Dubai Land Department updates its complaints procedure for managing jointly owned properties

Under the new development, the management company must be contacted first before submitting a complaint to Rera

 View of the Al Karama area taken from Dubai Frame in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National.

Dubai Land Department (DLD) has updated its procedures for complaints about the management of jointly owned properties, as part of its efforts to encourage investments in the emirate's real estate sector.

Under the new development, the person lodging a complaint must first write to the jointly owned properties' management company before submitting a complaint to the Real Estate Regulatory Agency (Rera), the DLD said in a statement on Saturday.

The management company should respond within a maximum of two working days. If a complaint is not answered, or the response is inappropriate, the person is directed to file the complaint through the DLD's real estate app Dubai Rest.

The person filing a complaint must attach several documents, including a copy of the written complaint letter sent to the management company and a copy of the official response from the company itself, if any. The person may also provide any other documents that support the complaint filed against the company.

"Owners will be able to obtain this service quickly, comfortably, and remotely at any time," Mohammed Khalifa bin Hammad, senior director of the Real Estate Relations Regulatory Department at Rera, said.

"Therefore, the positive impact of this measure will not be limited to individual owners of units but will enhance the attractiveness of the real estate market in the emirate in terms of high levels of transparency and guaranteeing the rights of everyone, especially as JOP [jointly owned properties] areas attract investors from all over the world.”

The development on the complaints procedure is one of the latest updates to the Dubai Rest app, a digital platform for real estate in the emirate that allows investors and owners to make property decisions, as part of DLD's strategy to go paperless.

Last week, the DLD introduced a new service that links real estate owners with brokers to help them sell or rent their property, with the aim of improving communication, reducing complaints and boosting transactions.

The department rolled out the Green List project on its Dubai Rest app. The service aims to facilitate "healthy communication" between real estate brokers and owners, while reducing the number of complaints about some brokers contacting owners without their consent.

Earlier this month, the DLD also introduced a fractional title deed programme to boost the emirate's hospitality industry and offer affordable options to property investors.

An investor will be able to buy up to half or a quarter of a hotel or serviced apartment under the new initiative.