Special committee to protect investors

Dubai: A special judiciary committee to oversee issues related to property cheques in Dubai will help protect the interests of investors, Gulf News readers said.

His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, issued a decree yesterday to establish the special judiciary committee.

Asma Abdul Rahman Bahassan, who works in the leasing section of a real estate company, welcomed the move and said that it would send a positive signal to the property market.

"A lot of times, cases of bounced cheques are either unintentional or out of the investor's control," the 27-year-old Emirati said.

"The popular mode of payment is through post-dated cheques. Often such cheques bounce as investor's forget about their financial commitments and do not maintain the needed amount of funds in their accounts."

Since these cases would earlier be registered with Dubai Police, Asma felt that the committee would provide relief to real estate companies, landlords as well as the police authorities.

"Whenever you come across such an announcement, it gives you a good indication of things to come. Hopefully, we will have more laws in the future that address other issues in the property market."

Mohammad Neyaz Sarwar, a Dubai-based mortgage supervisor, agreed.

"Most people do not default on their payments intentionally," he said.

In the context of the global financial crisis, Sarwar said that many international investors ran short of funds in the previous year and were unable to make the payments.

"Nobody would commit such an act wilfully as he or she would not want to leave the UAE. It is a country of opportunities, and people have come here for a better lifestyle," he said.

Jitendra Gianchandani, a property investor and managing partner of a real estate firm in Dubai, felt that the announcement would boost the confidence of real estate developers and investors.

"This is a clear message [to investors] that the government is serious about the issues faced by the property market," he said.

"As the committee will focus and have full power [over cases of bounced cheques] this will speed up the process of resolving property and rent issues."

A. Shams, a Dubai-based real estate broker, felt that the decision was a step in the right direction and would help boost investor confidence.