Indians in UAE: Rent or buy? Poll reveals big Dubai property moves

The majority of Indians living in Dubai are planning to buy an apartment rather than a villa or townhouse, reveals a new survey.

Around 60.80 per cent of Indians surveyed have been searching to buy a house in the past three months, out of which 82.86 per cent are interested in buying apartments, states Bayut.com, an online property portal.

Among the sought-after localities are Dubai Marina, Downtown Dubai and Jumeirah Lake Towers (JLT), it adds.

Only 13.71 per cent of Indians showed an interest in buying villas, while for townhouses the search was limited to 1.71 per cent.

Dubailand, the Springs and the Meadows are among the favourite communities.

Moreover, the survey disclosed that 39.20 per cent of Indians living in the country were seeking to rent in the past three months with apartments being the most desirable.

Dubai Marina, JLT and International City are the favourite dwelling communities.

Indians have invested Dh44 billion in Dubai’s real estate market in the last three years, including Dh18 billion in 2014, according to Dubai Land Department data collated by Emirates 24|7.

This website reported earlier that the emirate’s property market was likely to be a beneficiary of the Reserve Bank of India’s move to increase the amount Indians can invest or spend abroad in foreign exchange without seeking its permission.

Read: Dh44bn in 3 years: Why more Indians will buy property in Dubai

Dubai has always been a favourite property investment for Indians because of its location, tax-free regime, high rental yields and capital appreciation.

“If you compare cost of a property in South Mumbai against Dubai, it is very costly… someone could buy a villa in a good location in the emirate and earn a ‘tax-free’ return of six to eight per cent,” S Kumar, who owns a two-bedroom apartment in Dubai Marina, had told this website.

UK-based Knight Frank’s Wealth Report 2015 states that $1 million (Dh3.67 million) can buy 145 square metres of prime property in Dubai and only 96 square metres in Mumbai.

Read: How much space will $1m buy you in Dubai or New York?

Real estate consultancies Knight Frank and JLL have forecast prime properties in Dubai to fall between 5 and 10 per cent during 2015.

“The market is currently witnessing a slowdown and with further correction likely, prices would be good enough for making an investment,” Kumar added.

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