Q: Hello, I have a disagreement with my landlord. We rented a villa in Dubai for one year and before only one month of the end of our tenancy contract, the landlord asked us to vacate and informed us that he is not willing to renew because he is selling the villa. We have a clause in the contract that: The tenant and the Land Lord have to submit in advance 60 days' written notice before the expiry of the tenancy contract for vacating or renewal of the tenancy contract. We did not express our intention to renew before 60 days from the expiry of the contract but we did after he asked us to vacate. I tried a lot of times to convince my landlord to renew because he needs to send 12 months evicting notice for selling and also he did not send the non-renewal rental before 60 days. I would like to know my rights please and if I go to the rent committee, would I win the dispute? Thank you very much!

Q: I have a tenant with an expired contract. I agreed to have a new contract for this year but I did not sign with him yet. He was 35 days late to pay the first 50% of the rent. Our agreement with him that he pays maintenance, but he deducted AED 40,000 from the rent because he said he changed the door latch and main circuit barker. I objected and demanded my money for the full rent (he paid 8,000 and he deducted 40,000). I want my full payment.

Q: I recently purchased a property in Springs which is rented till September. I need legal advice on the procedure to send an eviction notice to my tenant as I need to occupy the property for personal use. As far as I read in the RERA legislation Page 108-110, Article (25) - Section - 2, if the landlord wants to occupy the property for personal use, 90 days notice is sufficient. But the tenant insists to have a 12-month notice. What are my options and is it possible to send a legal notice to the tenant to vacate the premises at the end of the rent contract? Kindly advise

The relationship between tenants and landlords is regulated in Dubai by Law No. 33 of 2008 Concerning the Relationship Between Landlords and Tenants in the Emirate of Dubai. The arising rental disputes are referred to Rental Disputes Settlement Centre (“RDSC”) created by Decree No. 26 of 2013 to reconcile between the parties and reach an amicable settlement or seek a final judgment issued and enforced by the RDSC.

An interview-format article covering the topic of residential retail properties pertaining to the liability for property maintenance and the repercussions of defaulting on rent payments in the UAE. This is from the legal podcast of lawyer Ludmila Yamalova, the founder of Lawgical with LYLAW.

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.