The real estate regulator of Dubai will take action against master developers and sub-developers if they fail to fulfil contractual obligations.
"A developer who feels a project has been held up due to delays in the handover of plots by the master developer should contact us," Marwan bin Ghalita, CEO of Dubai's Real Estate Regulatory Authority (Rera), told Emirates Business yesterday.
"We will then mediate between the two parties and come to a solution. We will talk to the master developer and try to find out why the project has been delayed. We will certainly take action to regulate the market," he said. Rera has sent notices to developers instructing them not to cancel agreements or force investors to accept cancellation terms.
"We have sent notices to developers to establish the status of their projects," said Ghalita. "No developer has yet come back to us informing about any cancellations."
In another step aimed at protecting investors, Rera has told developers to revise payment structures if projects are delayed.
"We have been urging people to check whether the developer has registered with the Land Department and has opened an escrow account to safeguard their investments," Ghalita said.
So far 812 companies have registered as authorised developers.
Ghalita dismissed reports that Saudi-based Sokook Investment Group had cancelled the Ivory Tower project in Dubai.
"We have mediated the issue between Tecom, the master developer, and Sokook and we understand they have even awarded contracts for the construction."
The property market is likely to get a boost in September this year when Dubai sets up a special court to deal exclusively with property-related matters.