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Abu Dhabi: Tenants must not fear unscrupulous landlords who attempt to evict them on illegal grounds or refuse to accept the rent.
"If a landlord refuses to accept the rent, the tenant should immediately deposit it with the Rent Disputes Resolution Committee. Tenants may not be evicted for any reason unless an approval of the committee is obtained," Mohammad Rashid Bin Khalaf Al Hameli, chairman of the committee, told Gulf News.
Landlords often refuse to accept rent from tenants to gain approval for an eviction on grounds of non-payment of rent.
"The committee has turned down many cases in which landlords demanded that their buildings be renovated, after making sure their goal was to increase the rent beyond the rent cap."
Al Hameli said approval of demolition or any other measures, obtained from authorities such as the municipality and other government bodies, may not be enforced without a final decision from the Rental Disputes Resolution Committee.
He assured tenants that they can deposit their rents with the committee for an unlimited period.
"A tenant can pay the rent to the committee for even 20 years as long as he or she does not break the law.
"Since its inception in mid-December 2006, the committee has received Dh200 million in rental deposits from tenants whose landlords refused to take the rent. Some Dh70 million was later withdrawn by landlords," Al Hameli said.
Rights
- Tenants are not obliged to pay extra if a rent increase notice is given less than three months prior to the end of the contract.
- If an eviction notice is handed, tenants are encouraged to sign it and specify that it has been rejected. Tenants can file complaints with the committee at the end of the contract and deposit rent in cash so the contract can be renewed. It is only legal for landlords to evict tenants in exceptional cases, including approved demolishing, tenant's failure to pay rent, subletting the property without landlord approval, violating public norms or if it is for personal use.
- Changing the business from residential building into hotel apartments is not a legal ground to evict tenants.
- In the case of demolishment, tenants must be given a period of at least six months to vacate.
- If the landlord does not live in the property vacated on grounds of personal use for three months, or re-rents it, the tenant can file a complaint.
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