The Dubai property market is really in a bad place at the moment, with Dubai’s property developer’s struggling to attract buyers in the harsh financial climate. It is not exactly surprising given the world’s economy is as bad as many can remember, and people are being made redundant left right and centre. This combined with Dubai properties already being on the edge due to speculation created somewhat of a perfect storm. The results have seen sales of Dubai freehold real estate slump. With big restrictions on credit, plus many companies in Dubai downsizing and making workers redundant, it is a pretty hard environment at present, and as a result has left the Dubai government which a large responsibility to sort out the whole mess. No easy task it would seem. But could good actually come of all this for Dubai residents?

The government has been introducing all kinds of new legislation and regulations to make living and buying Dubai property more appealing. One long standing complaint of Dubai residents has been the handling of property service charges. Up until now residents were forced to hand over sums of money for the upkeep and maintenance of their properties communal areas. They were given no say in how this was run, and often had to deal with large price increases from the property management companies employed to run the schemes. The lack of a say, and the price increases have never been popular with residents, but this should now be set top change with the new ruling that the responsibility to carry out such work will now rest with Home Owners Associations. Residents, via the home owners association, will now themselves be responsible for the running and looking after of their developments and will have to decide on things suchs as maintenance costs, service contracts and such.

This all sounds good and well on paper, as it is what residents have been asking for, for some time. However how will it play out in reality? It is now for residents to step up and take responsibility for these things, but will people be willing to do so? Those who run the home owners associations will be expected to give up their free time and will have to deal with the extra pressures involved in such things, all on top of their day jobs and family lives. Hopefully Dubai real estate residents will be wiling to step up to the task, but maybe for some the reality isn’t quite as good as what they had hoped for.