Insights

Discover the latest market insights and hear our expert opinion

Value through infrastructure development: The case of Gulf ports

The rise of Gulf ports The history of seafaring throughout the Gulf is well known. The construction of the famous Arab dhow and the existence of extensive fisheries across the region in what are now the countries of the UAE, Oman and Saudi Arabia are part of a proud tradition that urban planners wish to capture. More recently, Gulf governments […]

Property valuation in Dubai: What it is and why it matters

Dubai’s real estate market is wildly popular with international buyers and residents, and interest in purchasing residential and commercial property in Dubai continues to soar. Its ultra-modern skyline, luxurious developments, and strategic global position are drawing in investors, buyers, and sellers, but what many do not realise is that understanding property valuation in Dubai is a crucial part of the […]

A tale of two markets: Capitalising on arbitrages through retrofits

The Dubai real estate market has been on a spectacular bull run with prices reaching an all-time high of AED 1,397/sqft in July, 2024. This represents an appreciation of over 78% from the market trough reached in April 2009 and, more importantly, prices are approximately 13.2% above the previous peak of September 2014. However, when diving into the granular details, […]

Natural disasters, resilience and value

The impact of natural disasters Recent adverse weather conditions in the UAE have focused attention on the impact of natural disasters on real estate. This includes impacts associated with climate change, such as flooding caused by changes in precipitation patterns and also the potential impact of rising sea levels, increasing heatwaves and regional droughts. However, the events in the UAE […]

Private equity and real estate in the gulf: Three reasons to be positive

Introduction: Why private equity matters Worldwide, private equity funds closed deals worth $124 billion in just the fourth quarter of 2023. Fully a quarter of all merger and acquisition deals last year involved private equity.[1] As concerns over inflationary headwinds, rising interest rates and general macro uncertainty diminish, markets such as the Gulf have become increasingly attractive. The prospect of […]

Dubai’s hospitality sector market performance in 2023

Setting the Stage for Growth: Demand Dubai Tourism in 2023: Recovery and Resilience Despite global conflicts and recent regional unrest, Dubai’s economy, driven by key sectors, remained steadfast in its recovery. The performance of the tourism sector reflects as much. In 2023, the city welcomed 17.15 million overnight visitors, surpassing its previous high of 16.73 million in 2019 and the […]

2024 Real estate market update

A yearly review of the Dubai real estate market, highlighting the key trends and market forecast.

A new era for real estate dawns in Oman

The context for Oman’s real estate boom Real estate as an engine for economic growth The importance of the real estate sector in any nation’s economic and social development is no secret. For years, construction has been celebrated as a pivotal economic driver, and in recent decades we have seen developed economies evolve from industrial and service-oriented development to what […]

Valuing luxury real estate in the Gulf

Understanding luxury Luxury is a concept as old as philosophy itself. It has stirred debate for centuries. From the musings of Plato to modern economic thinkers like Werner Sombart and Thorstein Veblen, interpretations of the concept of luxury may differ, but they all seem to agree that luxury is an important aspect of society. Sombart championed luxury’s central role in […]

Dubai’s hospitality sector in a post-pandemic world

A swift recovery and return to sustainable growth   What’s behind the remarkable post-pandemic performance of Dubai’s hospitality industry? Despite the curveballs thrown by COVID-19 and recent global conflicts that disrupted travel worldwide, Dubai is defying the odds and emerging as the superstar of the tourism world. In the first half of this year, a staggering 8.5 million globetrotters chose […]

Does sustainability pay? How is the Gulf integrating global best practice?

Perspectives on sustainability Architects, planners and regulators alike all favour sustainable buildings, each with good reason: to design, shape and order new developments that will benefit the planet and improve the environment. The upcoming COP28 Conference in Dubai,[1] and the prioritisation of carbon emission reductions through the circular economy as an integral part of 2023 as the Year of Sustainability,[2] […]

How effective is real estate as an inflation hedge? A perspective from the Gulf

GCC Inflation: perception and reality At the beginning of 2023, the consensus perspective is that the global economy is far from out of the inflationary woods yet. After a global average of 8.8% last year, opinions now diverge as to the curve of the downward trajectory this year, from the IMF’s global estimate in October 2022 of 6.5%1, to a […]

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