Many defaulters as Owners Association deadline expires

With the deadline for registration of owners association (OA) expiring on Wednesday, developers who have not yet filed the jointly owned property (JOP) declaration with Real Estate Regulatory Agency (Rera), are likely to be penalised with their properties unlikely to be registered by the Land Department.
 
"The Director-General of the Land Department has wide discretion to take appropriate action where developers delay or refuse to file the JOP declaration, which is the key document commencing the registration process.

The department may even refuse to register properties if the developer has not met his obligations. So in future developers must be in a position to file JOP declarations on completion of the project," Graham Yeates, Head of Strata Management, Cluttons, told Emirates 24|7.
 
"The department is also in a position to force developers to provide owners with the required OA records to enable owners to embark on the registration process and furthermore to penalise developers for non-compliance with the regulations," he added.
 
Although Emaar Properties confirmed to Emirates 24|7 that it has facilitated the setting up of over 30 interim boards to represent various owners associations, private developers said they are yet to start the paperwork for OA registration.
 
"We have not yet started the paperwork... it is a lengthy process and will take some more time," one said on conditions of anonymity.
 
Yeates, however, has a different view. "There has been a definite effort on part of developers to comply with the timeline in recent weeks. We have been overwhelmed with enquiries to assist with the registration process. I guess the deadline has snuck up on all parties with Rera having to absorb a mass of enquiry and paperwork and developers and strata consultants working frantically to complete their obligations," he added.
 
On October 5, Rera CEO Marwan bin Ghalitha said that the agency had decided not to extend the October 13 deadline and those failing to meet the deadline will face strict penalties.

"Currently, there are no plans to extend the deadline set for completion of registration of owners association in Dubai. However, nothing can be said if the decision will changed later,"
 
Ghalitha has stressed that Rera is ready to help all developers in completing their paperwork.  In August, Cluttons said it estimates there will be about 2,000 owners' associations in Dubai.