The UAE’s precarious property trapeze

The UAE’s precarious property trapeze

There was little to no movement in Dubai’s villa developments while oversupply continues to erode apartment values, according to a report on Dubai’s property market for Q1 2011.

April 10, 2011 3:39 by Precious de Leon

• Other villa locations, such as Victory Heights and Motor City have seen moderate drops of 3.6 percent down from Q4 2010.

• Apartment values continue to drop due to stock oversupply. Again, similar to villas, the lower end of the market have seen the highest decreases, where units in areas such as Discovery Gardens and International City have fallen by 8.9 percent from last quarter.

• Signs of a ‘flight to quality’ market shift continue, as units which are regarded as high end, in locations such as Dubai Marina, Old Town and Palm Jumeirah have seen drops of only 3.7 percent from the end of 2010.

Residential leasing sector – Market Analysis:

• Rental values for apartments continued to feel pressure from tenants who continue to take advantage of the over supplied marketplace with apartment rental figures falling between 8-10 percent on Q4 2010.

• The villa rental market has proved to be slightly more resilient in the more established freehold areas but is expected to soften as we move into the summer.

• Villa prices and rentals are expected to fall in some areas due to the ever-increasing release of notable new freehold units in developments such as The Villa, Falcon City, Sports City and Jumeirah Village. These emerging developments lack local amenities and community facilities, which is a deciding factor for prospective tenants and owner-occupiers before they invest.

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Tags: apartment values Dubai, Cluttons, Dubai property oversupply, Middle East property, property, property oversupply, property oversupply Middle East, Q1 2011, Real estate, real estate oversupply, residential leasing analysis, residential sales analysis, villa Dubai