For owners
Switching Holiday Home Company in Dubai
4 min read
An owner can move a Dubai holiday home from one management company to another without a long gap in income, as long as the notice period, the holiday home permit, future bookings, keys and listings are handed over in the right order.
Short answer
If your holiday home is not earning what it should, guests complain, or you cannot see what is happening, you can change company. Most management agreements in Dubai can be ended with notice, and the home can be relisted under a new operator.
The risk is a gap: weeks when the home is off every platform, guests booked under the old company with nowhere to go, or a permit nobody is renewing. A planned handover avoids all three.
Signs it may be time to switch
Your statements are hard to follow, or you only see a monthly total rather than each booking. Your calendar has long empty stretches in the busy season. Reviews mention cleanliness or slow replies. Repairs wait for weeks, or appear on your statement without warning.
None of these is unusual in a busy market, and some can be fixed by talking to your current company. When they keep repeating, it is usually the operator, not the home.
Read your agreement first
Find the notice period and how notice must be given, usually in writing. Check whether there is an exit fee, what happens to bookings already taken for dates after you leave, and who owns any furniture or equipment the company supplied.
Check also who holds the holiday home permit. Many operators register homes under their own operator licence, so the permit may need to be cancelled and registered again under the new company.
Future bookings
Guests who booked through the old company expect their stay to happen. Agree in writing how bookings after your exit date are handled: honoured by the old company until a date, moved to the new company, or cancelled with the guest refunded.
A good new operator will help plan this so that guests are looked after and your home's reputation is protected.
Permit, listings and keys
The new company registers the home under its operator licence with the Department of Economy and Tourism once the old registration is closed. Ask both companies to agree dates so there is no period when the home is let without a valid permit.
Ask the old company to remove its listings on the agreed date and to return every key, access card and remote, along with the inventory, warranties and any building documents it holds.
A handover timeline that works
Start by talking to the new company before you give notice. It can look at your agreement, your building and your calendar and suggest an exit date that falls in a quieter week, so few bookings are affected.
Then give written notice to the old company and agree the exit date, the handling of future bookings, the permit change and the return of keys. During the notice period the new company can prepare photos, listings and pricing so the home goes live again as soon as the old registration closes.
On the exit date, walk through the home with the new team and the inventory. Note any damage or missing items in writing while the old company can still answer for them.
After the switch, compare the first months with your old statements. A good operator will show you, booking by booking, where the home is doing better and where it still needs work.
Furniture, linen and supplies
If the old company furnished the home, check whether the furniture is yours or theirs. Linen, towels and consumables are often the company's own and may leave with them, so the new team needs to restock before the first guest.
Your money
Ask for a final statement covering every booking up to the exit date, every deduction, any deposits held and the final payout date. Keep copies of past statements; they help the new company price your home from its real history.
Switching to fäm Living
fäm Living, the holiday homes company of fäm Properties, takes on homes from other operators. We review your agreement with you, plan the handover dates around existing bookings, register the home under our licence, refresh the photos and listings if needed, and start running it with our own team.
You see every booking, statement and payout in the owner portal from the first stay, and the terms are agreed for your home in writing before you sign.