United Arab Emirates - 5, March 2019:  Haider Ali Khan, CEO of Bayut.com, said that while there was a general prediction of an across the board negative start to the year in the property market, there are a range of reasons to be optimistic. 

 

He said: “If we look at how the market is doing across the board, the overall trend is similar to what we observed in the first half of 2018. While prices on average have decreased for both properties on sale and rent, what is interesting to note is that in both sales and rental trends, we have seen very few areas with drastic decreases of over 10%. 

 

“Most changes have remained within this margin, while some popular areas for investment, including Downtown Dubai, Palm Jumeirah and Business Bay have even seen an increase in certain segments.”

 

Bayut.com has the most advanced system for tracking the property market in Dubai and are able to pinpoint where people want to live – both by renting and buying.

 

Haider added: “One of the new areas that we should be keeping an eye on, specifically from an investment perspective, would be DAMAC Hills. 

 

“The villas in the community are attracting a significant amount of investor interest, and it’s easy to see the appeal. It’s fairly close to other successful villa projects including Mudon and Arabian Ranches, so there’s already an interest established in the area. 

 

“In addition, the proximity to the Expo 2020 site, makes the area an attractive proposition for investors. The other neighbourhood which is emerging as a crowd favourite is Arabian Ranches 2, where we have seen quite a few communities being handed over through the course of 2018.”

 

Another key trend from the first two months of 2019 in the Dubai property market has been the importance of new developments away from the coastline. 

 

“When it comes to the suburban communities in Dubai, we have seen steady growth for areas such as Dubai Silicon Oasis, Dubai Sports City and JVC, and we are confident we will continue to see the same level of interest in these areas,” said Haider.  

 

“New projects are being handed over in all of these areas, so there’s always something new to appeal to both investors and renters in the city. Other established suburban neighbourhoods that are continuing to do well include Arabian Ranches 1 and 2, Dubailand and International City.”

 

The strength of Bayut.com in the market was recently increased by a major injection of funds through securing growth capital. 

 

Haider said: “We are certainly looking at consolidating at our presence further within the UAE using this recent round of growth capital and investing in new, innovative technologies. 

 

“Our goal is to equip brokers with more information about properties they market as well as help consumer make more informed decisions. We also plan to extend our expertise and knowledge to similar markets in the GCC and leverage on our experience in the UAE and other markets to provide creative, data-driven solutions to the real estate industry in the region.”