Call to seek legal advice before purchasing property

Dubai: The CEO of Dubai-based property management company Asteco is calling on buyers to seek legal advice before taking the plunge into the local property market.

Speaking to Gulf News, Elaine Jones said buyers should pay specialist property lawyers to conduct a due diligence report into the property developer they are dealing with.

"This is something which happens naturally in more mature markets. It would ensure that the seller is the rightful developer or owner and able to sell and that the information and contract they are being given is fair and reasonable," she said.

"If we can encourage buyers to use lawyers to verify the transaction and the parties involved then we would have a more stable market."

Jones said people tend to object to paying a lawyers fee when purchasing property, even though the amount represents a fraction of the total investment amount.

"People are paying out a lot of money and you would think they would want a lawyer to be party to it," she said.

In other areas of law, Jones called for developers to be prevented from selling units until main construction contractors have been signed up.

Looking at Dubai's rental market, Jones admitted that initial predictions that the market would soon stabilise have been revised, due to delays in property coming on the market and the length of time it takes to handover projects when completed.