Question: I purchased a property last year and immediately served an eviction notice to my tenant and signed a new rent contract.
The eviction completes one year on May 19. However, the rent contract finishes on June 23. When must the tenant leave?
He insists on leaving at the end of the contract and not at the end of the eviction notice. Can I ask him to leave by May 19 and how should I do that? ML, Dubai
Answer: If you have served the tenant 12 months’ notice, his eviction date should be the date of this notice - in this case, May 19.
However, please note that his eviction can only stand if you have served him the notice for reason of moving in yourself or your next of kin of first degree because you cannot evict a tenant to then re-let the property as this is not allowed.
The other reason for eviction would be for selling but given that you’ve just bought the property, I assume this reason would not be valid.
If your reason for eviction is for moving in purposes, you would be quite within your right to request the May date.
Having said this, the actual move out date can also be later, if both parties agree.
If you have strong feelings about the May date, you can stick to your guns, but if the tenant doesn’t agree, the only way to resolve it would be for one of you to file a case at the Rent Dispute Settlement Committee and let a judge decide.
Q: My landlord’s property management company has sent me a tenancy renewal notice with an 8 per cent rent increase.
The new Real Estate Regulatory Authority rent calculator allows for a 10 per cent increase. There are still 3.5 months to go before the tenancy expires.
Over the past nine months, I have faced many disruptions to my enjoyment of the property due to water leakages affecting the tenant living below my apartment.
Due to this, the maintenance team excavated two of my bathrooms and asked us to close off the water supply in the third bathroom to isolate the source of leakage.
I have an amicable relationship with the property manager as the landlord is not directly involved in any of the above matters.
I have been living in the same building for 10 years without any issues. Although I appreciate their continuous efforts to resolve the issue, the fact remains that there is still no solution in sight despite nine months of effort.
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I have been in constant communication with their office regarding the maintenance issues faced since the end of June 2023.
I rejected the demand for a rent increase and countered to renew at a discount as compensation for the hassles.
I wouldn’t mind paying the fair value increase of 10 per cent if I hadn’t faced the above issues.
What are my rights in this situation if the landlord asks me to vacate or pay the 8 per cent hike? AR, Dubai
A: Given your stance on the tenancy in general, you will have no other alternative but to file a case at the RDSC, should the landlord insist on the rental increase of 8 per cent.
It will then be up to the judge to decide whether your suggestion of compensation in the form of a reduction in rent is justified.
Have you put forward this proposal directly to your landlord via the property manager?
If not, I suggest you try to arrange a meeting to explain how you feel about this situation, given how long it has taken to sort out.
The alternative is to let a judge decide on the matter.
Mario Volpi has worked in the property sector for 40 years in London and Dubai. The opinions expressed do not constitute legal advice and are provided for information only. Please send any questions to mariovolpi64@gmail.com
