GrapeShisha - Information & Insight on the UAE

While searching for rent information in Dubai I came across a very interesting web site (Grapeshisha) that has a very informative spreadhseet about rent information for people considering staying in the UAE for a period of time. The spreadsheet gives a general indication of what rentals in certain areas would cost but it does not account for furnished accommodation or short term leases. To view the spreadsheet, click here and scroll all the way down until you see the excel file attachment.

Rental Costs - How much does renting cost in Dubai?

Rental costs vary enormously for villas of different sizes, some with swimming pools, others without, and between old and new apartment blocks, in good, bad and indifferent locations. With plenty of new property being built, supply usually keeps pace with demand, and many Arabs are keen to rent property to expatriates, as it provides them with a regular, reliable income. Average monthly rents for good-quality unfurnished accommodation are shown below. Read More..

Comparing Dubai and UK house prices

One way of telling whether prices are high or low is to compare different markets. So what does an overview of Dubai and UK property tell us about valuations?

Take a typical South-West England market town like Salisbury and compare the housing market to Dubai. In Salisbury you can rent a substantial family home for $2,900 a month. A similar five-bedroom villa in Dubai might be $3,100 per month. So the UK just about wins on rental costs. Read More..

Rental costs are the key reason to buy in Dubai

Soaring rental costs this year have encouraged more expatriates to buy in Dubai. With the total cost of buying a house on a mortgage now lower than renting, is this a compelling argument? It depends on how long you intend to stay and what happens to the local real estate market. Let us take a concrete example here, and homes in the Meadows are made of the stuff.

Say you buy a typical five-bed villa for $700,000 and take-up an 80% interest-only mortgage at 6% over 15 years, this gives you a monthly mortgage repayment of roughly $2,500, plus you will have $165 in service charge and municipal tax of around $160, making a total of $2,825. Read More..

5% Dubai Municipality Fee if you rent and/or own property in Dubai

Ok, so here is the inside scoop about the DM (Dubai Municipality) 5% property tax (a.k.a. Housing Fee). If you rented a property after January 1st 2005 chances are you had to visit DEWA (Dubai Electricity and Water Authority) to get connected for water and electricity. Once you make that trip your residential contract gets "captured" in both the Dubai Municipality as well as DEWA systems and you will start getting your 5% of the residential contract value on a monthly basis as part of your DEWA bill. This charge will be displayed on the bill in a separate column titled "Housing Fees". Now, if you have not moved out from your apartment before January 1st, 2005 then DON'T because presently you should not be paying any housing fee but once you move out and into a new residence you will start receiving the fee on a monthly basis.

However, if you own a property here in Dubai then your housing fee is calculated as 5% of the 10% of your property market value. For example, if you bought a 2,000,000 Dirham property then 10% of that is 200,000 Dirhams and 5% is 10,000 Dirhams as a housing fee paid in 12 month period.

Here are additional links about the housing fee:

High time to pay housing fee
Housing fees to be paid with utility bills
Housing fee 'is a big burden'

So where is the property market heading?

Following the scary hikes of 2005, residential rental and price increases may have to stabilise to keep expatriates on board the Dubai express. Ask Dubai residents about their concerns for 2007 and you may hear unease over North Korea's nuclear capabilities, Iraq's continuing descent into chaos or the volatility of the global economy.

But closer to home the most pressing concern is whether the explosive rental increases which characterised the 2006 property market will be repeated next year. Read more..

Rent Comparison for 1, 2 and 3 Bedrooms (Dubai)

This is a recent comparison for rent values in various areas in Dubai. Information found in a recent article in the Emiratestodayonline newspaper.


1 UAE Dirham = 0.27232 US Dollar
1 US Dollar = 3.67216 UAE Dirham

Dubai Location Indicator Map

Great map tool to find out where the various landmarks, communities and development projects are located in Dubai. Try the Map courtesy of ASTECO.

Dubai in 2009

This is a short video about Dubai and how it will look like in 2009.

Project Dubai

Project Dubai is a great web site to search for Rentals in Dubai. I have used it recently to find an apartment for a friend of mine who just arrived in Dubai. Project company provides many services including: Property Finder's Guide Magazine, Personal Property Listings, Interactive Tour of Dubai and up to date listings (individual and Real Estate company listings) of properties.

GoWealthy Property Portal

This is another great web site for information on renting, selling and buying properties in Dubai. Gowealthy.com is a global lifestyle portal, providing comprehensive information on international real estate and freehold properties in Dubai.

One bedroom apartments record highest rental increase

One-bedroom apartments in the UAE have recorded the highest increase in residential rents, driven mainly by heavy demand from single expatriates migrating to the country.

This was the conclusion of the annual research carried out by Dubai-based property services company, Asteco. The report shows that one-bedroom apartments in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah saw an average increase in annual rental prices of 29 per cent, 33 per cent and 40 per cent respectively in comparison to last year.

Asteco’s research team compared the 2006 second quarter residential rental prices of one, two and three-bedroom apartments in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah over a 12-month period.

“The majority of the working population in Dubai have been compelled to move to Sharjah due to the unavailability of apartments and high rents in Dubai. This is one of the main reasons why demand for apartments in Sharjah has risen so much, subsequently pushing up rent prices,” said John Allen, Director Consultation, Research and Valuations, Asteco.

Sharjah’s Al Rolla area recorded the highest increase in one bedroom rents from AED18,000 in 2005 to AED32,000 this year – a jump of approximately 78 per cent.

This year, the highest annual rental increase for one, two and three-bedroom apartments was reported in Sharjah with an average increase of 35 per cent, followed by Abu Dhabi and Dubai at 29 per cent and 25 per cent respectively.

Areas in Dubai commanding the highest annual rent include the much sought after Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai Marina and The Greens. The average rent for a three-bedroom pad on Sheikh Zayed Road shot up from AED120,000 last year to AED170,000 today, while two bedroom rents in Dubai Marina shot up an average of AED23,000.

The Greens recorded the highest increase in rents for two and three-bedroom apartments with rents at around AED125,000 and AED145,000 – a 74 per cent and 53 per cent increase over last year’s prices respectively.

Allen added: “More than 280,000 residential units are expected to come up by 2009. This will definitely meet increasing demand and help stabilise rental prices in the UAE.”

Projects such as Discovery Gardens, Green Community, The Views, International City, Jumeirah Lake Towers and Dubai Festival City will definitely help ease the pressure, added Allen.

In Abu Dhabi, prime locations include the Corniche and Hamdan Street with prevailing rents of AED80,000 for a two-bed and AED150,000 for a three-bedroom apartment. Popular areas in Sharjah include Al Nahda and Majaz areas while Al Khan recorded the lowest residential rent increase – approximately 5 per cent.

Rent cap rule 'will remain until the end of this year

Dubai's 15 per cent rent cap rule will be applicable until December 31 this year, said a senior official.

The rent cap condition [which states ] landlords cannot increase rents of residential and commercial units by more than 15 per cent will be valid until end of this year," said Mohammad Al Shaikh, General Secretary of the Dubai Rent Committee. He said the committee so far has no instructions whether the same rent increase restrictions would continue after the expiry of the given time period.

We are just an implementing body and have to ensure that landlords and real estate agencies are following the orders," he said.

He denied reports that rent cap would be implemented all over the UAE. "We can only talk about Dubai and as far as I know the 15 per cent rent cap rule is for Dubai only and it will end on December 31. I don't know what will happen next," he said.

His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, ordered on November 11 last year that rents should not be increased by more than 15 per cent of the annual rent until the end of 2006.
He said there was no significant increase in the number of cases regarding rent disputes.

Landlords know about the rule and they don't tend to violate this," said Al Shaikh.

But if both the landlord and tenant agree on rent increase, we can't do anything about it. However, if a tenant does not agree, he should file a case with the rent committee because he cannot be forced to sign such a contract," he said.

Al Shaikh also clarified that 15 per cent increase is the maximum limit. "Even if a tenant does not agree on this increase and he thinks that it is unjustified, he can file a case with the rent committee," he said.

Whenever a tenant comes to us to complain about a rent increase, we tell him to discuss the case with the landlord and file the case if he does not agree," Al Shaikh said.
A complainant has to pay 3.5 per cent of his annual rent as fee to the committee. If a tenant wins the case the fee is adjusted with the rent.

Tenants 'have the right to complain'

Fifteen per cent is the maximum rent increase permitted. If a tenant does not agree even on the 15 per cent increase, he can contact the rent committee and file a formal complaint.
The committee will send its team to visit the building and then determine whether the 15 per cent increase is justified or not. The official said tenants should not fear landlords because their rights are well protected.

No landlord can evict tenants without any solid reason which is non-payment of rent or other complaint. Even for eviction, the landlord has to file a case with the rent committee to decide whether he is justified," said Mohammad Al Shaikh, General Secretary of the Dubai Rent Committee. Residents can call 04-223 2323 to complain against rent hikes.