UAE property: ‘How do I send a notarised eviction notice if I live abroad?’

I live in the UK and want to send a notarised eviction notice to my tenant in Dubai.

However, I don’t want to travel to Dubai only for the purpose of issuing this notice. Can you suggest what I can do? SS, UK

If you are abroad and do not want to come to Dubai to organise the eviction notice, there are two ways of doing this.

The written notification of 12 months has to be sent in one of two ways: either notary public or registered mail.

You can let your tenant know of your intention and send this notice via registered mail (courier) from the UK. It doesn’t have to be notarised as well.

However, if you wish to send it via notary public, I suggest you appoint a power of attorney (POA) to do it for you.

Anyone can hold your POA but I would suggest you contact a conveyancing company or a lawyer, who will charge a fee but ensure it is done professionally.

My landlord demanded a much higher rent than what the Real Estate Regulatory Agency’s (Rera) rental index permits and sent us a notarised eviction notice.

Although he cites the sale of the property as the reason for eviction, he will most likely rent out the unit to a new tenant at a higher amount.

In case my landlord does not communicate to me what he does with the property after I move out, what evidence can I provide to prove that I was not offered the right of refusal?

The only evidence I can currently think of is a screenshot from the website dxbinteract.com, which displays lease duration and rent.

Is this acceptable by the Rental Dispute Settlement Committee (RDSC)? What other evidence is available in the public domain that would support my claim at the RDSC? MT, Dubai

When a landlord serves an eviction notice for the reason of selling, he is entitled to your eviction at the end of the notice. The question is what happens if he hasn’t sold the property within this time frame?

Firstly, in today’s property market, it is fairly unlikely that a property will stay available on the market for 12 months or more (unless the sale price quoted is ridiculously high).

Given that you live at the property in question, you would presumably be aware of viewings taking place and notice potential buyers.

The eventual buyer will be known to you as this person will become your landlord.

That said, if you get to the situation that your 12 months’ notice is about to expire and no buyers are found, you can speak to the current landlord to negotiate your potential continuation in the property.

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If the landlord insists on you moving out without a buyer on the horizon, you can file a case at the RDSC stating this. The judge will then decide what action should be taken going forward.

Referring to your point about what evidence is needed to prove what the landlord has done after you vacate can be tricky, but documented proof of marketing — such as property portals showing your unit for rent — will help.

Ultimately, when you know someone else has rented the unit, you can find out by knocking on the door.

You can also present the current Ejari, which will be relatively new and show the new tenant’s name, as evidence in court.

If a landlord doesn’t sell a property for which he has served the notice to vacate, you will know after moving out if he contacts you to re-let the unit.

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Telephone calls, messages, WhatsApp notes and emails are ways to inform you that he couldn’t sell, so he is offering the unit back to you before he rents it again to someone else.

If you don’t want to move back, this allows the landlord to re-let the property.

Mario Volpi is the sales and leasing manager at Engel & Volkers. He has worked in the property sector for more than 35 years, in London and Dubai. The opinions expressed do not constitute legal advice and are provided for information only. Please send any questions to mario.volpi@engelvoelkers.com

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