Dubai’s Real Estate Regulatory Agency (RERA) has warned real estate brokers against making any unsolicited telemarketing calls or face up to Dhs 50,000 fines.
The regulatory body has been receiving numerous complaints from investors and customers who have been contacted by brokers through cold calls asking to promote their properties, which are not even for sale.
Marwan Ahmed bin Ghalaita, Executive Director of RERA, said, “Any annoyance complaints from the public against a real estate firm or a real estate broker, will be dealt with firmly and they will be fined up to Dhs 50,000. Direct telemarketing through SMS, calls and WhatsApp is not allowed and is a violation of the law. People have been called by agencies even before they advertise their properties for sale. Some agents have also asked property owners if they wanted to sell the properties and they were surprised these agents had their details. All these are violations.”
According to the regulation, if any real estate firm wants to do telemarketing or SMS message service, they need to obtain permission from RERA and also provide a list of customers.
RERA also emphasised that there are no licenced offices which can sell the properties outside the UAE. All the offices are subject to the regulations of RERA. Customers have been advised to check if the real estate company is registered in the UAE before they sign off any property deal. Dubai has 2,113 registered real estate offices and 5,200 real estate agents.