Emaar Properties expects to complete two Dubai apartment towers at least two years late, according to a letter sent to buyers.
The 45-story buildings, called ‘29 Boulevard’, are now set to be finished in February 2012, according to letters sent to buyers and seen by Bloomberg.

In response to the report, Emaar said yesterday that all its developments were “progressing in line with Emaar's strategy to complete all commenced projects”.

“These projects are in varying stages of development - from initial start-up phase to handover.

“Emaar is also negotiating with the contractors to achieve reductions in construction costs, which are being adjusted in the pricing of some of our projects.

 “Customers have been informed of these negotiations. Additionally, we are working with them on an individual basis, offering them flexible payment solutions,” Emaar added.

Meanwhile, the opening of the Giorgio Armani hotel in the Burj Khalifa has been delayed by more than a month, two people with knowledge of the plan told Bloomberg yesterday. An Emaar spokesperson told 7DAYS the firm does not yet have an official date for the hotel opening.

Mehdi Nosratlu, an apartment buyer notified of the delay on February 28, said he has already paid Emaar 65 per cent of the dhs3.1 million he owes on a property purchased in April 2008. The German citizen heads a group of almost 400 investors who bought homes in the two towers and are trying to reach an agreement with Emaar. So far, buyers have paid 30 to 65 per cent of the total purchase price, he said.

“We’re stuck,” Nosratlu said. “We are paying on mortgages taken at the height of the market and paying interest on properties that I doubt will be completed by the new deadline. No work has been done on the site in almost a year.”