Dubai to set up real estate watchdog

Dubai is to create a real estate watchdog to oversee the emirate’s booming property industry.HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, on Tuesday issued a royal decree establishing the body, to be called the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA).According to the decree, the regulator’s jurisdiction will cover real estate policies, strategies, regulation, registration, as well as being tasked with conducting studies and projects.

The authority will oversee the operations of property developers, management companies, financing institutions, brokers and owners associations.The body, affiliated to the Department and Lands and Properties, will be an executive and corporate entity with administrative and financial autonomy. The move has been welcomed by the industry.“We are very excited about this. It has been long-awaited,” said Ryan Mahoney, managing director of Better Homes. Mahoney said a comprehensive legal system is what Dubai needs order to build a robust and sustainable real estate industry in the long-term. "We have been concerned about the lack of detailed legislation in the industry," he added. Source