Christopher ZeniosWith the property market in Dubai reporting conflicting numbers and trends what is the overall picture of the current market and prices?
Examples of conflicting numbers and trends are given by Aditi Hariharan, Senior Consultant at the property services firm Cavendish Maxwell who comments,
While the volume of secondary market transfers for villas/townhouses between January and June declined over 30 percent (from a year ago), the average value increased 14 percent
In the sector of apartments, gains were reported in both the number of units sold and the average value in the secondary market. So why can a rapid improvement in sale value be seen when the wider market is suffering? Hariharan comments,
It could possibly be because of more premium products being sold in the secondary market.
Market experts report that in the past few weeks a spike in investors has been noticed in well-established locations such as The Palm, Downtown and Business Bay. Figures show that Business Bay has reported that largest share of secondary sale transactions at 9.9%, International City reporting 7.5%, Dubai Marina 7%, Jumeirah Village Circle 6.5%, and the Palm 5/5%.
Are the Prices Sustainable?
The numbers are noteworthy as in the past attention was given to off-plan launches and what developers were doing with post-handover payment plans right through 2017 and 2018. Due to the hard-hitting sale tactics in the off-plan/primary space, it took a while for sellers in the secondary market to get their bearings back. However, based on the year they are back in action using some of the same tactics as developers providing options for payment plans and incentives.
No one is saying distress sales have gone completely — but there are deals taking place at realistic levels that were not there in the last two years, comments Sailesh Israni of Sun & Sand Developers.
