BUYING PROPERTY IN DUBAI: STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

WE CONTINUE A CYCLE OF ARTICLES DEDICATED TO REAL ESTATE PURCHASE IN DUBAI. DOES NOT SECRET THAT THE ORDINARY BUYER HAS NOT AN EASY DIRECTION IN ORDERING PROCEDURAL MOMENTS. SUMMARY, THE PRICE OF THE QUESTION IS SUFFICIENTLY HIGH, AND THE POSSIBLE RISKS FOR PERFORMING THE TRANSACTION SHOULD BE MINIMUM. TODAY WE ARE STEP-BY-STEP BUILDING A PROCEDURE FOR PURCHASING REAL ESTATE IN DUBAI AND WE WILL TRY THE LOWEST DETAILS TO LIGHT ALL IMPORTANT ASPECTS.

Our compatriots who decide to buy real estate in the UAE should keep in mind that there is still no general federal law in the field of real estate in the United Arab Emirates. Each of the seven emirates independently regulates all issues related to the real estate market on its territory. The most progressive in this direction, traditionally, is Dubai.

Dubai has the most developed and transparent legislative framework in the field of real estate. According to the laws of the Emirate of Dubai, citizens of foreign states that are not members of the Arab Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) are entitled to directly acquire property in Dubai in full ownership (“freehold”) in specially designated territories, in the so-called freehold areas. The list of such zones is established by Decree of the Ruler of Dubai No. 3 of 2006. These include almost the entire territory of "new Dubai", including such popular areas as Dubai Marina, The Palm Jumeirah, Emirates Living, Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Downtown Dubai and others.

The rights to real estate are registered in a special registry by the Dubai Land Department, and the owners are issued a certificate of registration (the so-called “Title Deed”). Registration of real estate transactions is carried out at the time of contacting the Land Department of the buyer and seller, and immediately the registration certificate certifying ownership of the acquired property is issued to the buyer. This procedure of "instant" registration maximally simplifies the process of buying and selling real estate and minimizes possible risks, both on the part of the seller and the buyer.

Compliance is monitored by the Dubai Real Estate Market Regulatory Authority (RERA). It, in particular, is responsible for the registration of real estate projects, as well as for the mandatory registration of developers, real estate agencies and the agents themselves. The activities of RERA are primarily aimed at protecting the rights and interests of buyers and sellers and is designed to minimize the possibility of fraud on the part of agents. Checking the registration of any real estate agency and its agents is very simple. To do this, just go to the official RERA website at www.rpdubai.com

In general terms, the procedure for buying property in Dubai in most cases is as follows:

1. The buyer selects the property that he wishes to purchase

The easiest and most effective way is to contact one of the real estate agencies operating in the Dubai market. The fact is that without the participation of agents in Dubai, as, indeed, in the rest of the world, almost no real estate transaction is complete. It is in real estate agencies, most often, clients who want to rent, rent, buy or sell real estate apply. Working in the market, agents, like no one else, possess information about who, what and how much they want to rent, rent, sell, or buy. In most cases, the real estate agency acts as a third party in the transaction between the seller and the buyer, guaranteeing the interests of both. However, it must be borne in mind that not all professional market participants are duly registered and act legally.

First of all, in accordance with the Order of the Chairman of the Dubai Land Department No. 85 of 2006, all real estate agencies operating in Dubai must be licensed for this type of activity and be registered in the special registry of the Dubai Real Estate Market Regulatory Authority (RERA). Since business entities in the UAE do not have universal legal capacity, the permitted type of activity must be clearly indicated in the license. For example, for mediation in the sale, purchase or lease, these types of activities must be explicitly indicated in the license. At the same time, all agents of the company must undergo an appropriate training course and receive personal brokerage cards with an individual number.

2. The seller and the buyer sign a contract of sale, which reflects all the parameters of the transaction In general, a contract of sale of real estate must satisfy the following basic requirements:

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Notarization of real estate purchase and sale agreements in the UAE is not required, a simple written form is sufficient. Despite the fact that the official language in the UAE is Arabic, treaties in English are universally recognized and accepted without translation. The exception is the prosecutor's office, the police and the courts, where translation into Arabic is a mandatory requirement.

Contain the main terms of the transaction

In the contract of sale of real estate must be indicated:

object of sale
the value of the acquired property,
additional payments associated with the transaction (commission of agents, payments to the developer, registration fee in the Land Department, reimbursement of the seller of maintenance costs paid in advance, etc.),
the period during which the purchase and sale transaction must be completed,
terms and procedure for making settlements,
responsibility of the parties in case of failure to fulfill the conditions of the contract.

It is worth noting that in most cases, the involvement of third-party lawyers in the preparation of the contract of sale of real estate is not required. As a rule, qualified employees of a real estate agency conducting a transaction are quite able to prepare such an agreement on the basis of standard forms approved and used in the company's activities.

3. When signing a sales contract with the seller, the buyer makes a deposit (usually 10% of the value of the acquired property)

Usually, the real estate agency accepts the deposit from the buyer and holds it until the final settlements and registration of the transaction in the Land Department. For the buyer, this guarantees a return of the deposit if the transaction does not take place due to the fault of the seller. And the seller, in turn, can count on the payment of the deposit amount as compensation if the transaction does not take place due to the fault of the buyer.

Dubai's real estate market is multinational. Buyers, sellers, landlords and tenants are usually foreign nationals. Where can they look for each other in case something goes wrong? Therefore, a real estate agency with a registered office in Dubai is a serious guarantor of the transaction. In addition, an important factor is the requirement of legislation on 100% ownership of such a company by local residents - citizens of the UAE.

4. The seller draws up a permission from the developer to sell his property (No Objection Certificate, NOC), which is necessary for registering a transaction in the Dubai Land Department

A permission from the developer (No Objection Certificate, NOC), in fact, is a certificate of the absence of the seller’s debt to the developer. Registration of such a permit for the sale of real estate may take from 1 day to 2-3 weeks, depending on the developer. The cost of such a permit is, again, depending on the policy of the developer, from 500 to 5000 UAE dirhams (approximately US $ 137-1370).

5. After the permission to sell is obtained, the seller and the buyer register the property in the name of the new owner in the Land Department.

Usually, at the time of registration, transactions are also settled. The real estate registry is maintained by the Dubai Land Department in electronic form. Registration of transfer of ownership of real estate is carried out at the time the buyer and seller contact, and immediately the buyer receives a registration certificate (“Title Deed”) proving his ownership of the acquired property.

If the property has not yet been put into operation, then its registration with the Land Department takes place in the temporary registry. In this case, the buyer does not receive a certificate of registration, but the so-called. initial contract of sale (Initial Contract of Sale). When the object is put into operation, the primary contract of sale is the basis for the owner to receive a registration certificate. The cost of registering the transfer of ownership of real estate in the Land Department generally amounts to 2% of the selling price plus a small fixed payment (about US $ 100) for issuing a certificate.

To register with the Land Department, you must submit the following documents:

- originals of the passports of the buyer and seller,
- the original certificate of registration of real estate in the name of the seller,
- The original permit for the sale of real estate from the developer (NOC),
- copy of the contract of sale.

If you do not have the opportunity or desire to personally be present in the Land Department at the time of registration of the transfer of rights, you can delegate your authority to register real estate in your name to any other person by issuing a notarized power of attorney. This can be done, for example, at the Dubai Courts Notary Public. The cost of notarization of a power of attorney is 60 UAE dirhams (about US $ 16) plus 150 dirhams (about US $ 41) there are services for typing the power of attorney in English and Arabic.

At the time of registration of the transfer of rights to real estate, final settlements between the seller and the buyer under the purchase and sale transaction take place. Usually, settlements are carried out by transferring pre-prepared bank checks from the buyer to the seller for the necessary amounts (the so-called Manager's Checks - an analogue of a bank bill). Often, such checks are prepared by a real estate agency conducting a transaction. Naturally, before this, the agency must receive all funds from the buyer. Cash payments are sometimes found, but not common due to the mass of inconvenience that is associated with this.

Immediately before issuing the registration certificate to the buyer, the state registrar asks the buyer and seller to make settlements and sign a paper stating that the seller has no claims for payment of real estate. In order for the transaction completion process to go smoothly, the buyer must prepare all the checks in advance and coordinate the names and amounts indicated in them with the seller. If the transaction is conducted by a real estate agency, it usually takes on the function of coordinating and coordinating payments.

You can get any additional information about purchasing real estate in Dubai from IMEX Real Estate specialists by tel. in Moscow +7 495 5100008, toll-free number in the UAE 800-IMEX (800-4639) or by sending a request by e-mail [email protected].

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