Dubai court orders Dh1.8m refund to buyer in Heart of Europe case

Dubai: A Dubai court has ordered a real estate developer to refund more than Dh1.8 million to a property buyer in The Heart of Europe project, along with Dh150,000 in compensation after finding that the developer failed to complete the sale and register the property.

The court ordered the agreement to be cancelled and ordered the developer to repay Dh1,805,040, with annual interest of 5 per cent from the date the judicial claim was filed until full payment. The company was also ordered to pay court fees, expenses and Dh1,000 in legal fees.

The case concerned a property purchase agreement signed on April 17, 2025, for a unit in The Heart of Europe phase two.

According to the claim, the agreed purchase price was Dh1,651,377. The buyer said they had paid Dh100,000 on April 16, 2025, followed by Dh1.7 million on April 17, including the final payment, value-added tax and Dubai land department fees. A further Dh5,040 was paid in administrative fees. The total amount sought for recovery was Dh1,805,040.

The buyer asked the court to cancel the agreement, order a refund with 9 per cent annual interest from April 17, 2025, and award compensation equivalent to 20 per cent of the purchase price. The claim included a 10 per cent annual investment return and a further 10 per cent for expected property appreciation.

under the agreement, an annual investment return of 10 per cent for 10 years was offered, subject to full payment, along with a buyback arrangement after the 10-year period. The agreement also required the parties to sign the final sale and purchase contract within seven days of the first instalment and payment of the relevant registration fees. Another clause required the property to be reserved in the buyer’s name and restricted the developer from marketing it, creating third-party rights over it or disposing of it during the specified period.

The developer disputed the claim, arguing that the document was only a reservation form and that the buyer had obstructed the registration process. It also challenged photocopies of payment receipts and maintained that the project had been completed.

The developer submitted an account statement dated September 29, 2026, showing payments totalling Dh1,805,041, as well as a Dubai land department statement indicating that the relevant project and building were 100 per cent complete.

The buyer also told the court that the developer had offered a replacement property on June 25, 2025. The proposed alternative was larger, and written acceptance was required. The court found that the correspondence did not establish that the original property had been sold to a third party. However, it showed that a replacement had been offered and that no accepted final agreement amending the original arrangement had been proved.

After reviewing the documents, the court found that the buyer had paid the required amounts but the developer had failed to finalise the sale and register the property. It also noted that the building was already complete, meaning the property was not an off-plan unit at the relevant stage.

The court relied on provisions of the UAE civil transactions law governing contractual good faith and rescission, as well as Dubai’s property registration legislation, which requires real estate transactions to be registered in accordance with applicable rules.

The judgment ordered the agreement rescinded and the parties restored, as far as possible, to their positions before the contract. The developer must therefore return the amount paid by the buyer.

The court rejected the request for 9 per cent interest from the original payment date and instead awarded interest at 5 per cent annually from the date the judicial claim was filed until the debt is paid in full.

It also awarded Dh150,000 in compensation for the loss of investment benefit resulting from the developer’s failure to complete the transaction. However, it rejected the additional claim for 10 per cent in expected property appreciation, finding that the alleged increase had not been established through expert evidence.

The fixed amounts awarded total Dh1,956,040, excluding interest and court fees and expenses.