A Dubai court has ordered the developer of a hotel unit in the Heart of Europe project to refund aed1,370,749.12 to an investor and pay an additional AED150,000 in compensation, after finding the property could not be transferred due to multiple legal restrictions registered against it, Gulf News reported.
The Dubai Real Estate Court cancelled both the sale and purchase agreement and a related hotel management contract, ruling the developer had failed to meet its core obligation: transferring ownership of the unit to the buyer. Despite paying the full purchase price, the investor never received a title deed or legal control of the property.
Court documents show the investor filed a lawsuit seeking to cancel a 2022 purchase agreement, recover all amounts paid, and claim additional compensation and investment returns totalling more than AED2.24 million. The claim also alleged that legal restrictions, attachments and enforcement proceedings had not been disclosed at the time of purchase.
The developer argued during proceedings that the project was complete and operational, had obtained five-star hotel classification, and that the unit had been registered in the interim property register. It also claimed investment returns had already been paid to the investor.
The court, however, examined property records that revealed 13 attachments registered against the unit. The earliest was recorded on February 19, 2024, and the latest on July 28, 2025. The developer did not dispute their existence.
The court found that these attachments made ownership transfer impossible, constituting a breach serious enough to justify terminating the contract. The related hotel management agreement was cancelled as a consequence, since it depended on the investor holding title.
The court calculated the refund after deducting AED55,862.88 paid as a 4 per cent Dubai Land Department registration fee, which had gone directly to the authority. The ordered refund covers purchase payments, handover fees and administrative charges. The claim that the investor had received AED320,048 in investment returns was rejected for lack of evidence.
The court awarded AED150,000 in compensation on the basis that the investor had been deprived of both the property and the invested funds for an extended period. The developer was also ordered to pay court fees, legal costs and AED1,000 in legal expenses. Claims against other defendants were dismissed, as no contractual link or evidence of personal liability was established.
