Mideast market likely to reach pre-Covid levels by 2023

The Covid-19 pandemic has caused significant disruption across all real estate sectors in 2020 with owners and occupiers having to make necessary adjustments to business operations in response to the statutory restrictions on capacity and mobility, according to Deloitte, a leading financial advisory firm.

 It may not be until 2023, or possibly later, that the market recovers to touch the 2019 levels, states Deloitte in its seventh annual Middle East Real Estate Predictions 2021 report which examines the performance of Dubai’s real estate market in 2020 and forecasts the changes in markets in 2021.

 Demand for secondary market residential properties has outpaced transaction volumes for off-plan units, whilst cash transactions still dominate, says the expert.

 Meanwhile, developers are offering discounts, fee waivers and rent-to-own incentives in an attempt to attract buyers. Tenants remain in the driving seat as rent declines for residential properties continue into 2021, it adds.

 On the office sector, Deloitte says the office space usage has faced disruption as remote working models were necessitated by the Covid-19 pandemic.

 The office of the future will blend the virtual and physical environments to enhance employee, contractor and key stakeholder engagement through collaboration tools and dynamic work locations, states the expert.

On the retail sector, Deloitte says multi-channel retail formats that incorporate online shopping preferences, alongside F&B concepts and experiential retail in bricks and mortar offerings are expected to drive consumer preferences in the medium term.

Azizi’s Shaista gets completion certificate

Azizi Developments has received the completion certificate from the Department of Planning and Development (Trakhees) for its residential project, Shaista, located in Dubai’s new growth corridor, Al Furjan. The regulatory arm of Dubai’s Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation (PCFC), Trakhees is responsible for licensing and regulating businesses in special development zones and areas.

Spread across its 12 residential floors, Shaista is home to 284 units – comprising 137 studios, 124 one- and 15 two-bedroom apartments, eight penthouses, and 7,100 sq ft of retail space.

Chief Development Officer Mohamed Ragheb Hussein said: “We are delighted to have completed Shaista in the first quarter of the year, with many handovers to follow in the coming weeks and months.We are looking forward to completing a total of 46 projects this year, comprising over 10,000 units and more than 11.2 million sq ft of built-up area.”

“Shaista caters to both end-users who wish to move from renting to a more lucrative, elevated owned-home lifestyle as well as to investors who appreciate Al Furjan’s growing rental yields.”

Address Beach Resort wins CTBUH award

Killa Design, an architecture design firm dedicated to creating innovative buildings, says it has won the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) 2021 Award of Excellence for Best Tall Building 300 m – 399 m.

The Address Beach Resort is a mixed-use twin 77-storey tower accommodating a 217-key five-star hotel, 478 residential apartments as well as 444 serviced branded apartments.

Opened at the beginning of 2021, it contains the highest infinity pool and highest occupied connected Skybridge in the world, offering magnificent views of Palm Jumeirah.

Killa Design says the tower’s pure form is an ellipse in plan with a void in the centre that serves to increase daylight penetration and views to all apartments.

The towers are also on an East-West orientation that reduces the solar heat gain by up to 40 per cent through passive, sustainable design, it adds.

Samana Developers starts delivery of Dubailand units

UAE-based Samana Developers says it has begun handover of units within its AED75-million ($20.4 million) Samana Greens at Arjan in Dubai.

Located near the Dubai Miracle Garden in Arjan, the four-storey Samana Greens offers a built-up area of 119,580 sq ft and houses 122 units comprising studios, one- and two-bedroom apartments, along with six retail spaces at the ground level. Samana was awarded the building completion certificate in January by Dubai Development Authority.

Samana managed to fast-track the construction by introducing double shift of workers, keeping an eye on its workers’ health condition, project timelines and remote monitoring through CCTV cameras, he explains.

Samana earlier announced that at the back of record high sales revenues in 2020 and a positive outlook for 2021, it has increased the headcount by 55 per cent for 2021 to double up the sales revenue.The company plans to launch three new residential projects in Dubai in 2021.