
Ultra-high net worth investors (UHNWI) with incomes well above the average tend to focus more on commercial real estate in Dubai, a recent survey by Knight Frank consultancy has revealed.
Super-rich investors’ sentiments study conducted by Knight Frank together with Wealth-X says Dubai commercial real estate properties are about to become an important component of the of regional and foreign investors’ investment portfolio in the next decade. The survey showed that 53% of wealthy regional investors are going to place a part of their funds in these assets.
Offices also became quite popular among investors. While during the period of 2005 - 2015 only 41% of investors were willing to buy offices to generate income, the latest investors’ poll revealed that 53% of respondents are now interested in buying this type of assets. Shops and warehouses, technical premises are also a good idea for investments — 32% of Knight Frank survey respondents have stated their willingness to buy properties for investment purposes within the sector.
Retail property as a whole segment is expected to become more popular in the coming years. While in the past decade only 15% of investors have considered this type of real estate for their funds allocation, today already 21% of respondents are willing to invest in commercial properties. The same can be said of hospitality real estate units: in advance of Expo 2020 this type of properties will be in high demand, thus it is not surprising that 38% of surveyed UHNWIs plan to invest in hotels and serviced apartments.
"The availability of diverse investment products have made property more accessible to a wider range of investors, while the high level of market transparency and diverse expertise across these markets enables private investors to overcome their knowledge gaps," said Dana Salbak, head of MENA Research at Knight Frank.