Real estate stocks reverse slump as UAE bourses recoup Dh19.5b (By Gaurav Ghose, Financial Features Editor Tuesday, November 18 EmiratesBusiness 24/7) After seven straight days of frenzied selling, much of it on the Dubai Financial Market which plunged 37 per cent, UAE shares rose on Monday to provide some much-needed relief to investors and traders. The combined value of shares went up by Dh19.54 billion. The benchmark Dubai Financial Market General Index soared 161.41 points or 8.15 per cent to close at 2,142.85, with a surge in real estate stocks which, despite trading at cheap prices, have borne the brunt of the massive sell-offs. Volumes jumped 97 per cent to 466.64 million shares with the total traded value increasing 101.31 per cent to Dh741.96 million...   Last Update: 11/18/2008 3:05:02 AM
New law to regulate capital's real estate sector (By Abdel Hai Mohamed on Thursday, November 20, 2008 EmiratesBusiness 24/7) The Abu Dhabi Department of Municipal Affairs has finalised a draft law to regulate the real estate market as well as land transactions in the emirate. Dr Abdullah Ghareeb, the department's Executive Director for Property Management, said the new law will be referred to the Abu Dhabi Executive Council before the end of the year. The law sets rules and regulations for real estate developers, contractors and brokers. It also includes rules pertaining to off-plan sales, licensing of high-rise residential buildings and property registration. Moreover, it seeks to end harmful speculation in the emirate, according to Ghareeb. Speaking to Emirates Business, he said the department is about to draft more laws on real estate and contracting as a response to the construction revival in Abu Dhabi. An important suggestion it will make to the Executive Council will deal with the setting up of an authority for the real estate and land sector, which will be responsible for all registration, construction, licensing, sales and purchases...   Last Update: 11/20/2008 1:12:54 AM
Azizi Investments may slow down projects for 2009 (By Parag Deulgaonkar on Thursday, November 20, 2008 EmiratesBusiness 24/7)Azizi Investments, a Dubai-based real estate developer, said yesterday it will continue to work on its current developments and will launch new projects only when market conditions improve. "Our emphasis will be on developing our current portfolio. The market has certainly slowed down and we too might have to slow down our 2009 plans," company Chairman Merwiss Azizi said. In June, he told Emirates Business that the company plans to develop 150 to 200 projects in the next three years and would invest Dh15 billion for developing 55 projects in 2008. The company was aiming to acquire 15 million square feet of land in 2008, but has acquired more than 50 per cent of that. It was planning to acquire an additional 50 million square feet by 2009 and another 100 million square feet by 2010, which would have taken its total land bank to 165 million square feet...   Last Update: 11/20/2008 1:20:59 AM
'Challenges yes, but no regrets' (By Gaurav Ghose, Financial Features Editor on Thursday, November 20, 2008 GulfNews)A senior Government of Dubai official acknowledged the challenges faced by the emirate amid the global financial and economic turmoil and hinted at reassessing some of the projects in the pipeline. "Yes, we do have certain challenges ... [but] we have no regrets," about the policies that the Dubai government has pursued, Nasser Hassan Al Shaikh, director-general of the Dubai Department of Finance, said at a business luncheon organised by UAE Bankers Forum yesterday. "Some plans have to be changed, [particularly] in real estate, but what has been started has to be completed. On the infrastructure side, we are not easing up," he said, adding that all Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) projects in the pipeline and the new airport coming up will not be affected...   Last Update: 11/20/2008 1:30:26 AM
Damac's The Crescent project nears completion (By Staff Report, on Thursday, November 20, 2008 GulfNews)Dubai-based developer Damac Properties yesterday said it is nearing the completion of The Crescent, its first project to be finished at the International Media and Production Zone in Dubai. "Customers are now undertaking final inspections of their apartments with around ten per cent already completed," the company said in a statement. "These have been co-ordinated by the Damac Properties Customer Relations Management team." The Crescent is a three tower development located near the Emirates Road and customer occupancy is due in December...   Last Update: 11/20/2008 1:35:13 AM
Expatriates say fundamentals remain sound (By Sunita Menon, Staff Reporter, on Thursday, November 20, 2008 GulfNews)Lower mortgage rates, the reintroduction of a residence visa policy on completed projects, 100 per cent ownership of businesses and a public announcement of shelved projects will serve to restore investor confidence, expatriate property consultants and investors in the UAE said. Despite the global gloom and doom, foreign investors remain largely upbeat about the the fundamentals of the Dubai real estate market. Julie Zaman, a senior property consultant, said: "To regain investor confidence, we should reconsider bringing back the residence visa policy on completed properties. The reason for this is that foreign investors need security when investing in a property in Dubai. However, certain policies should be applied to protect the country's sentiments."..   Last Update: 11/20/2008 1:42:19 AM

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