Questions & Answers
New developer wants to change payment terms. How to me to protect my rights?
Dear Sir/Madam,
I bought a residential property for AED 7 million in Dubai from a developer in 2013 and registered the property in the same year. The project has been delayed and is still not complete.
The original developer sold/transferred the project to another developer in 2022. The project is now 60% complete as per the latest RERA inspection report.
The original payment terms in the Sales Purchase Agreement were a final balance payment of 40% to be payable on the handover of the property.
However, now the new developer has drafted a new Sales Purchase Agreement where he is demanding 90% to be paid in stages while construction is in progress, and only a balance of 10% to be payable on the handover of the property.
The RERA website states project completion by Dec 2025.
Please advise if the new developer has the legal right to change these payment terms.
What options are available to me to protect my investment and my rights?
Dear Questioner,
The new developer has no right to change the original SPA's terms and conditions because these terms should be applied before him as well.
Dear Questioner,
The new real estate developer does not have the right to amend the contract without consulting the buyers, as the project is transferred to him carrying all previous obligations.
You can give the new real estate developer a legal warning that the contract is valid as it was signed and that any amendment must be by agreement between the parties.
For further inquiries about your topic, you can reach our office or contact us via email or WhatsApp.
Dear Questioner,
In order to advise you properly, we have to review the terms and conditions enclosed within the SPA.
In general, to amend the terms, both parties should mutually consent to it. We will discuss this further in a legal consultation session.
Kindly share your WhatsApp number to proceed.
Dear Questioner,
We can provide assistance in reviewing the two contracts issued by the developers and advise you accordingly on your situation.
There may be a nominal fee associated with reviewing these documents, but rest assured that if legal action is deemed necessary and you engage our services based on our assessment, this fee will be deducted from our overall fees.
To schedule your free legal consultation today, please contact us via WhatsApp.
Dear questioner,
You have the right to object to the new payment plan at the new SPA. We advise you to send a legal notice to the new developer to assert your legal rights as per the law.
Please don’t hesitate to contact us via phone or email with your documents so we can assist you.
Dear Questioner,
Please note that the developer cannot change the terms of the Sale and Purchase Agreement at any point in time after its execution.
However, we need to review the agreement and the correspondence with the developer to advise you properly.
Please send us a copy of the documents and agreements via email so that we can review them and advise you on the next steps.
You can call us for detailed discussion and assistance.
