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Urgent advise on handover of keys/ deposit for flat needed

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156

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 21 November 2011 - 17:25

@BBCB- you're right about the morale. But after 2 hrs (!) of arguing and him threatening to sue me pro rata for rent if we don't hand back the keys immediately, I just figured that going to the rents committee is easier. Also, the flat is in really excellent condition but it's obviously not new. Law 26/2007 stipulates that "Tenant shall be obliged, upon expiry of tenancy, to return the premises to landlord in the same condition as handed over to him at the time of contracting [u'>except shortages resulting from normal use [/u'>or for reasons beyond his control." Now the question is what is meant by normal use, but I'm pretty convinced that having a few pictures and mirrors on the wall falls within that range. All the holes were filled and painted so I don't really see what else I could do. I do not feel obliged to put the flat in a "selling" condition which is what he now wants me to do in order to avoid himself having to do so on his own expense.

341

Posts

EW EXPLORER

Latest post on 21 November 2011 - 15:00

I suggest that you wait for his costing this evening from the painters and repair people before you do anything He is well within his rights to retain the fee until the property is put back to the condition in which it was handed to you and also that any outstanding DEWA is paid. possibly - he may come back with 500AED cost to repaint and touch up - if your unhappy with this figure or anything above this - then tell him you are unhappy and get a quote yourself. what he cannot do is charge you 2000AED for a 500AED job .. this is not allowed and you both have to agree on the amounts before he can take it from your security deposit .. also moral of the story .. dont hand back your keys until you get your deposit and take a full condition report on entry and exit ...and photos edited by bbcb on 21/11/2011

156

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 21 November 2011 - 14:56

Ok thanks, I'm calmer now. So I need to go into their office in Deira (Dubai Municipality) and get all the forms etc. there, correct? I don't speak Arabic so just want to make sure I know of everything I need to know before going...

2958

Posts

EW EXPERT

Latest post on 21 November 2011 - 14:51

Try speaking to them cos we only paid 3.5% of the deposit. We had to pay all the other things as well, but they get added to the amounts that he has to pay as compensation if it gets to be a case. I think you'll find that once he knows you mean business (maybe just after starting the case and before you incur all the fees) he'll pay up. Fingers crossed anyways I agree - if he has so many properties he knows full well he will lose if you file a case against him - it's worth trying it on for him to keep 6k. If he knows you mean business and gets a call from the RC then he may well back down very quickly. For others facing this - I would not hand over any keys if there is any doubt that your deposit will not be returned. Instead I would take the keys to the rent committee together with the photos of the poperty and let them advise you how to handle it. I'm sure if they call a LL and state they have the keys and can see from the photos that the property is being handed back in good condition that the LL will stump up what is yours to have back...... play them at their own game - so many get away with it and so many just don't stand up to this scam. Good luck - I hope it all works for you. The guys at the rent committee are really fair and nice people to deal with.

phoebecat727038

8

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 21 November 2011 - 14:46

Try speaking to them cos we only paid 3.5% of the deposit. We had to pay all the other things as well, but they get added to the amounts that he has to pay as compensation if it gets to be a case. I think you'll find that once he knows you mean business (maybe just after starting the case and before you incur all the fees) he'll pay up. Fingers crossed anyways

2958

Posts

EW EXPERT

Latest post on 21 November 2011 - 14:46

This is if you go ahead and file a case. You may well find that if you go into the rent committee armed with your receipts for the work you had done they may well call him and advise him to pay up. I was there once and this is what the guy did - called the LL and told him it was not worth going to the rent comm court - he was at fault and it would be better for him to return the deposit. The guy agreed and made arrangements with the rent comm guy to pay the deposit back to the man who had gone in for the advice. It's worth filing a case when you are being evicted and facing relocation fees and a massive rent increase - this is why we were there and we won our case which allowed us to stay in the property for up to 3 years and not just 1 like our LL thought would be the way to go!

156

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 21 November 2011 - 14:10

I just checked the DMRC website: Are these fees for real? I mean, 3.5% of annual rent is HORRENDOUS :s [b'>DMRC Fees & Documents[/b'> Plaintiff to pay 3.5% of annual rent with a minimum of AED 350 and a maximum ceiling of AED 20,000 Other fees may be levied by DMRC on plaintiff for summoning experts, payment of expert’s fee, fee for deposit of rent with DMRC etc You may have to separately pay for a newspaper advertisement in a local newspaper, in case the defendant fails to show up for a committee hearing.

156

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 21 November 2011 - 13:59

Thanks ladies!! I couldn't take pictures- wanted to do it today but he didn't show up/doesn't want to let me in the flat anymore. But I have receipts from maid, handiman (jimwillfixit - so a reputable company, no cheap guy from the street) and have logs of all emails, sms and calls. I only wait for him to name his price tonight (which I'm convinced will be ridiculous) and will then file the complaint. @Phoebecat7- thanks for the offer ;-) And I'm sorry you had to go through this as well. It's such a waste of time and energy, really! @ Clairehdp- yes, will do. I also love his logic: "I have 20M AED worth of properties in Dubai, this one is 2M AED - so why do you quivel over 6000 AED with me? Give me a break." -- :\:

phoebecat727038

8

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 21 November 2011 - 13:32

Having the receipt from your decorator should be enough. Obviously keep all correspondence and email rather than text/speak if you can so you have a record. I always thought it was RERA who dealt with this stuff, but it was definitely the municipality who dealt with it in our case. At least your LL is in the country-ours lives abroad so we're having to get the banks to freeze his accounts to get the money :-(. If you need any help I'm sure my DH will explain how we did it. He's like a terrier with a bone with this stuff :-)

2958

Posts

EW EXPERT

Latest post on 21 November 2011 - 13:32

Exactly what I was going to put...... please tell me you've taken photos of each room to prove you have left the property in good condition. If not - can you go back in and take photos. Every time we left a property I walked around and took photos of every room. As soon as our deposits were handed back I just deleted them off my camera. Just an insurance against a bad landlord. If it goes on get to the rent committee. 6k dhs is not to be missed out and is a lovely bonus in his pocket - so don't let him get away with it. If yuo have a receipt for the work you had done before leaving the apartment - that will also help your case with the rent committee. Good luck!

1575

Posts

EW EXPERT

Latest post on 21 November 2011 - 13:29

I'm being pessimistic here, is there a need to take photos of the place before he does things to it. Just so you can show you left it in a different/better/same condition before he makes you pay for something you didn't need to? "Petty" AED6k? Hmph. Excellent idea

1575

Posts

EW EXPERT

Latest post on 21 November 2011 - 13:23

Rent Committee QUICK!!

156

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 21 November 2011 - 13:17

Update: I got a longer lunch break from my employer to come for the inspection at 12pm. Tried calling the landlord, SMS, email ever since 8.15am this morning- no reaction. I showed up at 12pm. Noone there. He calls me later, declaring that "I don't want you to be there at the inspection because I bring a painter and I don't want you to snoop around and interfere". When I started saying that I thought there was an agreement" he explodes "why are you so keen on these petty 6000 AED anyways? I will do the inspection, I don't want you there, and I will call you in the evening to inform you about how much you need to pay". This is SO going to the rents committee....!!

156

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 20 November 2011 - 21:26

Thanks Phoebecat7, that's very helpful! So there might be light at the end of the tunnel... will check with the municipality tomorrow morning. It's really such a shame- we took good care of the flat, had a lot of repairs done which actually enhanced the value of the property, and now at the end the guy tries to screw us over because he's eager to sell the flat and the new prospective owner knows how to exploit that... It's really disappointing.

phoebecat727038

8

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 20 November 2011 - 20:59

This happened to us-v similar situation. We refused to paint/allow any deduction and the landlord took the keys. When we progressed the case with the municipality they relied on the fact that landlord accepted the keys as evidence that he was happy with state of the apartment. In other words it may work in your favour that he accepted the keys. Getting your deposit back probably wouldn't warrant a lawyer as the fees would be disproportionate, but you can bring the case yourself int he municipality-we found them v helpful. As a starting point I'd say send him an email entitled 'final warning' and demanding return of deposit in 7 days or else you will lodge a case. Good luck :-)

156

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 20 November 2011 - 20:07

Thanks, hope so too... Addition: Does anyone know any good lawyers for rent stuff? Just in case it comes to that I guess there are specialized guys dealing with it...

2937

Posts

EW EXPERT

Latest post on 20 November 2011 - 20:03

Eeeek! Not a good situation :(. Perhaps call the rent committee and ask their advice? I hope you manage to get it sorted.

156

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 20 November 2011 - 19:56

Ladies, I need some urgent advise on a very ugly landlord issue - hope someone can help us. We were supposed to hand over our flat today. Lived in it for a year, it's really in a very very good condition. We had a professional company do touch ups (filling holes, painting etc). Landlord showed up today to the handover together with a real estate agent AND the prospective BUYER of the flat! Landlord was happy with the flat, its condition etc. Then real estate agent walked around and constantly asked hte new buyer "are you happy with this? Shouldn't they repaint?" etc. Had landlord showed up alone (as it hte normal procedure for any flat I've had in Dubai so far), we would've been done in 10 minutes. But the new prospective owner was like "yeah, would be great if they could paint it" etc. So what ended up happening is that our landlord said "well, for me it is ok, but I think maybe there are some snags in the walls and I gave it to you in a new condition so you have to return it new". So essentially he refused to give us back the deposit because the NEW PROSPECTIVE owner wants it painted although he himself thought the flat was ok (he's desparately trying to sell the flat). We had a 2 hr discussion about this and in the end were forced to turn over the keys without getting back the deposit because he threatened significantly. He wants to go back to the flat tomorrow, assess "the snags" (really, there are none visible!) and then give us a quote for how much he thinks is needed to put it in an acceptable condition. I don't know what to do. I can't be there tomorrow for the new inspection because I need to work but I'm obviously afraid the guy will come up with a ridiculous amount or refuse to give us back the deposit in order to appease the prospective buyer of the flat. Any advise?? Thanks so much!!!

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