Rise in holiday home and short-term rentals prompts new ventures in Dubai

• Dubai Asset Management enters partnership with HiGuests to take advantage of favourable market conditions
• Report reveals holiday homes account for 2% of total households in Dubai
• Growth in sector estimated for Expo and post-Expo periods until 2025

HiGuests, a Dubai-based start-up specialising in managing short-term property rentals has partnered with one of the city’s most prominent property managers. Dubai Asset Management, which owns and manages one of the city’s largest portfolios of residential communities, announced the new venture to take advantage of the rise in short-term rentals across the emirate.

HiGuests currently manages more than 200 properties in prime locations of Dubai, such as Dubai Marina, Downtown Dubai, Palm Jumeirah and DIFC. It also operates in international locations, including Barcelona and Mumbai, with growing short-term rental markets. Meanwhile, Dubai Asset Management owns and manages a portfolio of residential units across 10 communities, ranging from staff accommodation to upscale villa communities.

According to new research, holiday homes in Dubai account for almost 2% of the total number of households. This is the highest proportion of holiday homes to residential properties for comparable global hub cities. The emirate has also seen an uptick in the number of holiday home rentals, due to new regulations and government initiatives to encourage property ownership, and attractive offers giving buyers more flexibility and choice.

Dubai expects to welcome over 17 million international visitors to Expo 2020. By 2025, the target is 25 million visitors, which will significantly raise demand for short-term rentals, according to HiGuests and Dubai Asset Management.

Arif Mubarak, CEO of Dubai Asset Management, said: “The partnership with HiGuests allows us to enhance our offering through meeting today’s short-term rental customers’ needs – a convenient stay in a contemporary high-quality property.”

Oriol Plana Masiques, co-founder and chief happiness officer of HiGuests, added: “With the tourism market on a continued upswing, we are confident that this collaboration will support our efforts to provide visitors with comfortable holiday homestays and enhance their experience of living in a busy metropolis.”

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