Renting with friends in Dubai is perhaps one of the smartest decisions you can take when living without family in the Emirate. Instead of renting a flat alone, undertaking the expenses all on your own, consider splitting the rent between a couple of friends and make life easier.
Besides the obvious benefits of companionship, socialisation and sharing accommodation with friends in Dubai is about being cost-effective. Not only will you save significantly on utility bills, you can also make and achieve long-term plans of budgeting to invest in a property.
Today, we are going to discuss the important things you need to take care of when renting accommodation with friends in Dubai. Also, read on to know shared accommodation laws in the Emirate and other details.
TIPS TO FOLLOW WHEN RENTING WITH FRIENDS IN DUBAI
Before you finalise a joint rental home, it is better to set some rules for renting accommodation with friends in Dubai. A few basic rules will help you avoid future disagreements and inconveniences.
LAYOUT THE PAYMENT RULES BEFOREHAND
The splitting of expenses, the rental payments, utilities and other costs is a matter that should be sorted out before renting with friends in Dubai. It is important to set the rules by considering which of the housemates get their salaries at what time of the month.
For instance, one friend receives the pay fortnightly or weekly while the other one gets it monthly. Determining one date for the payment of the rent from each person will help everyone separate a chunk of their salary whenever they receive it. Also, it is advisable to prepare a budget, before you rent a property with friends. This will help you to get an idea of how much of your salary will be spent on rent.
FAIR AND EVEN SPLIT OF UTILITY BILLS
There must be a fair-and-even split of the utility bills. At times, some housemates utilise electricity or the Internet more than the other ones. For example, if one of you travels frequently and stays out of the flat most of the time for work, then you may need to adjust their share in the Internet DEWA electricity bill or other utilities used by them.
Similarly, if another housemate works from home daily or frequently in a week, then they might have to share a major portion of the utility bills.
SPEND ONLY NECESSARY TIME IN THE BATHROOM
If you are renting an apartment in Dubai with friends, you’re most likely to get one or two bathrooms. Spending excessive time in the loo in the morning when everyone’s hurrying to get to work can impact your relationship with your housemates. It’s only sensible that anybody who goes inside the bathroom and comes out twenty minutes later is going to make everybody late.
Spending time in the bathroom and enjoying long baths is not right. Avoid these instances in the mornings of the working days, or even better, communicate with your flatmates about the timings of the bathroom to avoid unnecessary conflicts. For instance, make an arrangement such as from 8.00 am to 8.10 am, the bathroom is going to be yours. In case of requiring a longer time to get ready for an interview or a presentation, wake up earlier than your friend to avoid inconveniences.
Scheduling time in the bathroom seems unimportant only until you start living together and somebody hogs the loo when you have to reach earlier at work.
ESTABLISH CLEANING SCHEDULES
Since the rental property is your and your friends’ responsibility to upkeep, you have to arrange a schedule of tidying up the house. Every housemate has to adhere to the cleaning schedule, ensuring that the house is maintained by delegating tasks to each.
This includes mopping the floors, doing laundry, cleaning up the loo, washing the dishes, and even cooking (in some cases). The cleaning timetable must also be prepared ahead of time and settled as a contract that has to bind each flatmate to his/her duties.
Most of the times, when cleaning schedules are not predetermined, the person who is more conscious about cleaning ends up doing most of the tidying up, which is outrageously unfair. Sooner or later, it will take root in a fight. Therefore, when renting accommodation with friends in Dubai, make sure you’ve taken measures to avoid it.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A TENANT MOVES OUT
Any circumstances can lead your friend to leave the space earlier than the agreed duration. There have been many cases that when a flatmate breaks a lease, it ends up in another grudge. Therefore, before renting with friends in Dubai, ensure there is an agreement in place to cover for the time when a co-tenant decides to pack up the bags earlier, especially if his/her name is on the lease. The agreement can include that the person leaving will continue to pay the rent until a new one arrives, or something along those lines. This will save both parties a lot of trouble and will keep up the good terms.
KNOW YOUR FLATMATE/HOUSEMATE
Whether you are sharing accommodation with friends in Dubai or with close associates, whom you have known for long, take the personality clashes under consideration always. If your friend is fond of extensive partying, you have to be prepared for 2 am jamming sessions.
While it is preferable to share accommodation with a friend or acquaintance that has a personality similar to yours, you might not always get lucky. Therefore, when renting with friends in Dubai, who are quite social and party more often, make another agreement in case of damage to the property from party-games. Otherwise, you would end up paying for something you had no part in.
These are some examples of the rules that you have to pre-determine with your prospective flatmates to avoid discrepancies in future.
Next, we will explore the legal works surrounding sharing accommodation for rent in Dubai.
RENTAL LAW ON SHARED ACCOMMODATION IN DUBAI
Renting with friends in Dubai is similar to sharing accommodation with any other person. Hence, the rental law on shared accommodation in Dubai also applies when you rent with friends.
Article 24 of law no. 26 of 2007, along with RERA tenancy laws, together make up the Real Estate Law in Dubai for shared accommodation or subleasing. Under the laws, sharing accommodation with friends in Dubai is only permitted if the landlord approves. The tenant cannot sublease the property until and unless the landlord allows it to or it is mentioned in the Dubai tenancy contract.
FINE FOR SHARING ACCOMMODATION ILLEGALLY IN DUBAI
Sharing accommodation in Dubai with an individual or group that neither has the Dubai Tourism permit nor the approval of the landlord is a crime. The tenant is liable to pay a hefty fine, starting from AED 200 to AED 20,000. While this fine is for first-timers, the tenant will have to pay upto AED 200,000 if they are found leasing the property illegally more than one time.
APARTMENT SHARING RULES IN DUBAI
Some rules have to be followed before any tenant can sub-lease or share a property in Dubai. These include:
1. The tenant has to obtain formal written approval from the landlord.
2. The sub-tenants maintain rights on the leased property only until the tenancy contract remains valid.
3. The sub-tenancy contract will determine the relationship between tenant and sub-tenants. The obligations of the tenant towards the landlord, however, will remain the same as agreed upon.
4. The number of sub-tenants living in an apartment significantly depends on the location of the property. Prior consulting of rules and regulations for each area should be individually speculated.
5. There are designated areas in Dubai, where single women and bachelors are allowed to share the same accommodation, only on the approval of Dubai Municipality.
6. The number of tenants allowed to share one apartment varies from area to area in the Emirate.
RULES FOR COHABITATION IN DUBAI
It is permissible to share accommodation with opposite genders without marriage or blood relations. Friends can share all sorts of accommodations including hotels, flats, rooms and villas for rent in Dubai.
Hence, if you are renting with friends in Dubai that includes opposite genders, you can.
RULES FOR SHARING ACCOMMODATION FOR RENT IN DUBAI FOR BACHELORS
Single men and women find it challenging to find accommodation. Singles have to abide by the Dubai Rental Law to avoid being charged with a fine. Although there are no restrictions on bachelors to share an apartment with their own genders, most landlords in Dubai do not usually lease their properties to a group of men and women in family-friendly residential areas.
Besides the basic rule of sharing accommodation on the landlord’s permission, no other restrictions bind bachelors in Dubai. Nevertheless, they find it difficult to rent out accommodations as most landlords are unwilling to do so.
It’s important to top up your knowledge with all the rules and regulations concerning leasing property for rent in Dubai. Every tenant has to abide by the law that prohibits early termination of rental contracts, unapproved subleasing, and other accommodation sharing rules that we’ve described above.
Renting accommodation with friends in Dubai is fun, cost-effective, and workable if you have laid out the rules and regulations for in-house sharing. Coming to an agreement on all the arrangements, besides ensuring abiding by the law, ensures your tenancy time is spent trouble-free, and that you end your lease with good terms and memories. Other than friends, you can rent with roommates in Dubai and have to abide by the shared accommodation laws.
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