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Freehold Property in the United Arab Emirates Expats living in the United
Arab Emirates (UAE) and in other countries of the Gulf (Saudi Arabia, Qatar,
Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman) were previously only permitted to rent property. Then
Dubai, one of the seven emirates of the UAE, opened its arms to freehold
property in 2002, which has changed the real estate industry in the region.
In the United Arab Emirates, the emirates of Dubai, Ras Al Khaimah and Ajman
have opened their doors to allowing expats to buy and own property. Below are
details of what each of the emirates are doing.
Dubai Real Estate for Sale
Being the first emirate to begin freehold property, Dubai has a vast amount
of freehold real estate projects underway, and the largest ones being the
man-made The Palm and The World islands. For detailed information on freehold
property in Dubai, click here.
Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) Freehold Property
Ras Al Khaimah is the second Emirate to get into the freehold property scene
in the United Arab Emirates. The free-hold property, Al Hamra Village, is
located near Al Hamra Island and comprises of around 1,300 residential units. Th
units have golf, beach and mountain views from studios to luxury villas, which
have been priced from Dhs. 300,000 (US$ 82,000) to Dhs. 3 Million (US$ 820,000).
As of June 2004, 30% of the units have been sold out. The first phase is set to
be opened next year (2005) and the full project is scheduled for completion by
2007.
Ajman Freehold Property
It is permitted to purchase land in Ajman and Ajman has also joined the
freehold property scene in the UAE. The Al Naeemiya Towers projects will
comprise of 15 residential apartment buildings with around 470 units. Al
Naeemiya Towers will be located on Emirates Road close to Sharjah and each
building will have 16 floors, with four apartments on each floor. The project is
being handled by Ajman-based Properties Investment Company and is being done in
two stages.
Stage one, Al Naee-miya Towers 1, will consist of seven buildings and is set to be completed by November 2005, while stage two, Al Naeemiya Towers 2,
comprises of eight buildings and is set to be finished by August 2006. As of
August 2004, all apartments in stage one and 25% of apartments in stage 2 have
already been sold. A large two-bedroom apartment will cost Dhs. 282,000 ($US
77,000), while a three-bedroom flat will cost Dhs. 369,000 ($US 100,100). The
payment for the property ahs been structured into installments, with a large
down payment at the beginning.
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