there. Foreigners from 162 nations conducted
transactions during the year, with India
coming first, followed by the United Kingdom
and Pakistan.
The survey found that citizens of the Gulf
States contributed AED33 billion. Investment
from the Emirates accounted for AED24 billion,
while Saudi Arabia accounted for AED4.6
billion and Oman, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait a
total of AED1 billion.
Arab investors from outside of the Gulf States
also contributed significantly to real estate
activity last year, with their total value of investment amounting to more than AED 12 billion.
The total value of non-Arab investment in
Dubai came to AED69 billion. India accounted
for AED18 billion, the United Kingdom
AED10.4 billion and Pakistan AED8.6 billion.
Other non-Arab investors in order were Iran,
Russia, Canada, the United States, China,
France and Germany.
Overseas investors have been encouraged by
new investor friendly legislation and a rising
confidence in returns on property investments.
Another indicator of the recovery in the Dubai
market is the number of projects that are now
being launched. A leading developer, Emaar,
announced seven new projects in the first
eight weeks of this year. The company said its
total value of sales in Dubai for 2013 was AED12
billion, nearly three times the amount in 2012.
Expectations are that with Dubai winning the
bid to host Expo 2020, the city will generate
even more foreign interest.
Dubai Sports City
increasingly popular
Buyers and renters interested in Dubai
property continue to gravitate toward Dubai
Marina, but competition from Sports City is
growing fast, statistics show.
Real estate portal PropertyFinder said 18.67%
of nearly two million visitors were looking for
Marina housing to buy and another 18.41%
were looking for rentals in the same location.
Also popular are Downtown, Palm Jumeirah
and Jumeirah Lake Towers.
But coming up fast is Dubai Sports City. While
it did not even make the Top 10 list last year, it
rose to eighth place in the most recent quarter.
Also enjoying rising popularity is Jumeirah
Village Circle, moving to seventh place from
12th, while International City made the Top 10
for the first time.
The report also pointed out that home prices
have been recorded at the highest levels
since the downturn and the market has also
gained a more favourable reputation for
tighter regulation
A new rental decree allows rents to be
increased by 5% if they are 11% below the
market rate for the area. The law applies to
private and public sector properties in Dubai,
as well as those in the free zones.
Property buyers are looking
for real value although lifestyle
is a key driver
Discerning buyers are searching the globe for
places that offer the best real estate values.
In the Knight Frank report, “Global
Opportunities”, it is reported that buyer confidence is on the upturn as lending criteria are
relaxed, employment is picking up and interest
rates remain low.
Using figures gleaned from the Organisation
for Economic Co-Operation and Development,
the report lists countries where housing
markets are overvalued and undervalued.
Leading the list of countries where there is
the highest risk of a price correction are
Norway, Canada and Belgium. Prices are still
rising there and the declines that hit Europe,
the UK and the United States post 2008 passed
them by.
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