PHOTO
08 August 2016
Scrapping of the 5% cap in 2013 has been blamed for the rise in cases.Abu Dhabi rent dispute cases have soared by more than 100 percent over the past five years, according to United Arab Emirates-based Arabic daily newspaper Al Bayan.
Abu Dhabi Judicial Department reported an average of 27 rent dispute cases per day in last year, up from 13 cases per day in 2010. The cases, which are presided over by the Rent Dispute Settlement Committee, generally focused on disputes over the increase in rents or requests by landlords to evict a tenant who has stopped paying rent.
The unprecedented jump in rental disputes in the emirate has been attributed to an amendment to the law in November 2013, which abolished the rent cap limiting yearly increases to 5 percent, allowing landlords to raise property rents by as much as 100 percent in some cases.
Tenants, lawyers and property agents urged the government to directly intervene and reinstate a rental cap or speed up the introduction of a rental index being prepared by the Department of Municipal Affairs.
The index aims to divide the emirate into different zones and recommended guide to rental levels. However, no date has been specified for the launch of the index.
(Writing by Nada Al Rifai)
© Zawya 2016
Scrapping of the 5% cap in 2013 has been blamed for the rise in cases.Abu Dhabi rent dispute cases have soared by more than 100 percent over the past five years, according to United Arab Emirates-based Arabic daily newspaper Al Bayan.
Abu Dhabi Judicial Department reported an average of 27 rent dispute cases per day in last year, up from 13 cases per day in 2010. The cases, which are presided over by the Rent Dispute Settlement Committee, generally focused on disputes over the increase in rents or requests by landlords to evict a tenant who has stopped paying rent.
The unprecedented jump in rental disputes in the emirate has been attributed to an amendment to the law in November 2013, which abolished the rent cap limiting yearly increases to 5 percent, allowing landlords to raise property rents by as much as 100 percent in some cases.
Tenants, lawyers and property agents urged the government to directly intervene and reinstate a rental cap or speed up the introduction of a rental index being prepared by the Department of Municipal Affairs.
The index aims to divide the emirate into different zones and recommended guide to rental levels. However, no date has been specified for the launch of the index.
(Writing by Nada Al Rifai)
© Zawya 2016
