UAE remains most appealing country for Gulf property investors

Dubai meanwhile was the most preferred city to invest in real estate. Above, workers at a construction site in Dubai. (Reuters)

DUBAI: The UAE retained its top spot as the most appealing country for Gulf residents to invest in property, while Dubai was named the most preferred city, according to new research.
About 45 percent of GCC home buyers and real estate investors, up from 42 percent in 2016, chose the UAE when asked which country they were comfortable in investing, according to the Real Estate Barometer study, made in partnership between YouGov and Cityscape Global.
Almost two-thirds also chose the UAE when asked which Middle East country the would chose to invest in.
Collectively, 69 percent of respondents chose Dubai as the ‘go to’ city for real estate investment, with 66 percent expecting the impact of Expo 2020 to increase property buyer interest in the Emirates.
The average budget for the GCC property investors was pegged at $717,000 (SR2.68 million), which was much higher than the average global budget of $561,000. The most sought-residential properties meanwhile were two- to three-bedroom apartments.
“We have seen a change of investor mind-set when it comes to the size of property sought after, shifting from one-bedroom and studio apartments in 2016 to a majority (54 percent) seeking two-to-three bedroom apartments shown by this year’s results,” Tom Rhodes, Exhibition Director, Cityscape Global, said in a statement.
“This could signal a vote of confidence from investors and homebuyers as reports point to a rejuvenation in the real estate sector.”
Kailash Nagdev, Managing Director for YouGov in the Middle East region said: “The 2017 study indicates a minor decline in sales and rental property prices in the UAE but overall real estate investment sentiment for the UAE looks positive.”
“The annual Real Estate Barometer is designed to track Middle East property market sentiment to help the industry expand with its future investors in mind.”
Cityscape Global, the region’s biggest property exhibition, opens this week in Dubai and for the first time has allowed developers undertake onsite sales to interested buyers.