I live in a one BHK apartment at Al Nahda in the emirate of Sharjah on an annual rent of Dh 36,000. The rent is paid on a monthly basis through 12 cheques of Dh3,000 each. My tenancy is due for renewal. I have submitted my contract for renewal to the real estate company who are managing my apartment on behalf of the property owner. The said real estate company is demanding from me Dh1,000 towards maintenance, Dh500 towards administrative fees and commission of Dh1,500. Is this legal?

It should be noted that a real estate agent (the 'broker') should not collect brokerage fees for renewal of a tenancy contract. However, a broker may charge reasonable amount as administrative charges for facilitating the renewal of contract. Further, the broker cannot collect from you the maintenance fees if the same has not been mentioned in the tenancy contract as building maintenance is the responsibility of the property owner and not the tenant.  Therefore, you may consider filing a complaint at the Rental Dispute Committee at Sharjah Municipality, against the broker.

Know the law

The broker cannot collect maintenance fees if the same has not been mentioned in the tenancy contract as building maintenance is the responsibility of the property owner and not the tenant

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

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