Tag Archives: dubai
UAE property prices and rental values dip
The residential property market in Dubai saw a minor downturn in February with prices and rents falling slightly but still up year on year. There is some variation between apartments and villas with apartment prices falling 1.86% month on month but still up 6.7% compared to a year ago, according to the latest index from REIDIN. Meanwhile villa prices were up slightly by 1.68% month on month and are up 6.2% year on year, the data also shows. Overall the REIDIN Dubai sales price index for all residential properties decreased by 1.18% but it still up 6.6% on a year ago. Residential rents also fell, down 0.76% month on month but this sector is still some 7.7% up on a year ago. Apartment rental prices fell 0.98% but are 8.8% up year on year and villa rental prices were up 0.08% month on month and 2% year on year. There was a similar pattern in neighbouring Abu Dhabi. Prices overall were down 0.83% in February 2015 but up 1.3% year on year. Apartment prices fell 0.89% and are just 0.1% above a year ago while villa prices fell 0.75% compared to the previous month and are up 1.1% year on year. Rents in Abu Dhabi fell 1.04% in February but are up 2.2% year on year. Apartment rents increased 0.45% month on month and 4% year on year while villa rents fell by 2.32% compared to the previous month and were up 6.5% year on year. Continue reading
Miliband only UK political leader who would pay under mansion tax
With the general election campaign now underway in the UK research has found that Labour leader Ed Miliband lives in the most expensive house of all the main political party leaders. Labour want to introduce a new mansion tax if it wins the election in May and it has defined a mansion as being a property worth over £2 million. Yet it is only Miliband who lives in such a home. According to research by property website Zoopla, Miliband’s North London home is now worth £2.73 million, more than three times the average in the area. Conservative leader David Cameron’s West London home and Liberal Democrat Nick Clegg’s South London homes fall just short of the threshold applicable to the new proposed tax. Cameron’s home in West London is valued at £1.97 million while Clegg’s family home in South West London is valued at £1.89 million. UKIP chief Nigel Farage’s Kent home is currently valued at a more modest £550,000. However, each leader has seen the value of their home grow substantially since the last election, like most home owners across the country. Miliband has seen the value of his home increase by £1 million since the Conservative/Lib Dem coalition came to power, despite his apparent distaste for their economic policies. Cameron’s home has risen by £671,000 in value and Clegg’s by £573,000 during the same period. As things currently stand, Miliband would be the only current party leader required to pay the annual Mansion Tax mooted by the Labour party on properties worth in excess of £2 million, although house price rises could also soon nudge Cameron and Clegg into this territory. ‘Miliband’s home is in a desirable part of London and is now worth a lot more than he paid for it before the last election. If Labour comes to power as his property tax bill is likely to rise by at least £3,000 per year,’ said Lawrence Hall of Zoopla. Continue reading
Abu Dhabi office market set to weather lower oil prices
Lower oil prices could lead to possible implications for the Abu Dhabi real estate market but commercial property should be able to shrug off such concerns, according to a new analysis. The region’s medium to long term prospects remain strong and there is a limited office supply pipeline which has led to vacancy rates dropping for Prime and Grade A offices in the to 26%. Overall the commercial sector saw a marginal slowdown in the number of enquiries in the second half of 2014, according to the latest Abu Dhabi office research report from international real estate firm Knight Frank. The fall may be due to companies reviewing the impact in falling oil prices and nearly 80% of enquiries were between 100 and 500 square meters, data in the report shows. The overall effect on market rents over 2014 was minimal, but the firm suggests there could be further improvements in headline rents, as little prime or Grade A supply enters the market. Take up during 2014 was still dominated by the oil and gas sector at 16% and government at 15%, which positively impacted the absorption of new accommodation in Abu Dhabi. The leisure and hospitality sector witnessed an increase in the number of enquires, which reflects the government’s efforts in diversifying the economy and growing this sector. Prime office rents edged up in Abu Dhabi in the second half of 2014 to AED1,800 per square meter whilst rental values for Grade A shell and core office space remained steady at AED 1,200 per square meter. Market sentiment through the diversification of the economy continues to improve with mega projects such as Khalifa Port, registering a growth rate of 24% from January to September 2014, compared to the corresponding period in 2013, the report points out. With the Midfield terminal due to be completed in July 2017, this will be expected to positively impact the economy further, in both trade and tourism and the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), the newly formed international financial centre in Abu Dhabi, announced that it has signed a 50 year lease for the Financial Building, Al Maryah Island which is owned by a Mubadala subsidiary. The report explains that ADGM will be responsible for establishing a legal jurisdiction, registering entities within the freezone and regulating all financial services activity on the island in line with international standards and under English Common Law. ‘The market dynamics continue to change in Abu Dhabi as the city expands further from the main island,’ said Matthew Dadd, head of Abu Dhabi commercial leasing at Knight Frank. ‘Regardless of economic trends, Abu Dhabi real estate continues to offer a good depth and breadth of opportunities for occupiers, although there is a limited pipeline of new office accommodation which will impact the market in the coming years,’ he added. Continue reading
