I have heard this from a few sources of late:

I have a female friend who has been trying to find an apartment in Abu Dhabi. She contacted numerous Real estate/letting agents. Upon arriving at their "offices" she was introduced to the Agent who when questioned about what apartments they would be showing knew absolutely nothing except location. They did not know:

1) The size of the apartment
2) whether the bedrooms were en-suite
3) were white goods provided
4) the size of the pool
5) what facilities the building had to offer.

Ok, that is pretty damn pathetic and the above should be basic information that they should know, but then the Agents then pull out this sheet of paper and asked her to sign it. On this paper, she signs to say that she will pay Dhs100 as a viewing charge (WTF is this?) and then to confirm what % she will be putting down to secure the flat!

I mean, she knows nothing about the apartment, has not even seen it, and she has to pay Dhs100 just to go and view it.

What is the UAE coming to, when you have to pay money just to go and view an apartment. This really has to stop, that is extortion!