Indians, Brits, Pakistanis top expat investors in Dubai property

Indians, Britons and Pakistanis continued to remain the top three expatriate property investors in Dubai, according to Dubai Land Department (DLD).

The total sum of investments in Dubai’s real estate market for the first half of 2015 exceeded Dh53 billion, with 19,848 investors from 142 nations making property transactions, the DLD said. 

UAE nationals top the list with Dh11.5bn worth of Dubai property market transactions during the first half of the year.

Nationals from India were ranked first for foreign investment, having made a total of 3,017 transactions worth Dh7.8bn.

DLD’s list included the amount of real estate transactions conducted by foreign nationals in H1, with 13,166 investors from India, Pakistan, Britain, Canada, Russia, China, USA, France and Afghanistan involved in deals worth a total of Dh30bn.

British investors were in second place having conducted deals worth Dh4.7bn, followed by Pakistani investors with transactions worth Dh3.3bn.

Canadian investors came in at fourth place with transactions worth Dh1.8bn.

“One look at the figures from DLD’s Research and Real Estate Studies Department is enough to show us that Dubai’s real estate sector is now enjoying sustainable growth. Based on the strong performance of the market, we fully anticipate that the momentum will be continued throughout the next five years as we lead up to Expo 2020, the biggest marketing event in the world,” said Sultan Butti bin Mejren, Director General of DLD.

DLD’s report, issued by its Research and Real Estate Studies Department, revealed that GCC Investors completed Dh17bn worth of transactions made by 3,926 investors in the first half of this year.

Emirati investment clearly formed the lion’s share of this figure, with UAE nationals making 2,130 transactions worth Dh11.5bn in the city’s property sector.

Saudi Arabia was ranked in second place on the list of GCC real estate investors, having made 999 transactions worth Dh3.2bn. Kuwait was at third place, followed by Qatar, Bahrain and Oman.

“The diversity in investors’ nationalities revealed by the report shows that the Dubai market is international and that investor confidence is increasingly being cemented,” bin Mejren added.

DLD’s report showed that 2,756 investors from 16 Arab nations completed transactions worth more than Dh6bn in the first half of 2015.

Jordanians made transactions to the value of Dh1.4bn, while Lebanese nationals were second on the list of Arab investors having conducted Dh1.2bn worth of transactions. Investors from Egypt came in at third place followed by those from Iraq, Yemen, Sudan, Algeria, Palestine and Morocco.

“The various financial rating agencies from around the world are very optimistic about the economic indicators of the UAE in general and Dubai in particular, where all sectors show excellent growth rates year-on-year,” said bin Mejren.

“This confirms the success of the emirate’s diversification policy. The policy has meant that the drop in oil prices in global markets has not had a major negative impact on the nation’s economic performance. The Dubai real estate market is evidence of this success, with its ability to attract buyers from around the world. They have confidence in the future stability of the market and faith in the assurances provided in terms of a rewarding return on investment,” he concluded.

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