Dubai, aligned with the rest of the World, has seen some major changes in the past few weeks. As previously reported we expected the property market to remain steady and have a slight decline in prices due to the supply. In a short space of time the way we conduct our daily lives has changed.
That being said we all need a roof over our heads and we are starting to see progress, especially in the past few days with the release of an ‘easing of restrictions’ document by the Government. If all goes well, we should get back to our new norm sooner rather than later.
Back in June last year I wrote a report on the tenant ‘migration’ characteristics in the Emirate https://theagentdubai.com/2019/06/19/tenant-migration-dubai/ with more data now available, along with new communities being completed, I thought it would be a good time to get some clarity on which direction the market is moving in.
From the start of a Tenant’s journey:
Tenant Searches – data from datafinder.ae
The most popular top ten searched areas, March 2020 – Dubai Marina 10.6%, Downtown Dubai 5.9%, Palm Jumeirah 5.5%, Jumeriah Village Circle 4.8%, Business Bay 4.3%, Dubai Hills Estate 3.4%, Jumeirah Lake Towers 3.3%, Jumeirah 2.5%, Al Barsha 2.5% and in 10th place, Jumeirah Beach Residence with 2.2% of searches.
Top Searched Keywords – datafinder.ae
1 – upgraded, 2 – brand new, 3 – new, 4 – chiller free, 5 – pool, 6 – garden, 7 – sea view, 8 – furnished, 9 – balcony and 10 – private pool.
Numbers 5 and 6 are very interesting, neither showed in the top 10 keywords in Jan or Feb of 2020 and replaced words such as, studio, metro and beach. This is clearly a result of the locked down period.
Tenant Move In Requests by Area – DEWA data from propertymonitor.ae
February and the first part of March 2020 – net migration 33,257
Dubai Marina/JBR/Bluewater Island – 1,493, Dubai Silicon Oasis – 1,435, International City – 1,104, IMPZ/Jumeirah Golf Estates – 1,034 – MBRC/Dubai Hills – 967, JVC – 939, Downtown – 903, Town Square – 813, Arabian Ranches/Villa – 699, JLT/Jumeirah Islands/Jumeirah Park – 656, Business Bay – 534, Damac Hills (Akoya/Mudon) – 371, Palm Jumeirah – 304, Springs/Meadows/Emirates Hills – 202, City Walk – 136, Arabian Ranches 1 – 111, Akoya Oxygen – 106
PropTech
Across global property markets, buyers and tenants have turned to technology in the past weeks to search for their new home. It has been widely reported that properties advertised with 360 viewing options have got the most views leading to inquires. The property industry has always been slow to catch up with technology, just 12 years ago I was working with flip card boxes with names of buyers, sellers, tenants and landlords in London.
I cannot stress enough that now is the time to seriously consider how you market your own properties, not just by choosing the right company with the correct technology, but also the payment options you offer. Dubai is still conducting business in a ‘demand’ market (1,2,4 payments, PDC etc) even though Dubai has had a healthy supply for a good few years now.
Rather than speculate, and give my own opinion, I decided to conduct a survey this month through multiple Dubai community groups online. The aim was to find out what tenants are planning and whether they are willing to renew etc. The results so far are very positive, very few said that they were going to leave and the ones that did, said they would upgrade due to the other areas becoming more affordable. Nearly all of the ‘tenants’ who are currently renting a room in a house share would prefer to live in their own property if they could pay monthly. 85% of the 250 tenants surveyed so far, say they would prefer to pay by direct debit and not by cheques. I will gather more opinion’s and share the full results in my next blog.
I hope this email has reached you and your family well during these unprecedented times, stay safe, and for those celebrating, Ramadan Kareem.
Laura Victoria Adams