Dubai’s Emaar launches new villas at Arabian Ranches

Dubai real estate firm Emaar Properties will expand its Arabian Ranches development with the launch of a new villa community.

Emaar, which built the world’s tallest building Burj Khalifa, will start selling properties on its Moroccan-themed CASA community from November 24.

The new development will feature a series of luxury three and four-bedroom villas, as well amenities including F&B outlets, a health club, mosque and landscaped gardens.

“The further enhancement of Arabian Ranches reflects our growth strategy to develop residential projects that add value to our stakeholders,” said Ahmad Al Matrooshi, managing director, Emaar Properties.

Emaar did not specify how many properties the new community would consist of or when they would be completed. Earlier this month, Dubai contractor Arabtec said it had been hired to build 33 new villas and 62 townhouses at the Arabian Ranches complex with a construction timeframe of 18 months.

In July, Emaar said it had acquired a plot of land on the neighbouring stalled Dubailand development from Dubai Properties Group in order to expand Arabian Ranches.

Emaar has been one of the better performing developers in Dubai’s property market, which saw prices plunge by up to 60 percent in the aftermath of the emirate's 2008-2009 debt crisis. This year the firm has announced a raft of new projects, including The Address The BLVD, a mix-used development of 542 serviced apartments and 200 hotel rooms in Downtown Dubai. All 542 apartment units sold out within a day of going on sale.

Emaar is also building a cultural district, also in its flagship Downtown Dubai district, which will contain a museum, two art hotels and an opera house.

In its most recent Q3 financial report, Emaar posted a 4.7 percent drop in net profit to AED387m (US$105m) compared to AED406m a year earlier. Revenue was down to AED1.6bn compared to AED1.9bn a year ago.