Housing Development Corporation (HDC) Managing Director Ali Zuhair has made a concerning statement regarding tenant behavior. According to the HDC chief, half of the tenants living across various social housing apartments have not been paying rent regularly.
He made these remarks in a programme on state radio, noting that while HDC manages more than 12,000 flats in Hulhumale’, about 50 percent of the tenants have not been paying rent.
“Looking at the rent receivables while we manage more than 12,000 flats, we have 50 percent of our tenants not paying their monthly rent dues owing to a range of issues,” Zuhair said.
Last year, the corporation made some policy changes that ought to send notices to tenants every three months for failure to pay dues accordingly. HDC stated this was a “payment advice” notice.
While the issue has been brought to attention by the HDC head, this is not the first time the matter has been brought into the limelight, as several previous statements by the corporation highlight a trend of non-paying tenants continuing to use social housing units. These non-paying tenants include those who have not paid any amount due since moving into their units and those who pay sporadically.
According to Zuhair, HDC has continued its efforts to monitor timely payment from tenants. Officers of the corporation have made multiple visits to these social housing units, and Zuhair added that their most recent efforts were mostly focused on evicting foreign nationals and others living in these units illegally. HDC has been notifying original tenants through written letters, demanding that they remove illegal occupants.