Revealed: The who, what and where of Dubai’s booming real estate sector

Helped in no small part by the government’s handling of the crisis, through to the effective vaccination programme, which has seen 100 percent of UAE residents receive one dose of the vaccine and over 91 percent fully inoculated, buyers have flocked to the city.

While widespread reforms, from golden visas through to retirements visas and 100 percent foreign ownership of companies, have helped convince residents that their long-term future lies in Dubai.

In an exclusive interview with Arabian Business, Alexander Davies, CCO of Dubai Holding Real Estate, reflects on a successful year for the company and reveals where the interest is coming from and the particular areas driving attention.

Among all the buyers and investors at Dubai Holding Real Estate (DHRE) which are the nationalities that stand out as being new to the market or the ones that constitute the biggest buyer segment?

Dubai real estate has continued to hold firmly as a preferred investment destination for expat buyers, primarily due to its tax efficiencies, geographical location, regulatory framework, and liberal visa reforms – coupled with a coveted lifestyle.

We have seen Emiratis, Indians, Pakistanis, British and Russians make up our core buyer demographic. Recently we have also witnessed growing interest from Europe, namely from Iceland, Holland, France, and Germany that are all also choosing to invest in Dubai.

We believe that our wide portfolio, ranging from waterfront properties, suburban family-friendly communities, and urban integrated communities, appeals to a wider buyer base catering to investors from multiple geographies and nationalities. 

We have capital buyers from Kazakhstan, Russia, and HNWIs from Europe, as well as local GCC clients.

For instance, our off-plan community Villanova, with its open space community layouts, is a good fit for Emiratis and expat buyers from the subcontinent. Whereas our urban residential project City Walk attracts strong local and international demand particularly from Europe (due to its central location, green spaces, and proximity to several popular destinations in Dubai). Our waterfront developments, such as Port de La Mer, 1/JBR and La Vie, have attracted Russian/CIS nationals alongside the GCC and European investor base seeking sunshine and sea.

Is there a pattern or trend you can identify taking shape in the past year, from a sales point of view?

The past year or two has seen many new buyers enter the market. Young buyers from the subcontinent in the age group of 25-34 are seen purchasing 1-bedroom properties in the urban locations, to take an early advantage to get on the property ladder.

Moreover, due to the UAE’s global attractiveness, we are seeing institutional investors and HNWIs invest in multiple units across our projects.

International customers, primarily from Russia and the UK, show tremendous interest in our waterfront and beachfront properties such as 1/JBR, La Vie and Port de La Mer.

Luxury homes, such as Bulgari residences, Nikki Beach and Bluewaters, have high demand for 1-2 bedrooms from older investors of the age group 60+, looking to retire in the UAE.

We are seeing new demographics as well for this project with Germany and Italy topping international investors.

Which area of Dubai is showing the greatest demand – why?

Dubai’s property market has shown tremendous resilience and growth through the pandemic and, as a result, buyer and seller confidence has grown

Just last month, Dubai broke yet another record – with the highest sales transactions in a single month, November property sale transactions in Dubai had risen to 80.4 percent – the highest it’s been in eight years. 

While there are a few hotspots across the city that are seeing a rise in demand, we have witnessed a trend in people choosing spaces that are offering a blend of green spaces and an urban lifestyle – City Walk and Jumeirah – with the likes of Bellevue Towers, Madinat Jumeirah Living, and waterfront properties such as Port De La Mer, in Jumeirah. 

Has there been a shift in the types of properties being purchased?

Although the post-pandemic trend to move to villas and townhouses continues, we are witnessing an increasing demand for our apartments, as people want to move to the newer and fully integrated apartment developments in the city.

Our residential destinations are designed to offer an integrated lifestyle and include a suite of amenities, from green open spaces, swimming pools, kids play areas as well as retail and community centres.

The perfect example of this balance is the newly launched Central Park located at City Walk, which saw immense demand as all our available units were sold out within hours at the recent sales event.

How are the various projects progressing?

I would certainly categorise the past year as having been a success in terms of sales and project deliveries. We have recently announced 97.5 percent completion in Villa Amalfi, and 88 percent construction in the Cherrywoods project, and we have almost completed the Rahaal project at Madinat Jumeirah Living.

DHRE has also completed 18 percent construction in La Vie project, and 71 percent in the Sur La Mer project

Over the past year, we have overcome supply chain disruptions to finalise and hand over 1,500 units across our various projects in the emirate.

Are there plans to launch any more developments to market?

We will continue to fulfil our commitments to developing our communities across Dubai and therefore our focus is to complete and prioritise each masterplan to ensure our residents have their homes in the promised timeframe.

Some of our most recent launches included Port de la Mer Le Ciel, a seaside community with residences inspired by Mediterranean architecture, and the launch of Lamtara Madinat Jumeirah Living, a community that offers residents a life of luxury overlooking the iconic Burj Al Arab.

Our successful launches of these communities are evidence of the strong growing market and demonstrates the incredible demand for DHRE’s attractive portfolio.