Dubai: Can a landlord charge different rents to tenants of the same building?

Question: I live in a two-bedroom apartment in Dubai. I recently found out that my neighbour — who lives in a similar apartment — pays about Dh5,000 less than I do because he pays the rent in a single cheque. Is it legal for landlords to charge tenants higher rent based on the number of instalments?

Answer: In Dubai, the rent must be specified in a tenancy contract. If the owner of a property and a tenant fail to specify the rent in the tenancy contract, the rent will be determined based on the rent of a similar property.

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This is in accordance with Article 9 of the Dubai Tenancy Law, which states, “Landlords and tenants must specify rent in the tenancy contracts. If the parties fail to specify the rent and it is impossible to prove the rent agreed upon by them, the rent will be the rental value of similar real property.”

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Furthermore, there is no specific provision that mandates the owner of the property to charge the same rent amount regardless of the number of cheque payments. Rent amounts and payment terms are subject to the agreement between an owner of the property and a tenant, provided that the agreed rent does not exceed the  maximum threshold set by the Dubai Land Department (DLD) rental index and as per Dubai Decree No. 43 of 2013 on rent increases.

An owner of a property may, at its discretion, offer lower rent when a tenant makes payment in fewer instalments. Therefore, if the rent charged to you falls within the permissible range of the DLD rental index, it may not be considered unlawful for the owner of a property to offer different rent based on the number of cheques.

In accordance with the aforementioned, the owner of a property in Dubai may generally charge at its discretion varying rent amounts depending on the number of instalments agreed, provided the rent complies with the DLD rental index. You may verify your current rent through the DLD website to ensure it aligns with the prevailing rental index.  

Ashish Mehta is the founder and Managing Partner of Ashish Mehta & Associates. He is qualified to practise law in Dubai, the United Kingdom and India. Full details of his firm on: www.amalawyers.com. Readers may e-mail their questions to: news@khaleejtimes.com or send them to Legal View, Khaleej Times, PO Box 11243, Dubai.