Unregistered developers face fines

Dubai: Ajman's Real Estate Regulatory Agency (Arra) plans to fine developers who failed to meet the May 1 registration deadline, the agency's director general said yesterday.

"Property developers engaged in real estate developments in Ajman and not registered with Arra will be required to pay a [fine] of Dh100,000 per month," Omar Barghouthi said in a statement.

Barghouthi said all developers had been informed previously about the deadline and were warned that "necessary measures" would be taken against them if they did not comply.

Once registration is complete, officials at Arra will have a thorough overview of Ajman's real estate market and be able to assess which projects are still viable, given the strained market conditions.

"We are currently in the process of identifying and filtering out those projects. The deadline has only just passed so we are reviewing the files of developers and projects alike," Barghouthi said.