Skycourts claims its service fee is the lowest

Service charges for Skycourts project, which consists of 2,836 apartments in six high-rise towers, has been set at Dh7.9 per square feet, which the developer claims to be the “lowest” rate across any residential tower in Dubai.

In its October newsletter, Skycourts LLC said that the charges have been reviewed and approved by the Real Estate Regulatory Agency.

“The Skycourts Service Initiative, a service programme that will provide homeowners the most cost efficient services programme, was developed in conjunction with top consultants and validated by third party service providers to ensure that it will more than satisfy all the requirements of the community,” the newsletter said.

As per the developers website, Mace Macro Property Consultancy will provide facilities management.

In the handover letter issued to investors, the developer has asked buyers to make payment of service charge for 2011 in four post-dated cheques.

Mohanad Alwadiya, Managing Director of Harbor Real Estate, says: “For an apartment of 1,000 square feet, an owner needs to pay only Dh7900 per year, or Dh658 per month, which is significantly less than all the developments in Dubai.”

Service charges levied on projects have been a major issue in Dubai with Rera having taken a tough stance by making it mandatory for developers to take its permission prior to collecting such charges.

In June, Alwadiya told this news portal that service charges in Dubai had not declined in 2010 compared to 2009, which was resulting in lower gross rental yields.

In a comprehensive study of 77 apartment buildings, Harbor found the largest increases in service charges in the Views and Greens projects. One of the best rates were found to be in MotorCity Green Community where owners need to pay just Dh10.5 per square foot.

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