Repossessing a home part paid for is always an ugly process and developers in the UAE, who have taken the dire step, say they have done so only after being pushed into a cul-de-sac by errant owners.

Bonyan International and Cayan Development have already repossessed some units, while South Korea's Bando Construction is looking to take back a few units.

"We have given lots of grace time to our investors to pay up the outstanding amounts like six months to one year," said Kareem Derbas, CEO of Cayan.

"We have been sending notices to some customers for the past one year asking them to pay up.

"However, since the customer showed no signs of paying up and in order to ensure the continuity of the project, and keeping in mind the recession, we have terminated the contracts of those investors. We have gone through the entire process as regulated by Real Estate Regulatory Agency [Rera] to repossess the units."

He added: "Around 120 property units across a spectrum of our developments are going through the process with Rera in order for us to repossess them from our customers."

Bando Construction, which is developing the U-bora Tower in Business Bay, is also engaged in similar proceedings.

Ian Powell, Business Development Manager, Bando, said: "The cancellation process outlined by Rera, arising due to default of the buyer, is clear under the Law No 13.

"However, we are continuing to give adequate time for a solution to be derived for the investor."