Bloom CEO plans to double number of its UAE homes

Bloom Holding

• Abu Dhabi developer’s portfolio includes homes, school and hotels
• Global expansion plans follow school joint venture project in Egypt
• Bloom Living community in UAE capital has 4,500 new residences

The CEO of Bloom Holding expects Abu Dhabi’s property market to continue to grow this year as the company progresses plans to double the number of homes it builds in the UAE. 

Although in the shadow of the double-digit growth of its neighbour Dubai, average prices in the UAE capital rose by up to 3 percent last year and Carlos Wakim said he expects the market to “remain strong and see growth” during 2023.

Wakim, who joined Bloom from Amaala, a Public Investment Fund initiative in Saudi Arabia and who also counts Emaar among previous employers, told AGBI: “With a broader range of projects being launched by developers, we could see a more diversified real estate market within the capital.

“We believe fully integrated communities are the future. Our focus is on communities that go far beyond providing a nice place to live.”

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His comments follow recent CBRE research which showed that during the last quarter of 2022, total real estate transaction volumes in Abu Dhabi increased by 15 percent compared to the same period in 2021. 

Wakim said Bloom, which has interests in the hospitality and education sectors, is also looking at opportunities in overseas markets but declined to give further details.

“As can be seen through our joint venture with New Era Education and New Giza Real Estate Development to launch an international school in Egypt, we are always looking to expand where an opportunity arises. We certainly have some exciting global expansion plans that we will reveal in due course,” he added.

Earlier this month Bloom announced the appointment of Emirates Link Maltauro as the main contractor to carry out the construction works for Cordoba, phase one of its fully integrated residential community, Bloom Living.

“We are positive that Bloom Living will be one of the most sought after communities in the capital,” he said.

Bloom Living has been designated as an investment zone allowing buyers of all nationalities to purchase residential units in the development.

Scheduled for completion in the fourth quarter of 2024, Cordoba, the first phase of the AED9 billion ($2.5 billion) community, was launched last March and sold out within four hours. Toledo, the second phase, is scheduled to be completed in mid-2025.  

Built over an area of 2.2 million square metres (sq m) close to Abu Dhabi International Airport, Bloom Living features more than 4,500 homes. The project is part of plans to double the number of residential properties in the UAE to 10,000, with 5,000 units currently in the pipeline.

According to JLL, about 6,000 homes were built in Abu Dhabi last year, bringing the total residential stock to 279,000 units.

Wakim described 2022 as a “great year” and said the company witnessed “high demand” from both local and international investors, with more than 70 percent of Bloom Living investors being UAE nationals. 

“We have also witnessed returning and loyal customers who invested in more than one of our previously launched premium projects, and they returned recently to purchase a property within Bloom Living,” he added.

“The encouraging sales to date is a testament to our approach of offering a community that sets a benchmark in mixed-use luxury.”

He is also seeking more opportunities to launch premium real estate projects in Dubai.

“We witnessed great demand for our units within Bloom Heights and Bloom Towers in Dubai,” Wakim said.

“Both projects reinforce our dedication to meeting the market demand for premium residential real estate.” 

Together, more than 1,600 homes are included in both projects in Jumeirah Village Circle in Dubai.

Wakim said there are also growth prospects in the hospitality and education markets.

“We support the development of future generations through our education partnerships with best-in-class international schools and by serving the local community through Abu Dhabi’s Charter Schools programme,” he said.

“In our education portfolio, we have 13 schools, and one nursery with over 16,000 students.”

Last year the company expanded its education portfolio through the joint venture to launch an international school in Egypt. 

“We are looking forward to further building on the success we achieved in 2022,” Wakim said. “And we will be announcing more exciting expansion plans across these sectors during the course of 2023.”