Macroeconomics

UAE – Mubasher: Property prices in the UAE’s cities of Sharjah and Ajman inched down in the third quarter of 2019, stabilising in Ajman Downtown and Muwaileh, according to a report released by Bayut on Wednesday.

Rents in Al Majaz, Al Khan, Corniche Ajman, and Emirates City are slightly increasing which shows a rise in demand on luxury waterfront communities and communities located in proximity to Dubai, the report added.

“The property market in both Sharjah and Ajman remain healthy and attractive for buyers and tenants, echoing the trend we have observed over the course of the year,” Bayut’s CEO Haider Ali Khan said.

“Property prices in both these emirates usually resonate with the trending prices of Dubai; when landlords get creative and offer attractive deals to tenants in Dubai, there is a natural tendency for landlords in Sharjah and Ajman to offer similar incentives, in order to maintain their appeal with potential renters,” the top official added.

Sharjah

The sales and rental prices for apartments in Sharjah remained affordable in Q3-19, while prices in family-friendly neighbourhoods such as Al Nahda and Al Qasimia declined by a range between 3% and 8%.

Meanwhile, rents in popular investment zones – including Al Khan, Al Majaz, and Al Mamzar – saw increases between 5% and 8% due to the increase in demand.

As for apartment sales, the average price per square foot in the popular neighbourhoods decreased by a range between 8% and 12%.

Ajman 

Apartment rents in Ajman witnessed declined ranging between 1% and 5%, with rents of 2-bedroom apartments in Al Sawan dropped to AED 36,000 in Q3-19 from AED 38,000 a quarter earlier. Apartment prices per square foot saw decreases ranging between 1% and 6%.

In contrast, the average price per square foot in Al Nuaimiya surged 8.26% in Q3-19, reaching AED 218.

Dubai Land Department has signed nine agreements and memoranda of understanding with a group of Emirati and foreign entities at Cityscape Global 2019, according to the Emirates News Agency (WAM).

An MoU was signed with Saudi Arabia’s Amaco Media Group to promote the real estate market, organise, and hold a real estate exhibition in the kingdom.

The land department also inked an MoU with Crayon, a globally leading company in machine-learning technology, for cooperation in the field of artificial intelligence-based consulting services, digital transformation, and cloud services.

Moreover, two protocols were signed with Emirates Islamic Bank and Commercial Bank of Dubai to “structure and develop the parties’ relationship and promote their common interests to achieve integration and promote close cooperation and coordination between them.”

The UAE’s land department signed MoUs with the University of Manchester Middle East Centre, Mashreq Bank, Coldwell Banker Richard Ellis, BSA Ahmad Bin Hezeem & Associates, and Royal Institute of British Architects.

Held in Dubai World Trade Centre, Cityscape Global is the largest and most influential real estate investment and development event for emerging markets globally offering access to exclusive offers, networking opportunities, and educational sessions.

UAE - Mubasher: Residential sale prices in the emirate of Dubai are likely to carry on softening in the remainder of the year by up to 5%, with rental rates slowing by 1% during the third quarter of 2019, according to Chestertons MENA’s Q3-19 Dubai market report.

Oversupplying has been weighing on residential prices and rates in the emirate, the leading international real estate services firm indicated.

Dubai is expected to witness the delivery of 50,000 new units in 2019, surging by 150% from over 20,000 residential units in 2018, the report highlighted.

Nick Witty, managing director of Chestertons MENA, said: “As we anticipated, there were further sales price declines in Q3 for both apartments and villas due to excess supply and muted economic growth. The rental market proved to be more resilient however, with a marked slowdown in the rate of decline.”

“We anticipate the 10-year residency visa, the economic stimulus package and perhaps, more importantly, the introduction of the new Real Estate Committee, which has the mandate to boost demand and control supply, contributing to a more favourable outlook in Q1 2020,” Witty added.

The average villa prices stood below 3% in Q3-19, while apartment prices saw a decrease of 4% as compared to the previous quarter, Chestertons MENA pointed out.

In the villa market, prices at Meadows and Springs remained unchanged at AED 850 per square feet, while it eased by 2% at Palm Jumeirah to AED 1,927 per square feet.

Meanwhile, the highest decline was marked at Arabian Ranches at 5% to AED 793 per square feet in Q3-19.

Prices at both The Lakes and Jumeirah Park fell by 3% to AED 1,010 per square feet and AED 804 per square feet, respectively, during the July-September period of 2019.

“The supply of brand-new properties, with their wealth of amenities, has resulted in older communities bearing the brunt with prices being lowered to compete for and attract end-users,” Witty said.

At the level of the apartment sales market, Dubai Marina and the Greens were the best performing communities as both had pronounced declines of 6% to AED 1,030 per square feet and AED 849 per square feet each.

In the rental market, numerous apartment communities had no movement during the three-month ended 30 September 2019 including Business Bay, Discovery Gardens, Dubai Silicon Oasis, JVC, and Motor City where a two-bedroom apartment in each rent for AED 100,000, AED 75,000, AED 60,000, AED 73,000, and AED 90,000 per annum, respectively.

“The decrease in rental prices in smaller units, in some locations, is indicative of tenants moving to larger properties that have become more affordable. This has resulted in landlords of smaller units reducing their rates to be more attractive to prospective tenants,” Witty remarked.

JVT and Victory Heights have witnessed the biggest villa rental declines with an average decrease rate of 3% with a three-bedroom available for AED 112,500 and AED 130,000, respectively, the report added.

Off-plan transactions valued at AED 10.48 billion in Q3-19, as its volume jumped by 45%, which is an indicator of recovery, the report noted.

Dubai – Mubasher: Deyaar Development, one of Dubai’s largest property development and real estate services companies, has completed work at the “Millennium Executive Apartments Mont Rose” project.

The project, which is located in Dubai Science Park in Al Barsha South, is expected to be operated during October, according to the company’s statement on Wednesday.

The Millennium Executive Apartments Mont Rose features 126 one-bed and 72 studio apartments across 20 floors along with grab-and-go dining service.

“Millennium Mont Rose is another contribution we are proud to make to Dubai’s hospitality scene, in support of Dubai Tourism Vision 2020. The diversification of hospitality offerings in the emirate will create further appeal to a diverse range of tourists, who are keen to find residences that cater to their specific needs,” Saeed Al Qatami, CEO of Deyaar Development, commented on the project.

The project is considered a further addition to Deyaar’s hospitality portfolio, as hospitality will be a cornerstone to Deyaar’s long-term vision in delivering sustainable returns to its shareholders and in supporting the creation of employment in the city of Dubai.

UAE – Mubasher: The real estate sector in Dubai has achieved positive performance in 2018, boosting the emirate’s GDP growth, according to a report released on Tuesday by the Dubai Land Department (DLD).

Dubai’s GDP grew by 1.9% to AED 398 billion last year, compared to AED 390 billion the year before.

Moreover, the real estate sector’s contribution to GDP growth recorded 13.6% in 2018, up from 6.9% in 2017, DLD’s data showed.

Real estate transactions

Last year, real estate transactions in Dubai reached 53,000, generating a value of AED 223 billion.

“The Business Bay area ranked first in terms of the number of real estate transactions with over 4,000 transactions. It also maintained the first position in transaction value with over AED 11 billion,” the DLD revealed.

Investors’ nationalities

Emiratis’ investments dominated Dubai’s real estate market in 2018, with a total value of more than 10 billion, followed by Indians, which pumped AED 8 billion investments into the market last year.

Projects

As per DLD’s report, the number of real estate projects completed in Dubai during 2018 equalled 62, including buildings, villas, and villa complexes.

Meanwhile, the number of projects launched in the emirate last year hit 84, comprising 20,000 units.

As for underway projects, their number reached 102 in 2018, expected to deliver 130,000 units.

The rental market

The number of newly-leased contracts in Dubai reached 246,509 last year, while renewed lease contracts amounted to 251,409 in the same period.

Concerns arise amid investors in Dubai’s real estate market over the increase in the number of offered units ahead of demand, in addition to the decline in prices.

However, developers are exerting efforts to ensure the fast delivery of new projects, according to a report Property Finder Trends report for the first six months of 2019.

In the first half of 2019, a total of 20,978 residential units were completed, including 14,999 apartments, 1,084 serviced apartments, and 4,895 villas and townhomes.

Moreover, 38,426 residential units have undergone great progress since July, which were planned to be completed by year-end.

“With a record number of units expected for the second half of the year, we can expect prices to decline further as the market continues to absorb these units,” director of data and research at Property Finder, Lynnette Abad, said.

As per Property Finder’s data, overall residential stock in Dubai is expected to hit 637,000 units by the end of next year.