As we were signing the tenancy contract, the owner of the villa we are leasing said he would charge us Dh500 every time there was a maintenance issue. He wrote it as an addendum on the contract. I questioned this and asked him whether he had a correct Arabic version of the contract, which lacked the addendum. As tenants are we responsible for the oral clause that was not in the signed contract? Also is charging for maintenance in a rental legit? In the US it never could happen. As a note, we've had several maintenance issues in the first month - all problems that were simply not fixed before we moved in. JD, Dubai
A tenant and landlord are only bound by a written contract that is read, understood and signed by both parties. Oral clauses do not stand up in court.
On the subject of maintenance, it is important to understand what the industry norm is when it comes to who is responsible for what between a landlord and tenant. Major maintenance is normally the responsibility of the landlord and minor is on the tenant. Any single maintenance issue that costs less than Dh500 is normally regarded as minor and therefore is the responsibility of the tenant but any single maintenance issue on the property that amounts to more than Dh500 is regarded as major and therefore the responsibility of the landlord. I have never heard of a landlord charging the tenant when maintenance issues arise, this is a bit like being castigated financially if the property breaks down.
You should not agree to this clause, oral or written, as this is unfair. If any repairs or maintenance are required that were caused directly by you, then I can understand the landlord wishing to charge you for said actions, other than that it should be as per the major/ minor procedure.
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Read more from Mario Volpi:
Homefront: My tenant wants better security in my villa. Should I pay for this?
Homefront: 'How do I get the best deal if I'm breaking my apartment lease early?'
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I signed a tenancy contract on April 1, which will start on April 15. However due to job insecurity and possible job cuts I now need to cancel it. What will be the possible implications for this? MS, Dubai
The key to getting your contract cancelled lies in careful negotiations with the landlord. Despite the fact the contract has not started yet, I presume it has been signed and therefore agreed by all parties.
I suggest you now organise a face-to-face meeting with the landlord to explain your situation. I’m sure he would not want to have a tenant who is not secure in his job and therefore have rental payment issues in the future. Under most cases, there could be a financial penalty but this is very much up to the landlord to decide. He now has to find a new tenant so I’m sure he would be more willing to allow you to cancel the contract if you were able to find someone to replace you as the tenant.
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Read more from Mario Volpi:
Homefront: Can I use a power of attorney to sell my Abu Dhabi apartment?
Homefront: Can a developer fine me for late payment a year after handover?
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We have just received a notice in Arabic via courier, which our landlord’s secretary informs us is a 12-month eviction notice as they are changing the six villa compound in Umm Suqeim from residential to commercial use. We believe they will just be revamping the compound and reletting at a higher price. Firstly, is this legal ? Secondly, would there be some kind of public plans that they would have needed to submit? Ideally we would like to stay in the property. PH, Dubai
A landlord is perfectly within his rights to demand eviction of the tenant for reasons of demolition and reconstruction but there does have to be necessary licenses and or technical reports obtained from the Dubai municipality. This eviction has to be communicated in writing via notary public or registered mail giving 12 months' notice.
Given you will be directly impacted by this decision, you would be quite within your rights to request sight of these documents to prove that the eviction is legitimate.
Mario Volpi is the sales and leasing manager at Engel & Volkers. He has worked in the property sector for 34 years in London and Dubai.
The opinions expressed do not constitute legal advice and are provided for information only. Please send any questions to mario.volpi@engelvoelkers.com
Shubh Mangal Saavdhan
Directed by: RS Prasanna
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Bhumi Pednekar
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Traits of Chinese zodiac animals
Tiger:independent, successful, volatile
Rat:witty, creative, charming
Ox:diligent, perseverent, conservative
Rabbit:gracious, considerate, sensitive
Dragon:prosperous, brave, rash
Snake:calm, thoughtful, stubborn
Horse:faithful, energetic, carefree
Sheep:easy-going, peacemaker, curious
Monkey:family-orientated, clever, playful
Rooster:honest, confident, pompous
Dog:loyal, kind, perfectionist
Boar:loving, tolerant, indulgent
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
About Proto21
Date started: May 2018
Founder: Pir Arkam
Based: Dubai
Sector: Additive manufacturing (aka, 3D printing)
Staff: 18
Funding: Invested, supported and partnered by Joseph Group
The%20specs
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The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
