Transparency wins Oceana service charge approval

Oceana residential and resort community is based on the Palm Islands. Photo: Shutterstock.

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Asteco Property Management has announced that RERA has approved the 2012 service charges for the Oceana residential and resort community.

All building services were re-tendered which included detailed negotiations with subcontractors. The new figure was pitched at less than $5 per square foot, 30% lower than the previous figure.

John Stevens, Director, Asteco Property Management, said: “In order to reach the final budget figure we had to detail the expenses for all of the buildings within the development, calculate the applicable fees for the communal areas and also the proportion of services utilised by the hotel and commercial elements, compared to the residential units."

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Experts at the recent Middle East Owners Association Management conference demanded that OAs and OAMs maintain the highest level of transparency when it came to what the owners were paying for if they were expecting to receive approval from RERA and service charge payments on time.

Stevens said: “our commitment to supporting transparency across the emirate’s real estate sector, particularly in the high profile area of service charges, saw us engage with Oceana’s developer, the Interim Owners Association and building management group through each stage of this comprehensive exercise.

"The meticulous Asteco budgetary process is in line with the stringent requirements and spirit of the jointly owned property law, and is a model that we apply throughout our property portfolio."