Investors to repose trust on UAE real estate market with more investments

The government’s recent measures on real estate investment will increase market credibility, transparency and boost investor confidence in the growing sector, experts say.

Analysts, executives and developers said the government’s actions such as new reporting requirements for property transactions and strict rules on real estate advertisements will bring stability in the market that already attracted investments worth more than Dh170 billion during the first seven months of this year. They expect investment in the UAE property market will exceed Dh300 billion by year-end.

Referring to official statistics, the market experts said Dubai real estate will continue to register growth as it attracted Dh135.5 billion investment during the January-July 2022. In addition, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah also registered Dh22.38 billion and Dh11.2 billion property transactions, respectively, during the first half of 2022.

Real estate activities are estimated to generate about 5.5 per cent of the UAE’s overall gross domestic product (GDP) annually. The UAE’s residential real estate market is expected to post a compound aggregate growth rate of more than eight per cent during 2022-27, according to Mordor Intelligence.

Investor confidence, market maturity

Haider Tuaima, director and head of Real Estate Research at ValuStrat, said recent government measures will not slow down growth in the sector.

“The simple answer is no,” Tuaima said in response to a question about new reporting requirements for property transactions and strict rules on advertisement may impact the growth of the sector.

“Enhancing regulations by tightening rules on property advertisements can only increase market credibility and transparency, this potentially boosts investor confidence going forward,” he said.

Robert Thomas, head of Agency at real estate consultancy Core, said new measures will bring maturity to the market.

“No, on the contrary, we expect it would further mature the market and these regulations will filter the market with qualified listings and product offerings,” he said.

More investment coming

Yousuf Fakhruddin, CEO, Fakhruddin Properties, echoed the similar views and said property sector will attract more investment due to timely government action to further enhance transparency in the market.

“The UAE has always been at the forefront of implementing measures to ensure better economic and business practices. The new reporting requirements further make it a more secure environment for property investors, which we hope will drive their interest in real estate opportunities even further,” Fakhruddin told Khaleej Times.

In our opinion, he said the government's move to increase regulation in the real estate sector is a positive one.

“This will help to protect buyers and investors and create a more stable and transparent market and in the long run, this will encourage sustainable growth in the sector. The new regulations are a positive step forward for buyers' rights. It provides greater clarity and protection for investors, and we believe this will lead to increased confidence in the rental market” he said.

Ata Shobeiry, CEO at Zoom Property, also welcomed the government’s policy measures and said it would benefit the sector.

“I believe these requirements will make the Dubai property market safer for both sellers and buyers. Therefore, it will encourage more investment in the sector,” he said.

— muzaffarrizvi@khaleejtimes.com