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Dubai landlords now demanding salary verification from expat tenants
| Published: | 30 May at 6 PM |
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Tagged: Property Abroad, Dubai
In a recent move, Dubai landlords letting their properties to expat workers are now demanding proof of salary from prospective tenants.
As the property market in Dubai begins to recover, landlords letting to expats are adding new conditions such as written proof of salary or one-cheque payments. The reason given is that previous expat tenants have been unable to keep up with the high rents now being demanded, but the move is angering expats looking for accommodation in the emirate.
One such tenant, in the final stages of renting an apartment, was disgusted to find that, although he was paying by single cheque, he was still required to present certificated proof of his salary. He decided not to go ahead with the rental as he felt humiliated by the request.
Other landlords are hitting existing tenants with fixed annual maintenance fees and extra charges for parking, and local real estate agents are now demanding 50 per cent more than in Dubai’s updated rent index. Another long-term tenant was refused permission to have his parents live with him and his wife in their two-bedroomed apartment.
He was told that the arrangement would not be hygienic and the apartment would be too crowded. Another expat was hit with a two-month cheque deposit demand as well as a security deposit in order to secure the rent in the case of his not returning from a holiday in his home country.
In previous years, landlords were forced to offer easy payment, low rents, discounts and access to extra facilities in order to secure tenants. Now that Dubai’s recession seems to be over and properties are in short supply, landlords would seem to be grabbing all that they can get.
As the property market in Dubai begins to recover, landlords letting to expats are adding new conditions such as written proof of salary or one-cheque payments. The reason given is that previous expat tenants have been unable to keep up with the high rents now being demanded, but the move is angering expats looking for accommodation in the emirate.
One such tenant, in the final stages of renting an apartment, was disgusted to find that, although he was paying by single cheque, he was still required to present certificated proof of his salary. He decided not to go ahead with the rental as he felt humiliated by the request.
Other landlords are hitting existing tenants with fixed annual maintenance fees and extra charges for parking, and local real estate agents are now demanding 50 per cent more than in Dubai’s updated rent index. Another long-term tenant was refused permission to have his parents live with him and his wife in their two-bedroomed apartment.
He was told that the arrangement would not be hygienic and the apartment would be too crowded. Another expat was hit with a two-month cheque deposit demand as well as a security deposit in order to secure the rent in the case of his not returning from a holiday in his home country.
In previous years, landlords were forced to offer easy payment, low rents, discounts and access to extra facilities in order to secure tenants. Now that Dubai’s recession seems to be over and properties are in short supply, landlords would seem to be grabbing all that they can get.
Comments » There is 1 comment
Expat Explorers wrote 10
years ago:
Landlords asking for one cheque is not a new situation. It's ironic that they should be asked for salary confirmation though, as it's illegal for a cheque to bounce. Maybe that's one way to get free accommodation - in a hot, hovel of a prison!
