Laying down the law

The first half of 2008 is set to see a dramatic change for everyone involved in the Dubai property market, with the introduction of the Dubai Strata Law.

The law has been on the radar for about two years, with whispers sweeping the facilities management (FM) market about the effect it will have on the sector and concern mounting over it being just another job title to add to the equation.

In a bid to eliminate any confusion, facilities management Middle East sits down with Peter Crogan, CEO, BCS Strata Management Services and Adrian Quinn, executive chairman, Essential Strata Management for a lengthy discussion on strata.

"A strata is only for a multi-owned property with shared common property, also sometimes referred to as common areas," explains Quinn.

These common areas include anything from street lighting within a community, to lifts, lobbies, fire equipment and security - anything where multiple owners share the use. Every building or development has different facilities and it's important these areas are thought about and properly budgeted for.

"The common areas will be indicated on the site plan which is registered in the Lands Department," confirms Crogan. Both Quinn and Crogan state that currently, many developers do not understand the implication of the new act and they both fear problems will occur for both purchasers and developers if responsibility is not taken now to set up the owner's association.

"The owners will know that developers have to comply with the new law in a specific time frame. If developers don't, penalties could be served by the Dubai Government and non compliance could reflect badly on the developer's reputation," says Quinn.

To help regulate the law that will be enforced under the signature of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) will act as a mediator and control the law.

Once the property industry has an implementation date, it is hoped that existing buildings will have a grace period of six to 12 months to comply with the law and that properties under development will have to implement the strata management straight away to comply in time.

"We hope the new law will make developers think more about the post-construction operations and bring the strata managers (SMs) in from the beginning of a project, that's what happens in Australia," explains Quinn.

By paying more attention to the planning of the building or development, developers and building owners will help retain the value of the asset.

Although the new law is currently only applicable to the Dubai Emirate, Abu Dhabi has announced it will soon implement its very own Strata Law and there are rumours of Oman doing the same.

Strata manager Vs FM community

While it is a positive step to see another Emirate and another country considering strata implementation, Dubai's FM community is still struggling to come to terms with the effect the law will have on them.

During a conference in November 2007, two presentations were given on the strata law. Many questions were raised over the need for a strata manager, with one delegate saying "it seems another person has been inserted into a management structure to do a job that a good FM should be doing".