June 26, 2026 | Staff Reporter | | Developer
Your service charge just went up and no one told you why. Sound familiar?
For thousands of Dubai residents, community management today looks less like smooth building operations and more like a frustrating back-and-forth between owners, Owners' Association managers, and RERA. Service charge disputes are among the most common complaints filed at the Dubai Land Department and they are rising.
Whether you are a property owner confused about what you are paying for, or an OA manager trying to stay on the right side of the law, this guide breaks it all down in plain English.
Service charges sometimes called maintenance fees or community fees are annual payments collected from every property owner in a building or community. They fund the day-to-day running of shared spaces: cleaning, security, lifts, pools, gyms, landscaping, and a reserve fund for major future repairs.
Every freehold property in Dubai carries service charges. There is no opt-out, whether the unit is occupied, vacant, or rented. The charges are calculated per square foot and set by the building's Owners' Association Management Company (OAMC), then registered with RERA.
So why do disputes happen? Because the gap between what owners expect and what they actually receive is widening. Poor communication, budget opacity, and facilities that fall short of what is promised are the three most common triggers.
Community management in Dubai operates under a clear legal framework. Dubai Law No. 27 of 2007 established the foundation for Owners Associations and service charge management. Law No. 6 of 2019 replaced the former owners' associations with owners' committees, giving unit owners a formal body through which to review budgets and raise concerns before charges are finalised.
Under this framework, reserve fund contributions are mandatory and separate from the annual service charge. The reserve fund covers major future expenditures lift replacements, facade repairs, structural works. An OA manager who blends these funds or fails to account for them separately is in breach of the law.
All service charge transactions must now pass through Mollak RERA's centralised digital platform. Mollak tracks payments, budgets, fund balances, and compliance status for every registered community in Dubai. It creates an auditable trail that makes it much harder for funds to go missing.
As a property owner, you can access Mollak through the Dubai REST app. If your OA or property management company is not registered on Mollak, that is itself a violation and you should report it to RERA immediately.
The good news: you are not powerless. Community management publications and news coming out of RERA in 2026 point to a structured, step-by-step process residents can follow.
Every Owners' Association must provide a detailed annual budget to all owners. Start here. Request the document in writing from your OAMC and compare every line item against what is actually being delivered. If the gym has been broken for three months, that maintenance cost should not be appearing as delivered service.
The RERA Service Charge Index is published annually and provides official benchmarks for every building in Dubai. It is publicly accessible through the DLD website and the Dubai REST app. If your charge significantly exceeds the approved index for a comparable building, you have grounds to raise a formal objection.
Disputes are generally valid when charges exceed RERA-approved rates, when services are not being delivered, or when an annual increase spikes beyond 10% without justification.
Service charge budgets must be approved at the annual general meeting (AGM). As an owner, you have the legal right to attend, review the budget, and vote on amendments. Many disputes are resolved here before they escalate simply because owners show up and ask specific questions.
Joining the owners' committee is even better. It gives you a direct channel into how decisions are made, and committee eligibility requires keeping service charge payments current.
If the AGM did not resolve things, put your concern in writing. Reference the RERA-approved budget, point to specific discrepancies, and request a written response. Keep records. This paper trail matters if things escalate.
One thing community management today gets consistently wrong: residents raise issues verbally and informally, then have nothing to show RERA when they file a complaint. Always write.
If the OAMC is unresponsive or the charges are clearly out of line with RERA benchmarks, file a complaint through the DLD portal or the Dubai REST app. RERA can intervene and order adjustments, and has the authority to cap charges that are deemed excessive.
For formal disputes, the case can be escalated to the RERA Property Dispute Resolution Tribunal. The tribunal has authority to order refunds, charge adjustments, or even management company changes. Legal action in Dubai courts is also an option, but it is expensive and time-consuming to treat it as a last resort after RERA intervention has failed.
If you have accumulated service charge arrears and cannot settle them in one payment, RERA launched the Tayseer programme in March 2025. It provides a structured repayment pathway before your matter escalates to the Rental Disputes Settlement Centre. Contact your management entity and ask about eligibility early.
For professionals working in community management, the regulatory environment in 2026 leaves very little room for error. RERA data shows that Gold-rated OA management companies have significantly lower rates of owner service charge disputes than lower-rated firms. The difference comes down to communication and process.
Owners have the legal right to request and review annual audited accounts. If your organisation cannot produce these on request, that is a compliance failure. Every line in the budget must be justifiable, and every variance from the previous year must be explained proactively not reactively under complaint.
Operating outside of Mollak is not just bad practice, it is illegal. All service charge transactions must be processed through the platform. For OA managers, this means keeping registrations current, ensuring all communities under management appear on the DLD's official register, and making sure owners can verify this through the Dubai REST app.
The most common trigger for escalated disputes is not the charge itself, it is the surprise. Owners who understand what they are paying for, receive timely notices, and see budgets explained in plain language are far less likely to file complaints. Community management publications and professional bodies in 2026 consistently point to proactive owner communication as the single biggest differentiator between high-performing and low-performing OA firms.
Reserve fund contributions must be maintained separately from operating funds. Failure to do this is a direct breach of Dubai Law No. 27 of 2007. OA managers should be able to show owners exactly what sits in the reserve fund, what it is earmarked for, and when major expenditures are anticipated.
Individual complaints to RERA rarely move fast. But collective action does. When multiple owners in a building raise the same concern together through the owners' committee or as a group at the AGM management companies respond differently.
Several communities across Dubai have successfully negotiated charge reductions after owners came together with documented evidence of service failures. If you are dealing with a systemic problem in your building, connect with your neighbours before you file individually.
• Charges exceed the RERA Service Charge Index for your building category
• Services are not being delivered as specified in the approved budget
• Annual increase exceeds 10% without formal justification
• Reserve fund contributions are missing or commingled with operating funds
• The OAMC has not provided audited annual accounts on request
• The management company is not registered on Mollak
Service charge disputes in Dubai do not have to become drawn-out legal battles. The framework exists RERA, Mollak, the owners' committee, the AGM and it works when residents use it correctly and OA managers operate transparently.
If you are a resident, start with the budget breakdown and the RERA index. Document everything, attend your AGM, and escalate through the proper channels. If you are an OA manager, treat proactive communication and Mollak compliance as non-negotiable standards, not optional best practices.
The communities that get this right are the ones where residents and managers treat each other as partners, not adversaries. That is what good community management looks like in 2026.
Yes. Property owners can dispute service charges if they believe the amount exceeds the approved rates in the RERA Service Charge Index, if services are not being delivered, or if there has been an unjustified annual increase above 10%. The process begins with a formal written complaint to your OAMC, followed by a RERA complaint if unresolved.
The RERA Service Charge Index is accessible through the Dubai Land Department website (dubailand.gov.ae) and the Dubai REST app. You can search by building name or title deed.
Mollak is RERA's official digital platform for managing Owners' Association service charges. It is mandatory for all OAs and property management companies, and it tracks payments, budgets, and fund balances for every registered community. Owners can access it via the Dubai REST app.
Tayseer is a RERA programme launched in March 2025 that helps property owners with service charge arrears settle outstanding amounts through a structured repayment plan, avoiding escalation to the Rental Disputes Settlement Centre.
Operating outside Mollak is a legal violation. If your OAMC is not registered, you should report this directly to RERA through the DLD portal or Dubai REST app.
Service charges are the legal obligation of the property owner, not the tenant. However, some landlords pass part or all of the cost on to tenants through the tenancy agreement. Tenants should review their contract carefully.
