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Real Estate

Real estate and property news from the Middle East. All the important stories, exclusive interviews, plus authoritative opinion and analysis

Architecture, Building, House

Dubai’s Emaar unveils $26bn projects as market rebounds

Dubai’s largest developer, Emaar Properties, has unveiled two new mega projects with a development cost of AED96 billion ($26.14 billion), driven by a rebound in the emirate’s real estate sector. The projects – The Heights Country Club and Grand Club Resort – will target the high-end residential and hospitality segments, the developer said in a […]

A market worker in Cairo stands under a pro-President Sisi banner. The ADQ deal has raised hopes that Egypt's economy can rebuild

Abu Dhabi’s $35bn throws Egypt a liquidity lifeline

A $35 billion investment by Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ to develop a resort on Egypt’s north coast could cover the country’s liquidity needs for the next three to four years, analysts have said. Mostafa Madbouly, the Egyptian prime minister, said on Saturday he had signed an agreement with ADQ to develop a site […]

Gulf bidders want to develop land for tourist resorts in the Ras Ghamila area of Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt

Saudi and Qatari funds bid for new Egyptian project

Consortiums backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and Qatar Investment Authority are among several Gulf bidders seeking to develop land in the Ras Ghamila area in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, a local Egyptian media outlet reported. The winning consortium will be announced within two months after evaluating the submitted offers, Daily News Egypt reported, citing […]

Ras Al Khaima casino

Casino plan tempts Dubai’s Danube to buy plots in RAK

Danube Properties, a Dubai-based real estate developer, is pursuing land deals in Ras Al Khaimah as the emirate’s real estate market heats up, driven by the planned arrival of a casino. Prices for one-bedroom apartments are now matching or even exceeding those in Downtown Dubai, an upmarket part of the UAE’s commercial capital, after RAK’s […]

Union properties land sales

Union Properties sells $136m of land to ‘foster growth’

Dubai developer Union Properties has sold more than AED500 million ($136 million) worth of land as it continues to address levels of debt. It is also looking at further offers on assets worth more than AED1.2 billion ($326 million), according to a filing on Dubai Financial Market on Monday, although no locations have been revealed. […]

Tawoos will develop two towers as part of the Al Khuwair Downtown Project that is intended to transform Muscat

Omani contractor signs tower deal for billion-dollar project 

Omani conglomerate Tawoos Group has signed a deal to build two mixed-use towers within the sultanate’s billion-dollar Al Khuwair Downtown Project. The project in the Muscat governorate has raised $1.3 billion in investments, according to a report from the Oman Observer, and covers an area of 3.6 million square metres. Tawoos Group will be responsible […]

A worker looks out at Riyadh from a tower under construction in the city

PIF explores buying stake in Saudi Binladin Group

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is planning to acquire a stake in Saudi Binladin Group, one of the biggest construction groups in the kingdom, a media report said.  The sovereign wealth fund is working with US investment bank Morgan Stanley on a potential deal, Bloomberg reported, citing people aware of the matter.  The $700 […]

UAE new cairo

UAE developer to build $2bn project in Egypt’s New Cairo

Egypt’s New Urban Communities Authority and the UAE’s UDC Real Estate Development Company have signed a contract to develop an EGP60 billion ($1.9 billion) urban development project in New Cairo. Named The Crest, the development in the Hadayek Al-Andalus area will be built on a plot spanning 665,000 sq m. It will comprise residential, commercial […]

A view of the financial district in Bahrain's capital Manama. The kingdom's real estate remains more affordable than other Gulf states

Bahrain and UAE sign $4bn real estate deal

A UAE property investment and development company has signed a $4 billion deal to develop real estate across Bahrain. Abu Dhabi’s Eagle Hills International has finalised a joint cooperation agreement to set up Binaa Al-Bahrain, with a focus on residential, commercial and entertainment projects across the kingdom. The new company will work with Edamah, the […]

ultra-luxury property Palm Jumeirah

Lottoland founder bets on Dubai’s ultra-luxury property market

The founder of a global lottery gambling platform has bet $136 million on the launch of his latest venture, an ultra-luxury property development company initially focused on Dubai’s Palm Jumeirah. David von Rosen, who set up Lottoland in 2013, said he has now invested heavily in 25 Degrees, named after Dubai’s latitude, alongside a Dubai-based […]

UP real estate Union Properties Dubai scene Fredrick Öhlander Unsplash

UP to invest $1bn in real estate projects as profits rise

Union Properties (UP), a previously troubled Dubai real estate developer, has said it plans to spend AED5 billion ($1 billion) on new projects, after its financial results rebounded last year. Net profit for 2023 increased by 2,600 percent year on year to hit AED811 million, according to a bourse filing on Thursday. UP, best known […]

Donald Trump draws crowds on the campaign trail in Conway, South Carolina; meanwhile his brand is a bonus in the Gulf

Trump still has ‘big pull’ for $2m branded villas in Oman

Donald Trump may be facing criminal investigations in the US, but the 45th president’s brand continues to wield substantial influence in the Gulf. Last week there were more than 100 expressions of interest in a launch of 20 Trump-branded villas in Oman, within 24 hours, according to the project’s developer. “Trump as a brand still […]

Empower’s profit falls 5% despite record revenue

Empower, Dubai’s, and the world’s, largest district cooling company, reported a net profit of AED960 million ($261.37 million) for 2023, down five percent from AED1 billion in 2022. Revenue was at a record high of AED3 billion, rising 8.7 percent year on year, the company said in a statement to the Dubai bourse on Monday. […]

Investcorp co-CEO Rishi Kapoor. The Bahrain-based company says it is particularly interested in the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand

Investcorp lines up diverse strategies for east and west 

Multibillion-dollar asset manager Investcorp Capital is planning listing activity from its companies in the east in the next six months, but sees more profit in mergers and acquisitions in the west. The Bahrain-based company, which was listed on the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange in November, on Monday reported income of $34 million for the first […]

Aldar, which has its headquarters in Abu Dhabi, has expansion plans in Dubai and beyond

Abu Dhabi’s Aldar has big plans for projects in Dubai

Aldar Properties, Abu Dhabi’s largest developer, plans to launch more projects in neighbouring Dubai this year. Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Aldar’s chief finance and sustainability officer Faisal Falaknaz said the Abu Dhabi-listed developer is on track to launch its second master plan in Dubai in the second quarter of this year. The […]

Haven is the first of three new residential communities to be developed in Dubai as part of a joint venture between Aldar and Dubai Holding

Aldar profit climbs 40% as sales hit $7.6bn in 2023

Aldar Properties, Abu Dhabi’s largest developer, said net profit rose 40 percent year on year to AED4.4 billion ($1.2 billion) in 2023 as annual revenue jumped 26 percent to AED14.2 billion. Full-year property sales hit a record AED27.9 billion ($7.60 billion), with Q4 2023 reaching an all-time of AED8.5 billion, the developer said in a […]

shared rental Dubai apartment

Hope at last for Dubai expats seeking a shared rental home

Shared rental accommodation for expats in Dubai, something previously difficult to offer because of rules against subletting, is being developed by a company called Co-Living Legends, working with developers and landlords. Co-Living Legends was set up in 2021 to help female expats find house-share rental options in Dubai.  House sharing is well established in markets […]

Emaar Development waterfront high-rises

Emaar Development profit rises 74% to $1.8bn in 2023

Emaar Development, a wholly owned subsidiary of Dubai’s Emaar Properties, reported that net profit surged 74 percent year on year to AED6.6 billion ($1.8 billion) last year, propelled by 27 new project launches across Dubai. Property sales increased 22 percent year on year to AED37.4 billion. The developer’s sales backlog stands at AED57.1 billion, which […]

Aldar awards $6bn contracts for Abu Dhabi projects

Abu Dhabi’s largest-listed property developer Aldar awarded 49 contracts worth AED22 billion ($5.99 billion) across various projects in 2023. The contracts comprise infrastructure, residential, commercial, and mixed-use developments, the UAE state-run Wam news agency reported, citing a statement from Aldar Properties. The contracts were awarded to 36 UAE-based companies. Nearly 50 percent or AED10.5 billion […]

Total transactions in Dubai reached a new high of 1.6 million, rising 16.9 percent annually, across various real estate activities

Dubai real estate deals rise to $173bn in 2023

Dubai recorded 166,400 real estate transactions valued at AED634 billion ($172.61 billion) in 2023, according to official Dubai Land Department (DLD) data. Real estate investments grew 55 percent year on year to AED412 billion, propelled by 113,655 investors, including 71,002 new entrants, marking a 20 percent rise year on year, the UAE state-run Wam news […]

Dubai real estate bubble

Dubai real estate ‘hot’ but no bubble fears, say experts

Dubai’s real estate market is running “a bit hot”, but it is not heading towards a bubble or another catastrophic crash, experts say. Residential sales prices in the emirate increased 20 percent in 2023, while city-wide rents grew 9 percent higher, according to the latest research from Cushman & Wakefield Core. Although Dubai remains more […]

Aldar unveils $1.4bn plan for new real estate assets

Aldar Properties will invest AED5 billion ($1.36 billion) to develop a range of commercial, retail, hospitality and logistics assets within its prime real estate projects in Abu Dhabi. The assets, which will be part of the developer’s investment portfolio, will be delivered in a phased manner between 2025 and 2027, the Abu Dhabi-listed developer said […]