Thursday 20 August 2009

ARRA

I see that ARRA (Ajman Real Estate Authrotiy) made a facelift to its site - it is available at http://www.arra.ae
Does this mean they will review the fraudster developers and make real interventions?

Any comments on that?

30,000+ surplus residential units in Dubai

According to a JP Morgan report, a surplus of 31,000 residential units could be recorded in Dubai, mainly due to the decline in expatriate population, while the shortage of units in Abu Dhabi is hoped to rise to 28,000 by the year-end.

In the short-term, the non-residential sector in the UAE will continue to be under pressure, owing to global financial crisis. However, historical shortage of both retail and commercial space in Abu Dhabi has kept tab against fall in leasing rates well below Dubai, reveals an investment bank report on MENA (Middle East North Africa) real estate.

Ever-since its peak during mid-2008, the average transaction volumes are down by 60 percent during the first half of 2009, compared to that during same period in 2008. Despite the slight pickup in transaction volumes recently, the supply overhand in Dubai property sector will touch 28,500 by end of the year, because of the modest economic forecast and negative population growth estimates, JP Morgan said.

Furthermore, after 2009, the JP Morgan says that the forecast of 3.5 percent population growth for Dubai is unlikely to absorb the surplus residential units, which according to Colliers International, will total to 25,000 per annum in the next three years.

However, given Dubai's large infrastructure investment, the city's positioning which makes it accessible to neighbouring economies out of which few are facing economic challenges, and Dubai being a liberal tax-free business-friendly destination, a surprise demand recovery from regional investors, exposed to less stable geo-political environments, cannot be ruled out, the Bank concludes.

Contrastingly, the short-term supply of homes in Abu Dhabi is fairly limited. The high occupancy levels are unlikely to ease from near 100 percent any time soon, the Bank said.

Sunday 2 August 2009

Dubai’s real estate sector will continue to see price drops until the second quarter of 2010.

A recent report by credit-rating agency Moody’s claims that Dubai’s real estate sector will continue to see price drops until the second quarter of 2010. “The Dubai property market remains subdued following the fall-out from the credit crunch and the global recession,” it says.

Dust sweeps across the UAE

August 02, 2009 - Abu Dhabi

The slow-moving dust cloud that settled on the Emirates before the weekend is expected to dissipate by Tuesday.

However, there may be only a brief respite, as more winds are expected to blow towards the UAE from northern Iraq, where the dust originates.

“The problem now is dust is starting again in that area,” said Ahmed Habib, a meteorologist with the National Centre for Meteorology and Seismology.

“There is another one coming from Iraq, but we will wait to determine when exactly it will come here.”

Visibility in most parts of the country yesterday was around 1,000m, although it was reduced to 300m in the west. Mr Habib said the lack of wind meant that the dust was suspended in the air and that visibility would improve only by a few hundred metres a day.

“Wind is light and moving to the south-east, so it’s dissipating gradually,” he said.

“When wind is light to moderate, it means very gradual movement.”

The light winds mean that fishermen at least will still be able to take small boats to sea despite the poor visibility, he said.

In the meantime, asthma sufferers were warned to avoid exposure to the dust. “It’s better to keep in the house today,” he said.

Mr Habib also cautioned motorists to be vigilant on the roads.

From Iraq, the haze moved towards Kuwait and over the Arabian Sea and eastern Saudi Arabia, then over Bahrain and Qatar before blowing to the UAE, Mr Habib said.

In Saudi Arabia, hospital emergency rooms were “packed” over the weekend with people complaining about breathing problems, according to Arab News.

The newspaper quoted a nurse at Dammam hospital saying the facility “received children and elderly men and women with choked throats and breathlessness ... many of them with a history of asthma”.

The patients were put on nebulisers to clear their choked lungs.

It followed six fatalities on Thursday in road accidents caused by the poor visibility in the kingdom’s Eastern Region, the paper added.

In Baghdad, the Iraqi capital, a heavy sandstorm flooded hospitals with people suffering from respiratory problems. Health officials said patients complained about shortness of breath and other problems.

Work restarted on Dubailand's mid income homes


Construction work has started again on Queue Point in Dubailand after delays forced the developer to put the project on hold earlier this year. Al Mazaya said on Sunday that work had resumed on all buildings in the project, which is aimed at middle income earners, and that delivery was set for 2010.