When should landlords inform tenants of any rent increase in Dubai

Question: A year ago, I rented a villa from a real estate office, and the lease contract was for a year and a month. The lease expires in February 2023. Two weeks ago, the real estate office sent an email informing me that the rent will be increased. Is the real estate office legally entitled to increase the rent and how much is the legal increase according to the rental law in Dubai? Do they have right to evict me from the property if I do not agree to the increase? According to the rental law, who is responsible for the maintenance of the property, the owner or the tenant? Please advise.

Answer: The landlord has the right to increase the rent but he should do so no less than 90 days prior to the date on which the tenancy contract expires. Otherwise, he doesn’t have the right to oblige the tenant to accept the new rental nor does he have the right to evict the tenant from the tenancy.

This is stipulated in Article 13 and 14 of Law No. (33) of 2008 Amending Law No. (26) of ‘2007 Regulating the Relationship between Landlords and Tenants in the Emirate of Dubai’ which state: For the purposes of renewing the tenancy contract, the landlord and tenant may, prior to the expiry of the tenancy contract, amend any of the terms of the tenancy contract or review the rent, whether increasing or decreasing it. Should the landlord and tenant fail to reach an agreement, then the tribunal may determine the fair rent, taking into account the criteria stipulated in Article (9) of this Law. Unless otherwise agreed by the parties, if either party to the tenancy contract wishes to amend any of its terms in accordance with Article (13) of this Law, that party must notify the other party of same no less than ninety (90) days prior to the date on which the tenancy contract expires. There is no definite increase for the rental amount, it is usually determined by the municipality or the authority concerned, as per Article 10 of the law, who shall have the exclusive authority to specify percentage of rent increase in the Emirate, with regard to of economic circumstances. Moreover, the Rental Dispute Centre (tribunal) in case of a dispute between the parties have the right to determine the rental amount for the property, taking into account the criteria determining the percentage of rent increase set by RERA, the overall economic situation in the Emirate, the condition of the real property, and the average rent of similar real property markets within the same area, and in accordance with any applicable legislation in the Emirate concerning real property rent, or any other factors which the tribunal deems appropriate. The responsibility for the maintenance is usually on the landlord unless otherwise agreed between the parties. Article 16 of the law states that the landlord shall, during validity of the tenancy contract, be liable for undertaking maintenance of the property and shall rectify any defects or faults that affect tenant’s intended benefit from the property, unless the two parties agree otherwise. This shall not violate tenant’s obligation to execute agreed upon maintenance or that which is ordinarily done by tenants.