Dubai Property Festival stimulates sales and purchases in real estate market

Dubai Land Department (DLD) has confirmed that the Dubai Property Festival (DPF), which will be held from 9th to 11th April at the Dubai World Trade Centre, will contribute to stimulating sales and purchases in the Emirate’s real estate market.

DPF coincides with a series of other international events aimed at attracting investment in the UAE. The event is expected to boost buying and selling activities among a large number of developers, brokers, banks, mortgage providers and financial institutions, and home buyers.

The festival is being organised by DLD through its investment arm, the Real Estate Investment Management and Promotion Center, in partnership with International Property Show (IPS). It is part of DLD’s ongoing efforts to support the real estate sector and create a win-win situation for all stakeholders in the property development industry, including developers, brokers, buyers, investors and mortgage providers. The festival will be part of ‘Real Estate Investment Week’, which will feature a number of events promoting real estate investment and gather investors from different countries to discuss ways to boost investment.

His Excellency Sultan Butti bin Mejren, Director General of DLD said: “Dubai’s real estate sector is strong and the Emirate has unique assets to attract foreign capital in this sector including a high return on investment, which strengthens investor confidence. By creating a secure and welcoming environment for real estate investment, which involves protecting investor rights through escrow accounts, we help foreigners to benefit from flexible payment plans and more attractive investment offers in the real estate sector.”

The average return on investment achieved on apartments in Dubai last year was 7%, while villas made 5%. This was achieved despite an overall softening of rent and sales prices, according to research from Bayut.com, a Dubai-based online property listing site, based on 94,000 listings posted on the site between November 2016 and November 2017.

Her Excellency Majida Ali Rashid, Assistant Director General of DLD and Head of the Real Estate Investment Management and Promotion Center, said: “When it comes to investment in real estate, Dubai remains a global magnet that attracts a large pool of foreign investment. We have seen a growing interest amongst investors in key emerging markets such as China, India, Russia and Central Asia, as well as developed markets such as the United Kingdom, where we held investment roadshows and exhibitions in recent months. With new supply across the residential, commercial, hospitality and retail real estate sectors, investors stand to benefit from attractive pricing and payment plans that will help them to multiply their return on investment.”

Her Excellency added: “DPF provides an excellent opportunity for investors, developers and buyers to get a closer look at the Emirate's efforts to create a secure real estate environment. Hosting DPF during ‘Real Estate Investment Week’ reinforces confidence and transparency in the market and helps investors to take the right decision to buy property in Dubai.”

Dawood Al Shezawi, Head of the Organising Committee of DPF, said: “The game-changing DPF will stimulate the real estate market in Dubai as we expect to see a large number of buyers lining up to buy their freehold homes from a wide choice and with the best bargains available.”

‘World Cities: Mapping the Pathways to Success’, a recent global report by Jones Lang LaSalle, revealed that while the majority of cities attract foreign direct investment (FDI) to some extent, Dubai is among the world’s top destinations for FDI. DLD recorded a total of 69 thousand property transactions with a total value exceeding AED 285 billion in 2017.