Expats buying Dubai property: Indians Dh13bn, Britons Dh7bn, Pakistanis Dh5bn

Indians invested a whopping Dh5.2 billion in Dubai’s real estate market in the third quarter 2015, taking their total investment to Dh13bn in the first nine months.

In the first quarter 2015, Indians, who once again topped the list on non-Arab expatriate buyers, invested Dh3.04bn followed by Dh4.76bn in the second quarter, Dubai Land Department data analysed by Emirates 24|7 shows.

The third quarter, despite the slowdown in the market, saw more Indians buying property in Dubai, driven the capital appreciation and rental yields offered by the local property market to international investors.

Indians have invested Dh44bn in Dubai’s real estate market in the last three years, including Dh18bn in 2014.

The emirate’s property market has been 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.

The bank now allows Indians to buy property abroad, hold shares or debt instruments, or any other assets or purchase gifts up to limit of $250,000 (Dh917,500) per person per year.

The earlier limit under the liberalised remittance scheme (LRS) was $125,000 but in 2013 it was reduced to $75,000 as the rupee slumped. It was set back at $125,000 in June 2014.

British citizens invested Dh2.3bn in the third quarter, taking total investment to Dh7bn for the first nine month period.

Pakistanis invested Dh1.7bn in the third quarter, after having invested Dh1.392bn in the first quarter and Dh1.91bn in the second quarter.

The list of top foreign nationalities also include citizens from Canada, Russia, China, the United States, France and Afghanistan.

In total, foreigners invested over Dh46 billion in the first nine months, with 132 nationalities buying property in the emirate. Nationality wise investment amount was not given.

All the nine month investment figures were published by 'Al Bayan' newspaper.

This website had reported that the total real estate transactions in Dubai reached Dh186bn in the first nine months of 2015, with the Dubai Land Department (DLD) asserting “the market was heading towards a sustainable growth”.

“The report confirms beyond any doubt that the real estate sector in Dubai is heading towards sustainable growth.

"This can be ascertained from the continual increases from one quarter to the next, which have been a feature of the market over the last two years,” Sultan Butti bin Mejren Director-General, DLD, had said.

“Investors and developers can now have realistic expectations and can formulate effective strategies in the short- and medium-term to meet the needs of the sector.

"The reliable data in the report is far removed from fallacious information about the market that certain parties are trying to broadcast in order to achieve personal gain."

International and local property consultants have forecast previously that property prices will fall by five to 10 per cent in Dubai, with the market facing oversupply in the coming years. Developers have however ruled out any such possibility.

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