Abu Dhabi Finance Lowers Mortgage Rates Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Abu Dhabi Finance Chairman Ali Eid al Mehairi has said that the company has been given financial help by the Department of Finance which is geared towards lowering its mortgage rates to the lowest in the country. Abu Dhabi Finance – a part-government...

Al Hanoo's New Development Division  Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Leading GCC property developer Al Hanoo has recently unveiled the launch of its new development division in the UAE; ‘Marsa Al Nejoum Real Estate LLC’. Al Hanoo’s Chairman Shaikh Abdullah Al Sakra, said “we are proud to announce the establishment of ...

Property Industry Debate At Cityscape Abu Dhabi  Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Cityscape Abu Dhabi will take place from the 18th to the 21st of April in the National Exhibition Centre, Abu Dhabi (featured in photo). The event will bring together over 120 speakers from more than 25 countries for the purpose of debating issues wi...

Starwood Plans Two Luxury Hotels in Abu Dhabi Tuesday, March 09, 2010

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide has said it has 4 luxury properties planned for the Middle East in the next 5 years. The company will be opening the 4 top-end luxury lifestyle brand ‘St. Regis’ hotels in Abu Dhabi, Doha and Cairo. Starwood made t...

Armani Hotel Dubai Launch Reset for April 22 Tuesday, March 09, 2010

The opening launch date of the Armani Hotel Dubai has been put back until April 22nd, it has been revealed. The opening of the new hotel, which has been eagerly awaited amongst the people of Dubai, was initially due to take place on March 18th. The l...

Jones Lang LaSalle Creates Retail Business Unit Monday, March 08, 2010

Property investment and advisory firm Jones Lang LaSalle has created a new retail business division for the Middle East and North Africa. The firm has said it sees the retail sector as a key growth driver. The firm’s new retail business unit shall pr...

RERA Will Take Legal Action Over False Complaints Monday, March 08, 2010

Dubai’s Real Estate Regulatory Agency (RERA) has said it will take legal action against anyone who gives false information when making a complaint. This is clearly stated on the agency’s online complaint form – “providing wrong information regarding ...

Refund for Property Investor, Niki Lauda Towers  Monday, March 08, 2010

A British businessman and property investor has been refunded on an office unit which he purchased in the delayed Niki Lauda Twin Towers, in Business Bay. The proposed towers, which are named after a Formula One driver, are one of three projects laun...

Nakheel Announces New Chief Commercial Officer  Wednesday, March 03, 2010

Dubai developer Nakheel has revealed its new chief commercial officer to be Aqil Kazim. Kazim, formerly director of Jumeirah Golf Estates, replaces Manal Shaheen. Shaheen, who served the firm since 2005, exited as a result of former chief executive o...

First Construction Work on World Islands Begins Wednesday, March 03, 2010

Developer ‘The Kleindienst Group’ has now commenced construction work on The World Islands. This makes the Dubai-based firm the first to break ground on The World – it is working on Germany Island. Kleindienst has said that although it is the first g...

Last Marina Residences Tower Now Handed Over  Wednesday, March 03, 2010

The final Marina Residences tower at Palm Jumeirah has now been handed over to the project’s developer Nakheel by contractors. The first stage of the handover of the Marina Residences properties began in the latter part of last year. This, the last o...

Louvre Abu Dhabi Piling Works Contract Friday, February 26, 2010

The Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC) of Abu Dhabi have awarded a contract for the piling works of the Louvre Abu Dhabi museum on Saadiyat Island. The contract has been awarded to Bauer International FZE, a German construction company...

Burj Khalifa's Armani Residences Handover Friday, February 26, 2010

The first residents of the Burj Khalifa will soon be moving into the tower’s Armani Residences. The Burj’s developer Emaar Properties is currently holding an orientation programme for the owners of the Armani Residences. Work on the Burj’s residences...

Work on Burj Khalifa Observation Deck  Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Burj Khalifa contractors have temporarily closed the tower’s observation deck in order to carry out some maintainance work and upgrading. There have been some technical issues involving the power supply, it will be reported as soon as ‘At the Top’ re...

Drake and Scull Wins Dhs187 Hotel Project in AbDh Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Dubai construction company Drake and Scull International has been awarded a Dhs187m ($51m) contract for work on an Abu Dhabi hotel. The firm has said that this makes the third project that it has won in the first quarter of this year. The total value...

'Mubadala' Seeks Finance for Sowwah Square Project Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Abu Dhabi developers Mubadala will be asking for a $1.2 billion finance loan from banks in order to afford the development of the Sowwah Square project (as pictured) on Sowwah Island, Abu Dhabi. Upon completion of the project, the island will be home...

'Tiger Woods Dubai' Project Proceeds Wednesday, February 03, 2010

Dubai Properties Group has confirmed that the Tiger Woods project will be completed as intended. The golf course and luxury residential development, which was due to be completed in September 09, was delayed as a result of the real estate difficultie...

Arabtec Wins Dh710m Construction Contract in Dubai Monday, February 01, 2010

UAE Construction master Arabtec has won a Dh710million ($193.3m) contract to erect an 80-storey tower on Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai. The new building will comprise a 5-star hotel, luxurious furnished apartments and offices. As well as the 80 floors, th...

Dubai Land Department's New Online Services Monday, February 01, 2010

The Dubai Land Department has launched its new online services which will facilitate and hasten transactions. The new services include the option for the immediate online registration procedure and will enable property buyers, investors and professio...

Clients Impressed at 'Cedre Villas' Open Days Monday, February 01, 2010

Dubai’s ‘Harbor Real Estate’ has been promoting its Cedre Villas at ‘open house’ days. The fully decorated Cedre Villas units, located in Dubai Silicon Oasis, were shown to large numbers of customers in the last few weeks. These customers said that ...

Ritz-Carlton Dubai to Have Large Expansion Thursday, January 28, 2010

Hotel chiefs have said this week that they plan to expand the Ritz-Carlton, Dubai to have more rooms. The project will start in April and will comprise the addition of another 160 rooms and several new restaurants to the hotel. It is expected to reac...

'RAK Properties' Awards Contracts for Mina Al Arab Thursday, January 28, 2010

‘RAK Properties’ has granted 3 construction contracts for its Mina Al Arab project – one phase of which will be handed over in Q2 this year. The 3 construction contracts, worth AED400m ($108m), have been awarded to DTC, Al Tameer and AAA Contracting....

Ras Al-Khaimah Projects Near Completion in 2010 Thursday, January 28, 2010

This year will be bright for 'RAK Properties' with a value of $272.3million worth of projects approaching the completion and handover stages. This news comes from the developer’s chief executive Mohammed Sultan al Qadi. Unfortunately, it endured a 45...

Damac to Handover 6 Projects in 2010 Thursday, January 28, 2010

Damac has said this week that it will be handing over 6 projects to customers this year. These are 2 fractions of their Emirates Gardens project, Jumeirah Village South’s Tuscan Residences, Lago Vista at IMPZ, XL Tower and Business Tower in Business...

Work on The World Islands Progresses, Says Nakheel Thursday, January 28, 2010

Nakheel has announced this week that work will start on a number of The World Islands in the coming months. The progress starts as Major Trade – European developer – has commenced work on soil testing and reclamation on the ‘Greenland’ island, in pre...

Steady Property Prices in Ajman, Assures SHH Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Leading UAE developer Sweet Homes Holdings (SHH) is assured that property prices of its two main projects in Ajman will retain their stability throughout 2010. The developer has two main projects underway in Ajman – ‘Rainbow Towers’ and ‘Ajman Uptown...

Ajman Committee to Resolve Property Disputes  Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Ajman Real Estate Regulatory Agency (Arra) is arranging a legal committee to resolve disputes between investors and developers in the emirate.
Arra says that the committee will be set up in the first quarter of this year pending approval by the ...

Chinese Invest in Dubai Property Sector Wednesday, January 27, 2010

A Hong Kong investment group will be launching an investment fund to the tune of US$250million, in Dubai. ‘First Eastern Investment Group’ is focused on the infrastructure, transport, construction materials, electronics and property sectors.
Th...

Emirates NBD Foresees Cautious Growth in GCC Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Senior executives at Emirates NBD Bank have said this week that the GCC economies will see cautious growth during 2010. The bank predicts an average growth of between 3 – 4% this year compared to the last. It foresees real GDP growth this year of 2.5...

Eco-Friendly Water Use at Saadiyat Golf Course Monday, January 25, 2010

Saadiyat Beach Golf Club is set to be launched this week, the first component of the Saadiyat Island development in Abu Dhabi. The cultural island will eventually be home to 160,000 people, and will be home to the Guggenheim and Louvre museums. Ther...

New Property Refund Law in Dubai  Monday, January 25, 2010

New laws planned for this year will protect property investors in Dubai against developers delivering defective or late properties. Under the new legislation, investors will receive refunds or replacement property, and developers will face financial...

Base Jump From Top of Burj Khalifa! Friday, January 22, 2010

Two men took a base jump from the top of the new Burj Khalifa tower a day after it opened earlier this month. They fell at speeds of 136 mph (220 km/h) from the staggering 828m (2716ft) high skyscraper – the highest base jump in the world from the ta...

Burj Khalifa's Positive Effects on Property Market Friday, January 22, 2010

The opening of the Burj Khalifa on January 4th has raised the profile of the Downtown Burj area even more so. The area is said to become one of the most exclusive districts in the world, this will cause the rental and sales values to climb further. A...

Dubai Marina - Most Popular Property Hotspot Thursday, January 21, 2010

As at Q4 2009 Dubai Marina is still the favourite property hotspot for people looking to rent or buy. A recent study has revealed that the plush marina accounted for 16.2% of searches by online buyers and 18.2% of rental enquiries in the latter month...

Dubai to Invest 3bn Dollars in Transport Sector Thursday, January 21, 2010

Dubai plans to invest nearly $3bn in the transport industry during 2010 in a bid to stimulate the economy. The emirate will not have any trouble paying its contractors, according to Mateer al Tayyer – chairman of Dubai’s Roads & Transport Authori...

30,000 New Hotels Rooms for Dubai Thursday, January 21, 2010

Latest figures released by STR Global show that there are 442 hotels and 120,440 hotel rooms on their way through the development pipeline in the Middle East/ Africa.

With numerous hotel developments having been completed in 2009, there ha...

Dubai Housing Sector: Slow But Sure Recovery Wednesday, January 20, 2010

The rise in house prices in Dubai in the 4th quarter of 09, and having mimicked the same pattern of the previous quarter, has indicated the stabilisation of property prices in the housing market in the region, hit hard by the global financial situati...

New Project in Mina Al Arab, RAK Wednesday, January 20, 2010

‘RAK Properties’, Ras Al Khaimah property developers, has chosen various contractors to undertake the construction of 20 new buildings in the Mina Al Arab area. These contractors are DTC, Al Tameer and AAA Contracting. The project will be based in th...

UAE Firm to Invest Dhs1bn in Dubai Real Estate Wednesday, January 20, 2010

A UAE investment firm, ‘Dubai International Holding Company’ (owned by a Dubai Sheikh) will be investing over Dhs1bn ($272m) in Dubai’s real estate sector this year. Sheikh Maktoum told the Emirates Business newspaper “...if you look at all the asset...

Ibn Battuta Gate Completion Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Asteco, UAE-based real estate services firm, has declared the completion of the Ibn Battuta Gate project, and it is now ready for handover. The mixed-use project is made up of an office block, basement parking for more than 350 cars – additionally a ...