Overview

On 31 December 2007, Law No. 27 of 2007 (concerning ownership of Jointly Owned Property in the Emirate of Dubai) was published in the official gazette which came into force on 1 April 2008.

Jointly Owned Property is the term used to describe a building or land, which has been divided into units and where part of the land is designated as common areas (Article 2 of Law No. 27 of 2007).

Law No. 27 of 2007 imposed a requirement for the formation of Owners’ Associations. However, there were no regulations on matters such as how an Owners’ Association should be formed.

Recent regulations have been enacted in an attempt to fill this void. This briefing outlines how those regulations came about, the background on the Owners' Association and the changes facing owners and developers.