A lack of retail facilities at several of the new residential developments in Abu Dhabi has to be addressed as it is dragging down prices of property in the capital, a property consultancy warns.
This year is likely to prove challenging for the Abu Dhabi residential market as more supply comes in, with further declines in values and rents expected in most locations, Cluttons said in its latest report on the capital.
"A shortage of retail facilities at many of the new residential developments needs to be addressed, the lack of which is seen as a culprit to falling values," according to the report, released today to coincide with the start of the property exhibition Cityscape Abu Dhabi.
"We do expect to see improvements in infrastructure and amenities, however, with the announcement of several retail units due to open in Marina Square in the second quarter of 2012."
Apartment rents have dropped by up to 10 per cent over the past six months in some projects, Cluttons said. But the decline in rents has had some positive effects.
"In the first quarter of 2012 we have seen stronger interest in apartments on Abu Dhabi island, as it becomes more affordable," Cluttons said.
There has been a softening of prices of apartments in the capital in particular in the first quarter, the consultancy said.
"Apartment values have been affected the most, with Al Reem and Marina Square apartments falling 7.4 per cent and 7.3 per cent, respectively, on third-quarter 2011 prices," the report stated. "Al Raha Beach apartments have shown similar falls, down 6 per cent."
Villa prices were less affected by the increase in supply but have still experienced declines.
Prices for villas in Al Raha Gardens were down 4.8 per cent in the first quarter compared with the third quarter last year, while prices for villas in Al Reef declined 2 per cent over the same period.
The announcement by the Government earlier this year to push ahead with a number of landmark projects is a positive for the market, the report added.
There has also been a shift in the way landlords are letting their properties in Abu Dhabi, Cluttons highlighted. Individual private landlords and corporate investment companies are increasingly approaching brokers to let their residential properties, the consultancy said.
"Heightened competition in the marketplace means owners face a growing battle to preserve healthy occupancy rates whilst also maintaining satisfactory levels of rent," said Matthew Green, the regional head of research at CBRE, which also released its own research on the capital's property market.
Average residential rents in the capital fell 18 per cent in the first quarter compared with a year earlier according to CBRE's data. That represented a 3.5 per cent decline from the previous quarter.
One major talking point at this year's Cityscape exhibition will be the proposed merger of two of Abu Dhabi's largest property developers that have together been responsible for building the majority of new homes and offices in the capital over the past seven years. Aldar Properties and Sorouh Real Estate said last month they were studying a merger that could create a company with combined assets of more than Dh55.09 billion (US$14.99bn).
The impact such a merger would have on a market where the project development pipeline is already concentrated among just a handful of players is likely to dominate the agenda of Cityscape this week.
In total, 86 companies are exhibiting at this year's show, less than half the number it attracted five years ago.
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Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Our family matters legal consultant
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'Manmarziyaan' (Colour Yellow Productions, Phantom Films)
Director: Anurag Kashyap
Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Taapsee Pannu, Vicky Kaushal
Rating: 3.5/5
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3EFounder%3A%20Hani%20Abu%20Ghazaleh%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20Abu%20Dhabi%2C%20with%20an%20office%20in%20Montreal%3Cbr%3EFounded%3A%202018%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20Virtual%20Reality%3Cbr%3EInvestment%20raised%3A%20%241.2%20million%2C%20and%20nearing%20close%20of%20%245%20million%20new%20funding%20round%3Cbr%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%2012%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Honeymoonish
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Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Race card for Super Saturday
4pm: Al Bastakiya Listed US$250,000 (Dh918,125) (Dirt) 1,900m.
4.35pm: Mahab Al Shimaal Group 3 $200,000 (D) 1,200m.
5.10pm: Nad Al Sheba Conditions $200,000 (Turf) 1,200m.
5.45pm: Burj Nahaar Group 3 $200,000 (D) 1,600m.
6.20pm: Jebel Hatta Group 1 $300,000 (T) 1,800m.
6.55pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round 3 Group 1 $400,000 (D) 2,000m.
7.30pm: Dubai City of Gold Group 2 $250,000 (T) 2,410m.
