current rent. Is this demand from the new owner valid? I called up RERA who couldn’t help and advised me to approach a lawyer. I am not sure if my rationale holds or if the new landlord is correct. I’ll appreciate advice from this community.

مقال في صورة مقابلة يتناول موضوع العقارات السكنية المُباعة بالتجزئة فيما يتعلق بالمسؤولية عن صيانة الممتلكات العقارية وتداعيات التخلُّف عن سداد الإيجار في الإمارات العربية المتحدة. مقتبس من المدونة الصوتية القانونية للمحامية لودميلا يامالوفا، مؤسسة مشروع لوجيكال مع لايلو.

The provisions of this Law apply to real property leased out in the Emirate of Dubai, including vacant and agricultural lands, but excluding hotel establishments and real property provided by natural or legal persons as accommodation to their employees at no charge.

Provisions of this Law supersede articles (2), (3), (4), (9), (13), (14), (15), (25), (26), (29), and (36) of Law No. (26) of 2007 Regulating the Relationship between Landlords and Tenants in the Emirate of Dubai. 

This Decree determines the maximum percentage of rent increase for real property in the Emirate of Dubai when renewing lease contracts.