Emaar announces service fees for Greens and Dubai Marina Phase 1

The determination of the service charges comes after a detailed consultation process with the home owners representatives.

Emaar has reported that after conclusion of the consultative process they have determined the Service Fees as follows:

The Greens: Al Sidr, Al Jaz, Al Nakheel and Al Ghaf: Dhs. 9.75 per square foot (psf); Al Samar, Al Dhafrah, Al Arta, Al Thayyal and Al Ghozlan: Dhs. 9.45 (psf); The Views: Dhs. 10.65 (psf); and Dubai Marina (Phase 1): Dhs.10.41 (psf).

Thomas Varghese on behalf of the Greens representatives said: "We would like to sincerely thank Emaar for the responsive, transparent and positive manner in which they have engaged with the Greens representatives over the last few months."

Ahmad Al Falasi, Director, Property Management, Emaar Properties said: "We have worked together with the home owners representatives on a transparent basis to reach a solution that is for the benefit of all the residents. Our first priority is the management of the communities to maintain the high standards expected by residents while delivering value for money services."

"By working more closely with the home owners representatives we believe that we have achieved a greater understanding of their aspirations and that they in turn have a greater knowledge of management issues and costs. This will enable us to deliver even better services in the future," he added.

The fees differ amongst the communities as they are dependant upon actual costs of the services and facilities provided and the utilities that are consumed. The major cost component of the Service Fees in all the communities is the utility charges.

In early 2005 Emaar facilitated the selection process for the representatives of home owners to represent their communities and work with Emaar to resolve issues of importance to the residents and further improve the service Emaar could provide. One major issue was the Service Fees for 2005 where residents had expected a major escalation, which has not occurred.

To ensure that representatives of the home owners had the necessary mandate from the communities, Emaar called for a selection of representatives from the communities and ensured that the process was monitored by an independent third party auditor - Ernst & Young.

To assist homeowners in their review of the costs associated with the management and operation of the communities Emaar provided all accounting records to the home owners representatives to scrutinize. In this process areas of opportunities were reviewed for cost reductions and better utilization of resources. It was as a result of this process that the service fees were determined at levels lower than had been anticipated.

The invoicing of the service fees had been delayed by agreement with the representatives, until finalization of the process except where the ownership of properties was being transferred. Now that the consultative process has ended, Emaar will invoice the home owners.

Emaar will continue to work with the home owners representatives on issues of mutual concern to ensure the continuation of delivery of high quality services throughout its developments.