Dubai Real Estate Blog

The UAE has become the first country in the world to offer online or digital real estate services through a smart services hub, according to authorities.   The Abu Dhabi City Municipality (ADM) said on Sunday that it has collaborated with Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank in issuing the first digital mortgage certificate worldwide, a step that culminates the upsurge in the digitalization of services advocated by theDepartment of Urban Planning and Municipalities in response to the government directives.   It stems from the keenness of the Department to uplift the calibre of government services to rank them at par with the best in the world. It also measures up to clients aspirations and supports the sweeping development witnessed by the UAE at all fronts.   Saif Badr Al Qubaisi, Chairman of the Technology Committee at the Urban Planning and Municipalities Department said: "This giant step of issuing the first digital mortgage certificate in the world is a result of the great suppo...

The levy is expected to increase transparency, considering the rigid audit requirements When value-added tax (VAT) was introduced in the UAE and Saudi Arabia on January 1, 2018, initially stakeholders were wary on the potential impact of the new tax policy on the economy.  A study conducted by Alliance Business Centers Network said that the UAE would be least affected by the imposition of VAT because it is one of the lowest globally compared to countries such as the UK, Switzerland, Germany, Mexico, South Africa and Australia. The study revealed that the VAT in UK and France was 20 per cent, which is substantially higher than the five per cent implemented in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. With the adoption of VAT in the real estate sector, investors and stakeholders are weighing the impact on market valuations. According to Deloitte, in the UAE, commercial property is clustered in the taxable bracket and therefore the costs of buying or leasing such property are likely...

Developers put themselves at risk by not fully assessing the buyer's financial worthiness at the outset The Dubai residential property market is dominated by two areas - secondary and off-plan. The secondary market, fully regulated with mortgage caps in place, reduces the inherent risk in the property market. Strict guidelines imposed by banks decide if the borrower is credit-worthy, protecting both the bank and the borrower (so they don't overextend their credit limits). Therefore, we have a combination of banks and mortgage regulations making for sensible levels of risk, avoiding a situation seen in the global financial crisis of 2008/2009, with so much unstable debt in the market leading to an inevitable slowdown. Now look at the off-plan side of the Dubai real estate market. By not having a regulation in this market, are we allowing the buyer to put themselves in harm's way? Are we laying the foundation of unwanted risk in this side of the market if the ...

A property management contract takes the stress out of property rental Y ou've probably heard of property management, but do you know what the actual benefits of such an arrangement actually are? There's a multitude of benefits for both parties involved in the contact - both the landlord (property owner) and the tenant. With more savvy tenants than ever before, many actively seek out rental arrangements made only where the landlord has taken out a property management (PM) contract.  Advantages for tenants As a tenant, you want peace of mind, right? A property management company takes away a lot of the niggles, hassles and worries that you might have as a tenant. For instance, prior to moving in, a tenant should receive a professional "schedule of condition" report which helps at the end of tenancy in terms of security deposit return. The property will also be checked over and prepared for the tenant (prior to move in) by a dedicated portfolio man...

The company's non-development businesses performed strongly Nakheel has announced a net profit of Dh2.51 billion for the first six months of 2018. The profit for the same period in 2017 was Dh2.61 billion. Nakheel handed over 451 units to customers in the first six months of the year. The company's non-development businesses - retail, leasing, hospitality and asset management - performed strongly. Annual revenues from these sectors is now Dh2.6 billion - three times as much as in 2010 - and currently accounts for 38 per cent of the company's total revenue. Revenue from these sectors will continue to grow with the completion of retail and hospitality projects such as The Pointe, due to open this year, and The Night Market, Warsan Souk, The Palm Tower and Nakheel Mall, which are due to come on line in 2019. In 2017, Nakheel recorded a 14 per cent surge in net profit to Dh5.67 billion and handed over 1,439 land and built-form uni...

The company's non-development businesses performed strongly Nakheel has announced a net profit of Dh2.51 billion for the first six months of 2018. The profit for the same period in 2017 was Dh2.61 billion. Nakheel handed over 451 units to customers in the first six months of the year. The company's non-development businesses - retail, leasing, hospitality and asset management - performed strongly. Annual revenues from these sectors is now Dh2.6 billion - three times as much as in 2010 - and currently accounts for 38 per cent of the company's total revenue.  Revenue from these sectors will continue to grow with the completion of retail and hospitality projects such as The Pointe, due to open this year, and The Night Market, Warsan Souk, The Palm Tower and Nakheel Mall, which are due to come on line in 2019. In 2017, Nakheel recorded a 14 per cent surge in net profit to Dh5.67 billion and handed over 1,439 land and built-form units during the year, which r...

Oversupply and subdued prices make them delay coming to market with new projects Developers in Dubai have launched 9,034 units, both apartments, villas and townhouses, year to date in 2018, according to data released by GCP-Reidin. This compares to a total of 46,893 units launched across the whole of 2017. The decline in the number of launches is a result of the demand and supply imbalance caused by excessive construction activity in recent years, resulting in oversupply. "In turn, property take-up rates have fallen, leading to a decline in sales prices, translating into lower potential profit margins for developers. As a consequence, some developers are delaying coming to the market," explains Ivana Gazivoda Vucinic, head of consulting and valuations and advisory operations at Chestertons Mena. After last year's frenzy, developers seem to have maxed out on post-handover incentives. Therefore, demand has been sluggish in the off-plan space, with some re-allocati...