Lucrative rentals up for grabs in Dubai

Published Tuesday, December 06, 2011

By Shuchita Kapur

Affordable leasing in the real estate sector is not just limited to places like International City, Discovery Gardens or Dubai Silicon Oasis.

Some lucrative deals are up for grabs in ‘upmarket’ places and the rents here now compete with what affordable communities were charging during the boom years.

For example, Jumeriah, a centrally located and a much sought-after place to live in the city, has some good options.

Recently, a compound of villas on Jumeriah beach road consisting of three-bedrooms, a maid's room, private elevator and breakfast bar were leased out for Dh125,000 per year.

The demand for deals like these remains high.

“We received the compound details on Monday; advertising was launched on Wednesday and Thursday; and by Saturday, all units were leased,” Tareq Gouda, Senior Residential Consultant, Head Office, Better Homes told Emirates 24|7.

However, this does not indicate a general market trend and depends very much on the landlord/developer. The better the deal, the sooner the place can be put on rent, say experts.

“The price does not indicate/reflect the market price for villas in Jumeirah; the villa was priced at Dh125,000 as it was in a back row without view and limited parking space – in addition, it was right behind the mall,” he added.

“I’ve lived in an apartment in Dubai in the past three years but I’m planning to move to Mirdiif where villas have become so affordable,” said Amesh Singh.

“The traffic is not bad and the place is much better with City Centre now being a major attraction,” he added.

For those like Singh, the list of good places in Mirdiff is rather long.

Here, the villas can be cheaper than apartments in the city.

For example, a semi-independent single story villa with three-bedrooms can be easily rented for less than Dh100,000 and sometimes are in demand by people with bigger families and limited budgets.

For those looking for a bit of exclusivity, designer options also seem within reach. One can now get a designer apartment at rates that were unheard of some years back.

For example, designer apartments at DIFC by Fendi can be leased out at a starting range of Dh73,000 (for a studio), Dh88,000 (one bedroom) and for Dh111,000 (for a two-bedroom apartment).

This comes with Fendi designed furniture worth Dh250,000, free weekly maid service for one year and payments can be made in 1 to 6 cheques.

Places like Tecom and JLT are also good options for those looking out to move from places like International City and Discovery Gardens.

The rents here are reasonable when compared to places like Dubai Marina and Greens.

“Many families have moved out of International City and JLT is a popular choice,” said a real estate agent in International City.

Business Bay is another affordable community now and considering its location - between new and old Dubai – many people have moved here, according to Rushiraj Mehta, property consultant at Legacy real estate.

“End-users are always on the hunt for good prices and location, with spacious floor plans in their property choices,” said the Better Homes expert.

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