No transfer fee on resale of property

Buyers in the secondary property market do not have to pay a transfer fee to developers, a senior official has confirmed.

They only need to have their sales title registered with Dubai’s Lands Department, he said, in an effort to remove confusion over transfer procedures.

Some developers have wrongly been charging a fee to transfer a property from the current owner to a new one. Typically this charge was one to three per cent of the original developer’s price.

“There is no need to pay any transfer fee to master developers or sub-developers for secondary sales,” said Mohammed Sultan Thani, the department’s director of development and marketing administration. “All the parties need to do is come and register their sales titles with us. There is still ignorance among people – they think it takes a long time to complete all the formalities.

“All they have to bring is a no-objection certificate from the developer, which costs Dh500. They then pay a one per cent transfer fee to the department.”

Registration of properties provided by the government or purchased through the private housing programme are exempt from the fees.

In a separate development, Dubai’s Real Estate Regulatory Agency (Rera) has awarded the first registration licence to Strategic Marketing and Exhibitions, organisers of the International Property Show 2008. The event is due to be held from February 17 to 19.

The certificate will ensure transactions within the property show will be conducted according to rules set by the agency. “All real estate events at which properties are sold will have to obtain permission from us this year,” said Rera CEO Marwan bin Ghallaita.

“Our aim is to implement a sustained effort to organise, improve and develop the emirate’s property market. As a first step we advise all investors to avoid signing agreements with any developer, broker, or property insurance firms until they see proof that the company is registered with Rera.”

Developers will submit standard agreement forms. They must disclose buyer information, the details and cost of the property being purchased, the mortgage plan and updates on changes of ownership. These details will be held on a secure database and will be used to regulate the market.

Article Source: business24-7.ae