Damac boss expects stable 2018

The head of Dubai-based Damac Properties described the decline in rental rates of residential units across the UAE as a healthy correction and said he expects the property market to be stable in 2018. Hussain Sajwani, founder and chairman of Damac, said he does not think there is too much oversupply in the market, and that he doesn’t expect rental rates to drop much further in 2018.

“I see the property market in 2018 stable. I don’t see any major surprise up or down,” he told reporters on Tuesday.

“There has been a slight drop in rents, which I think is healthy and not bad because rents went up between 2013 and 2016 quite a lot and now it’s stabilising, with few percentages up and down. I think that’s very healthy …”

His comments come amid a slowdown in the UAE’s property market, with a continued increase in supply and weaker demand. According to data from Reidin, a real estate information provider, rental rates in Abu Dhabi and Dubai in 2017 fell 12 per cent and 6.4 per cent year-on-year respectively.

Consultancy JLL expects rental rates to continue adjusting downwards in 2018 as supply growth outpaces potential demand.

Speaking on the sidelines of the Global Leaders Forum, Damac’s Sajwani also discussed the developer’s growth plans, saying the company is eyeing some opportunities in Europe and possibly in the US. Damac operates the only Trump-branded golf club in the Middle East.

Sajwani said Damac is especially looking at Germany (namely Berlin, Frankfurt, and Munich) where it is assessing opportunities, and the east coast in the US. There, it is mainly looking at high-end residential properties and mixed use developments.