Dubai’s Real Estate Regulatory Authority (Rera) has approved the 2012 service charge budget for Oceana residential and resort community on The Palm Jumeirah, according to leading property management group Asteco.

The news comes as issues concerning the transparency and breakdown of service charges across the emirate’s property market continue to fuel debate amongst owners and developers, said the company.

Oceana is a mixed use beachfront hotel, commercial and residential resort community with 644 residences, centrally located on the trunk of The Palm.

To ensure that owners across the different asset classes of the community are being treated with parity, Asteco had retendered all building services, which included detailed negotiations with the relevant sub-contracted companies, in order to present a mutually acceptable budget figure of Dh17.50 per sq ft.

Compared to the previous figure there is a 30 per cent reduction and the budget figure is in line with similar developments on the Palm Jumeirah, said a senior official.

"This is not the first complex in the city to receive approval, but as a mixed-use resort community with multiple facets, naturally we are pleased to conclude this issue with the full cooperation and involvement of the Interim Owners Association Board,"  explained John Stevens, director of Asteco.

“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,” he added.

Stevens said, "Asteco's 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,” he added.-TradeArabia News Service