Dubai’s Brix Property admits overcharging tenants

The new boss of Dubai real estate agency Brix Property Partners has admitted the company has significantly overcharged some tenants on renewal fees in the past. But Nikki Summers, who has just taken over the company, said that tenants wanting refunds “need to go to the old management.” RERA regulations stipulate that tenants can only be charged AED160 for renewing their rental contracts. However, documents seen by Arabian Business show that Brix Property Partners has attempted to charge tenants AED2,000 for renewing contracts through them – nearly thirteen times the legal limit. When contacted by Arabian Business, Summers said: “I read recently saying the charges should only be AED160 and as of now that is the case, nobody who renews with us is being charged AED2,000.” She added: “It was only a handful of people in any chase that this happened to, I don’t think it was more than five people.” Asked if Brix would be refunding money to clients, Summers said: “I have only just taken over the company and we are a new legal entity, none of this has gone on while I am here. “If people come forward with written proof, we will send all this to the previous owners as they are the ones who I think are liable.” She added: “That AED2,000 was written on the contracts but it was also signed by tenants. Some tenants asked for it to be removed and so it was removed.” In an interview with Gulf News two months ago, Marwan Bin Galita, CEO of the Dubai Real Estate Regulatory Authority, said charging more than AED160 was illegal. \"Agents who are charging tenants who want to renew the tenancy contracts for another year are violating the rules and regulations and will be liable for strict penalties,\" Bin Galita said. Summers said she had completed a takeover of Brix Property Partners from the previous owners, and that all the company’s previous staff had been retained.