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Even Gulf investors are taking an interest in the affordable property options Dubai has to offer, Gulf News reported. This represents quite a shift given that their historical preference has always been for premium buys.
If the change becomes even more pronounced from current levels, it could have an impact on luxury off-plan launches in the medium term. As such, “value-for-money has become more important than property prestige, especially as buyers from Russia and CIS countries were considerably fewer than last year”, states an Asteco report tracking first quarter’s trends in Dubai’s realty market.
“This is prompting new opportunities, and we are seeing more GCC investor interest in reasonably priced properties, led by Saudi Arabia and the UAE, including off-plan projects specifically designed for investors,” Asteco said in the report.
Dubai’s developers, especially those with projects at a slightly higher price point, are also responding fast to the fluid circumstances. “Interestingly, we also finally saw a degree of willingness on the part of premium property vendors to reduce their asking rates — but with limited demand in this segment, transaction activity has been relatively low,” stated John Stevens, Managing Director at Asteco.
Instead, projects aimed at a mid-market audience have been coming through thick and fast — these include the 1,000 three- and four-bedroom town houses at the Town Square community being built by Nshama. There are three-bed unit which carried a launch price tag of AED1 million.
Other launches in the first three months include the Acacia Heights (479 apartments) at Mohammad bin Rashid City and Reef Residences (378 apartments) in Jumeirah Village Circle.
