The apartment rents in Dubai fell 17 per cent on average last year owing to an increased supply of quality accommodation, thus bringing several upscale developments within  mid-income budget reach, according to property management firm Asteco.

In contrast, the villa rental rates fared better than apartments in the fourth quarter, falling by just 1 per cent over the three-month period, primarily due to the limited availability in central areas, the Dubai-based company said in its Q4 report.

It was a ‘flight to quality’ for the tenants in Dubai as an increased supply of top-class quality, affordable accommodation, particularly in the apartment sector provided the catalyst for considerable tenant movement across the emirate in Q4, the report stated.

In addition apartment rental rates declined by just 3 per cent during the same period, the lowest quarter-on-quarter fall during the year, an indication that the market is showing signs of stabilisation, the Dubai-based company said in its report.

‘The real estate market is characterised by a large supply of high quality stock at affordable rates, leading to a flight-to-quality trend currently seen across Dubai,’ commented Elaine Jones, CEO, Asteco Property Management.

‘Indeed although apartment rental rates fell last year, it was still less than the 24 per cent drop in 2009, further indication that market prices are stabilising,’ she noted.

According to the report, International City has seen the largest drop due to tenants migrating to better quality developments in more desirable locations. Overall studios experienced the lowest decline and one-bedroom apartments suffered the largest fall.

“Rents are expected to continue their downward trend in 2011, albeit at a lower rate as more supply enters the market, providing prospective tenants with even greater choice,” added Jones.

Interestingly, the villas fared better than apartments as it fell by just 1 per cent primarily due to the limited availability in central areas. Quality communities such as Palm Jumeirah and Jumeirah Islands performed better than more mature developments such as The Springs and The Meadows.

Unsurprisingly, office rental rates fell by 8 per cent in the fourth quarter 2010. DIFC set the tone by reducing their rates per sq ft from Dh370 in the first quarter of 2010 to Dh230 in Q4 (a fall of 22 per cent) in an attempt to compete more favourably with quality developments on Sheikh Zayed Road such as Rolex Tower and Sama Tower.

Continued delivery of new stock in JLT and Tecom sent rents down by 20 per cent and 12 per cent respectively. Although transaction activity has picked up due to the improving economy, continued oversupply will no doubt put further downward pressure on rental rates, the report said.

In contrast, office sales prices only declined by 6 per cent in Q4 and just 8 per cent during the whole of 2010, predominantly due to weak transaction activity. Prices will remain subdued due to a lack of investor confidence, it added.

Apartment sales prices slipped by only two per cent on average suggesting a slowdown in the rate of decline, Asteco said in its Q4 report.

Continuous delivery has seen average sales prices in Dubai drop by Dh100 to Dh850 over the past year, while prices in International City and Discovery Gardens have fallen to Dh350 and Dh450 per square foot respectively.

The sales prices on Palm Jumeirah were flat in Q4 but still command one of the highest prices at around Dh1,500 per sq ft, Jones said.

Meanwhile, the villa sales prices in Q4 were relatively stable with only the Springs experiencing a 4 per cent fall, she added.

Overall the market prices fell just 8 per cent in 2010, with downward pressure more predominant in developments with a large inventory, such as The Springs and the Arabian Ranches. Market demand continues for smaller units, driven by affordability, the report concluded.

Report – TradeArabia News Service.

Cityscape Global 2010, the flagship event of the world’s largest business-to-business real estate investment and development brand, opened for business on Monday amidst a wave of optimism from regional and international investors after a spell of positive economic indicators since the Dubai World debt restructuring was completed earlier in September.

Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, officially opened Cityscape Global at the Dubai World Trade Centre.The flagship event of the world’s largest business-to-business real estate investment and development brand is being held in Dubai for the ninth year and has evolved from Cityscape Dubai as a result of the increased international participation it has attracted.

The real estate investment and development show which has thrown the spotlight on global emerging markets, runs until Thursday at Dubai World Trade Centre.

A major consultancy firm said, meanwhile, that residential property prices in Dubai should stabilise in a couple of years, and recent positive news flows that are coming out could revive investment sentiments in the sector.

“As long as the property supply doesn’t surpass the demand too much, we should see a stabilisation of Dubai’s residential property prices within the next two to three years. As per the statistics, there are as many as 25,000 residential units scheduled to be developed in Dubai this year as well as in 2011. But it’s not certain whether all of these 25,000 units would be delivered. Although rents would continue to fall gradually, they are expected to flatten out by the end of 2011 and 2012,” Chris Waight, Associate Director, Cluttons, Dubai, told Emirates 24|7.

He said Dubai’s property market has switched from being a speculator-driven market to being an end-user market that is a good sign.

“All the sales transactions that we’re seeing tend to be towards end users who’re looking for staying in Dubai for at least 3 to 5 years. Another encouraging sign is that out of more than 100 residential projects under construction in Dubai that we monitor regularly, a majority of them were put on hold until a couple of quarters back. However, a lot of these off-plan projects are now moving forward to finish off the projects.”

However, he added Dubai’s residential property market has been through a difficult period, particularly over the last 6 months.

“The sales price index that we have launched shows a downward trend over the last two quarters in terms of rentals as well as for sales transactions for residential properties. This downturn probably was mainly due to the holy month of Ramadan, summer vacations as well as buyers adopting a wait-and-see attitude. Many of the prudent investors were in anticipation that the prices would fall further, or the mortgage rates would get cheaper,” he said.

Nevertheless, of late, a host of encouraging news flows has started pouring in that could revive investment sentiments in Dubai property market, he said.

“For instance, the mortgage firm Tamweel announcing its come back into the market is going to restore confidence in the market. If Amlak follows suit that would further compound the confidence in the market,” he said.

Further, Nakheel’s reported announcement that it’s going to issue bonds, Dubai World’s recent agreement with 99 per cent of its creditors, and sovereign bond issuance by Dubai are other positive signal for the property market in Dubai. In addition, banks have started lowering mortgage rates in Dubai and some of the leading banks are offering mortgage loans at rate as low as 5.99 per cent, he added.

Roham Marwaha, CEO, Cityscape, also pointed to the flurry of good business news throughout the emerging markets, that have boosted investor sentiment, but none more so than Dubai recently.

“Although Dubai World’s successful $25 billion loan restructuring was undoubtedly the catalyst, there has been other encouraging news, especially the $1.25 billion dual-tranche bond issued by Dubai Government just last week. The bond was four times oversubscribed and will be used towards infrastructure projects. A number of other key announcements have been made since,” added Marwaha.

Marwaha was clearly referring to the Nakheel confirmation that it had paid almost $1 billion to creditors and further news that it would restart work on a number of its stalled projects. Dubai Islamic bank also announced that it had increased its stake in mortgage lender Tamweel to 57% and declared that it would resume lending before the end of the year.

“Even today the Real Estate Regulatory Agency, announced that it would work with banks to raise up to $1.36 billion to try and finish 48 developments currently on hold. Also the news that Emirates Islamic Bank could merge with Dubai Bank and bring Amlak under the same umbrella could further boost liquidity into the market,” said Marwaha.

According to US investment guru, Tom J Barrack Jr, a keynote speaker at the Cityscape Global Real Estate Investment conference, who has invested over $45 billion in real estate, claimed that smart money is now focusing on emerging markets as many have dramatically outperformed more mature markets such as the US and Europe in recent years.

“Many developed economies are already heavily indebted in addition to running annual budget deficits, compounding their debt levels. These scenarios won’t unwind overnight, it will take time. On the other hand, developing economies are not running deficits and are not nearly so indebted, allowing their economies to grow quicker, giving higher returns,” said Barrack.

The flagship event of the world’s largest business-to-business real estate investment and development brand is being held in Dubai for the ninth year and has evolved from Cityscape Dubai as a result of the increased international participation it has attracted.

Sentiment on the exhibition floor matched that of the organisers and speakers. Fernando Fischmann – Creator and owner of Crystal Lagoons Corp, which is developing the largest lagoon in the world in Egypt commented: “Irrespective of the Dubai government bond, I’m confident that Dubai and the wider region will come back. However it is worth pointing out that the global crisis is not a problem for everyone, if as a developer you can add value. That makes a good investment.”

Report by Sunil Kumar Singh – Emirates 24 -7

Fifth Avenue is situated in the centre of the borough of Manhattan in New York City. The Avenue starts at Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village and runs in a northerly direction through the heart of Midtown along the eastern side of Central Park. It then becomes part of the boundary of the Upper East Side and ends at the Harlem River at 142nd. Street.

The Avenue has many spectacular and famous landmarks and is lined with luxury retail stores. It has some of the most expensive real estate in the United States.

A 800 square foot one bedroom condo can cost a million dollars upward, go get!

Find out more about real estate in New York.

Vancouver is a coastal city situated in British Columbia, Canada. The city has a high population density relative to other North American cities. Vancouver is characterized by high rise residential and commercial buildings. In Mercer Consultings annual “Quality of Life” survey, Vancouver was voted the 4th. best place in the world to live. Vancouver has the highest property prices in Canada and after Toronto it’s the most expensive city to live in.

Average House Prices in Canada, (September 2009) Canadian Dollars

Vancouver $611,000
Toronto $407,000
Calgary $395,000
Montreal $285,000
Halifax $234,000

Get more info on Real Estate in Canada and Worldwide.