By Staff Reporter
Dubai: Plots in Satwa – a busy residential and commercial district in Dubai and adjoining Sheikh Zayed Road – are becoming available for freehold and emerge as a popular property investment spot. It would also mean a wider re-development of the Satwa location as more parts of the city go in for makeovers that are in sync with the ‘Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan’.
Plus, ‘the area will also benefit from the sustained expansion of Sheikh Zayed Road, especially the parts leading up to the Trade Centre Roundabout’, said Saad Hussain, CEO of Alaia Developments, who recently bought a plot in Satwa for Dh30 million and is launching a freehold mid-rise there.
“Not just longer term stays, a re-developed Satwa could also become a new hub for short-stay lettings and at rates much lower than what it would be in Downtown or Dubai Marina.”
Two decades ago, Dubai’s master-developers had come up with plans to revitalize the Satwa district, but the 2008 global financial crisis intervened. When the Dubai property market went back into boom phase, projects such as the City Walk and expansion of Al Wasl neighbourhood became prime objectives.
Also, there were more eye-catching tower launches happening on Sheikh Zayed Road locations, including, just recently, that of the ‘Burj Azizi’, a skyscraper intent on being among the world’s tallest. This is from Azizi Developments and the first major contracts are to be awarded shortly.
When it comes to Satwa, ‘it’s recently that plots available were reclassified from long-term leasehold to freehold status,” said Hussain. “Earlier there was the possibility of only just one title deed. Under the new rules, a developer could create a freehold project and sell those units under multiple title deeds.
“That’s going to be a major boost for Satwa projects. The area itself is now coming up as ‘Jumeirah Garden City’.”
The Alaia project will be a G+10-storey, with 56 units and studios process from Dh1.15 million and one-bedroom apartments from Dh1.8 million. On a per square foot (psf) basis, it works out to between Dh2,100-Dh2,200. Project completion would take about 18 months.
Any re-development spree in the Satwa locality opens up another mid-market residential investment destination in Dubai.
“That’s going to be a major boost for Satwa projects. The area itself is now coming up as ‘Jumeirah Garden City’,” says Hussain.
“That’s going to be a major boost for Satwa projects. The area itself is now coming up as ‘Jumeirah Garden City’,” says Hussain.
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More changes afoot on SZR
Meanwhile, Dubai Land Department recently opened up more possibilities within SZR itself, recently announcing that private property owners from the Trade Centre Roundabout to the Water Canal can convert their ownership status to freehold, which makes these properties available for ownership by all nationalities. In all, 128 plots on SZR are eligible for this conversion.
In particular, this would provide a major boost for Dubai’s office real estate, according to a new report from Reidin-GCP. The ‘Trade Center (area) currently comprises nearly one-tenth of all completed office gross leasable area in Dubai,” the report adds. “The newly announced changes in the law that allow property owners on Sheikh Zayed Road to convert their ownership to freehold status affects a significant portion of Dubai’s office market.
“It is easy to see why policy initiatives that aim to increase property value and rent prices have been prioritized, as prices took a significant nosedive after 2008 and have failed to return to their pre-2009 levels.”
According to Reidin-GCP estimates, top-of-the-line Grade A offices on SZR would currently command over Dh400 a square foot. But there are few vacancies available in most of these office towers, with tenants snapping up any that’s available at the first opportunity itself.
“The new ownership law changes – in tandem with the new Smart Rental Index – could have major implications for Trade Center area as well as Dubai’s overall office market,” the Reidin-GCP report notes.
“The Dubai Land Department has publicly stated that the aim behind the changes in ownership laws (for SZR) was to enhance property values and attract new investment – and it is not too difficult to see the channels by which these changes can take place.”
Source; Gulf News
