Dubai Property Show heading to Mainland China

Visitors walk through pavilions at the Dubai Property Show held in Mumbai in December 2016.

After the success of the Dubai Property Show in Mumbai last December and the good response that it garnered in other global destinations, including London and Hong Kong, the sixth edition of the popular Dubai real estate exhibition is now headed to Shanghai.

The three-day exhibition will be held at the Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Centre from March 24, 2017.

The Dubai Land Department (DLD) and Sumansa Exhibitions have collaborated once again to promote Dubai as a real estate investment destination to Chinese investors. According to the DLD, Chinese investors pumped in Dh1.74 billion worth of investment in Dubai property market in 2016 and are among the top 10 investors.

"We have seen rising interest from the Chinese investors and there cannot be a more opportune time than this to promote Dubai's attractive real estate proposition to them. We have always worked on bridging the gap by bringing the exhibitors and buyers face to face through our specialised property shows," Sultan Al Suwaidi, partner, Sumansa Exhibitions, the organisers of the Dubai Property Show, said.

He said Chinese investors are attracted towards earning higher rental yields on properties and tapping the huge margin for capital appreciation in Dubai.

"The investors range from wealthy individuals and private equity funds buying residential units to companies and funds setting up local joint ventures to invest in property projects."

Dubai's Chinese population grew by 53 per cent last year to 253,000. Tourism from China to Dubai is growing rapidly. In 2015, Dubai welcomed 450,000 Chinese tourists, an increase of 29 per cent on the previous year, and 13 Chinese cities, including Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Shenzhen, as well as Hong Kong and Taipei, are connected to Dubai with more than 100 weekly flights. The visa on arrival facility for Chinese visitors is also going to boost their property transactions.

"Due to the high demand from Chinese investors in Dubai's real estate, we are taking the Dubai Property Show to Shanghai. Dubai has become a leading regional, commercial, financial and tourist hub with a state-of-the-art infrastructure and a world-class business environment. Our participation in Dubai Property Show will contribute to the promotion of the emirate as one of the best investment destinations in the world,"

Majida Ali Rashid, assistant director-general, head of Investment Management and Promotion Centre, the investment arm of DLD, said.

Many wealthy Chinese have been buying properties overseas to diversify their investment portfolio and find Dubai attractive partly because they believe they can achieve returns of as much as 30 per cent annually which beats Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing.

Masood Al Awar, chief commercial officer, Dubai Properties, said Dubai is the top-performing investment location for real estate and, over the years, Chinese investors continue to be attracted by the higher rental yields and the huge margin for capital appreciation.

- business@khaleejtimes.com