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Why Pakistan's property sector is flourishing

Dubai - Whether it's a dream home or investment, the opportunity is right here

The Pakistan Property Show offers an opportunity to overseas Pakistanis to fulfill their dreams of owning a property back home besides having investment options in one of the most high-return real estate markets in the Asia-Pacific region.
Sultan Butti bin Mejren, director-general of the Dubai Land Department, inaugurated the show, which primarily targets the second-largest community in the UAE. Haider Ali Khan, CEO of Bayut.com; Zeeshan Ali Khan, CEO of Zameen.com; and Imran Ali Khan, CEO of Emerging Markets Property Group (EPMG), among others, were present on the occasion.
The two-day event is likely to be a regular feature to provide an exclusive showcase to the Pakistan real estate sector on the global stage and the first ever to be hosted at the Dubai World Trade Centre. However, there is no option to book orders and sales at the event as this was exclusively introduced at Cityscape Global in September.
"This is just the beginning of an exciting journey to take Pakistani real estate around the world," Zeeshan Ali Khan said.
The UAE is home to 1.5 million overseas Pakistanis who remit approximately $4.33 billion every year to Pakistan and majority of this are invested in the property sector as it offers good returns. Exhibitors and visitors at the show were upbeat about the future prospects of the industry and expect a win-win situation for all stakeholders.
"First and foremost, we are the flag-bearers of brand Pakistan that is peaceful, progressive and representative of aspirations of overseas Pakistanis and investor-friendly. Pakistan is a model economy that is gradually giving real estate its due position in deriving the economic development," Khan said.
"The Pakistan Property Show will bring about two fundamental changes. Firstly it will vastly improve the share of real estate in remittances. Secondly it will help substantially grow foreign direct investment by attracting foreign investors and developer groups to Pakistan," he added.
The Pakistani realty market has been witnessing a boom over the last decade due to the establishment of more and bigger gated communities with standards to match overseas Pakistanis' experience of living abroad. Adding the shortfall of 10 million housing units leaves no reason to keep market sentiment bullish. Simply put, the demand far exceeds the supply.; business has only one direction to go - upwards.
"The real estate industry believes in our cause and has consistently stood beside us...aAs a culmination of our commitment to Pakistan, the Pakistani real estate sector and the overseas Pakistanis, we have taken our expos global with the Pakistan Property Show. Now the world is in audience to Pakistan's progress and promise for the future," Khan said.
Sharing details of the exhibitors, the entrepreneur said more than 50 exhibitors comprising leading developers and real estate brokerages are participating in the show.
"They are showcasing a very wholesome bouquet of properties from all across Pakistan - all the way from Peshawar, Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi and to Gwadar and everything in between. Overseas Pakistanis with varying preferences and budget ranges will be able to find something to their liking at the show," he said. "Foreign investors - both the go-slow and aim-big - will equally have most secure and high yielding properties to choose from. Pakistan Property Show is a win-win for all."
Imran Ali Khan said EMPG's group companies across UAE, Pakistan and Bangladesh are helping the regional multi-trillion-dollar real estate industry realise its full potential. "EMPG has successfully innovated a unique regional framework for collective economic growth that we hope will guide regional markets in other parts of the world."
- muzaffarrizvi@khaleejtimes.com