Abu Dhabi new laws

New laws to help make the real estate market in Abu Dhabi more transparent and safer for buyers are expected to be introduced in the early months of next year.

Officials at the Department of Municipal Affairs are currently drawing up the necessary draft documents that will cover escrow accounts, brokers, titles and mortgages.

Regulations covering planning and building are also under consideration.

It is expected that overall five set of regulations will be incorporated in the existing law 19 of 2005 that sets rules for real estate developers, contractors and brokers.

It also includes rules covering off-plan sales, licensing of high rise residential buildings and property registration.
 
There is no date yet being given as to when they will be introduced but an official told Property Wire that they will only be enforceable once they are published in the Gazette.

‘We are confident that the new set of laws will be the most thorough in the Gulf region.

They will improve regulation and give investors greater confidence when investing in the emirate.

They will give investors comfort to know they are investing in a property with a real title deed and that the system of ownership is recognised in line with best international practices,’ he added.

Central to the proposed introduction of the laws will be a change in the freehold ownership of land. In 2002, Dubai introduced freehold ownership of property in selected areas, sparking its six-year real estate boom. Now they will be extended.

Plans are also underway to bring in strata laws, which regulate the ownership of units within a building and broker laws, which regulate the practices of estate agents and commercial leasing agents.

An improved escrow law will cover commercial and residential property and protect investors and ensure developers actually deliver projects.

Improving the quality of construction in Abu Dhabi is also on the agenda.

There have been several building collapses in the United Arab Emirates in recent months including in Dubai and Sharjah, putting the issue at the top of the agenda.

‘We will be looking at new constructions as well,’ the department official confirmed.

Once the building codes are introduced they will become law and will be implemented only within Abu Dhabi but other emirates are expected to follow with their own new rules.

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