Recent changes in Syria's foreign ownership laws should boost international interest in the property market, industry experts say.
Foreigners have been allowed to own property, but restrictions made it a difficult process, says Hussein Yousef, the commercial manager for Aram Real Estate, a property firm in Syria.
A 2008 law required non-Syrians to obtain government approval before they could buy property. In addition the law limited what they could buy and when they could resell the property. And if a foreign owner died, his heirs were required to sell the estate within a year.
This month the government approved changes in the law, removing many of the restrictions.
The new measures are part of a series of initiatives by the Syrian government to open the country to international business. In September, Abdallah Dardari, the deputy prime minister for economic affairs, announced plans to attract US$55 billion (Dh202.01bn) in foreign direct investments in the next five years.
"Reforms in the regulatory environment have definitely encouraged foreign investors and developers to enter the market," said Saadallah al Abed, a senior consultant with Colliers International.
Syria is already attracting the attention of many of the UAE's largest property companies, including Emaar, Arabtec and Drake and Scull International. In many cases the developers were offered land at discounted prices. "Developers are capitalising on the opportunities generated by the huge demand, both domestically and demand on the side of the Syrian expatriate community, said Mr al Abed.
The Syrian market remains "highly undersupplied" in most property sectors, said Mr al Abed. New projects will not be able to keep up with demand, which has kept prices at record levels, despite the global economic crisis, he added.
"Supply entering the market is trivial and can't keep up with demand generated domestically, let alone expatriates' demand," he said.
But corruption and bureaucracy continue to hamper the country's growth, analysts say. Jones Lang LaSalle ranks Syria among the "least transparent" countries in the world.
"Business deals are almost always undertaken through personal contacts and require means which would not normally be acceptable in more transparent markets," Jones Lang LaSalle wrote in its annual transparency report.
"It seems to be a fairly tricky place to do business," said Steve Morgan, the head of Cluttons's UAE office. "But there are opportunities in the right places with the right people on the ground."
Syria will have to improve its infrastructure and mortgage laws before it can grow dramatically as an international property market, Mr Morgan said.
"It needs to learn from other emerging markets," he said.
The changes in ownership rules should make Syria particularly attractive to buyers in the Gulf region, Mr Yousef said.
"It will raise prices, I think. That will be good for real estate," Mr Yousef said. "There are many people interested in owning property."
In recent years, Syria's government has been slowly liberalising its business laws, hoping to attract more international companies. The Damascus Securities Exchange was created last year, and private banks have been allowed to expand their operations.
Spurred by the economic reforms, the country's GDP has been growing at 4 to 5 per cent a year since 2005, the World Bank says.
HOME AWAY FROM HOME FOR UAE COMPANIES
Syria is already playing a key role in the diversification plans of several of the UAE’s largest property companies. The list includes:
Emaar
The Dubai developer created Emaar Syria, a partnership with Invest Group Overseas (IGO), to build The Eighth Gate, a 26 billion Syrian pounds (Dh2.03bn) mixed-use development outside Damascus.
Belhasa International
In 2006, the UAE developer formed Palmyra Real Estate, which aspires to become one of the largest residential developers in Syria. Projects include Jasmine Hills in Yafour, a town outside Damascus, and Oak City, a master-planned development on the road linking Damascus and Amman, Jordan.
Arabtec
The UAE's largest construction company has been working with Emaar on The Eighth Gate. In February, it announced a contract to build the US$120 million (Dh440.7m) Yasmeen Rotana Hotel in Mazzeh, a 35-minute drive from the Damascus International
Airport.
Drake & Scull International
A specialist in mechanical, electrical and plumbing construction, Drake & Scull announced its first contract in Syria in September, an Dh85m deal to build out the Rotana Gardenia Hotel and furnished apartments in the city of Homs.
Majid Al Futtaim Properties
In September, the developer of the Mall of the Emirates started work on Khams Shamat, a 1 million sq metre, $1bn complex 17km west of Damascus. It will include hotels, restaurants and shopping centres.
kbrass@thenational.ae
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
The specs: 2018 BMW R nineT Scrambler
Price, base / as tested Dh57,000
Engine 1,170cc air/oil-cooled flat twin four-stroke engine
Transmission Six-speed gearbox
Power 110hp) @ 7,750rpm
Torque 116Nm @ 6,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined 5.3L / 100km
VEZEETA PROFILE
Date started: 2012
Founder: Amir Barsoum
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: HealthTech / MedTech
Size: 300 employees
Funding: $22.6 million (as of September 2018)
Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
The specs
Engine: 4 liquid-cooled permanent magnet synchronous electric motors placed at each wheel
Battery: Rimac 120kWh Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide (LiNiMnCoO2) chemistry
Power: 1877bhp
Torque: 2300Nm
Price: Dh7,500,00
On sale: Now
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
The biog
Marital status: Separated with two young daughters
Education: Master's degree from American Univeristy of Cairo
Favourite book: That Is How They Defeat Despair by Salwa Aladian
Favourite Motto: Their happiness is your happiness
Goal: For Nefsy to become his legacy long after he is gon
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
In Search of Mary Shelley: The Girl Who Wrote Frankenstein
By Fiona Sampson
Profile
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Homie%20Portal%20LLC%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20End%20of%202021%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAbdulla%20Al%20Kamda%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20FinTech%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Undisclosed%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2014%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ELaunch%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Self-funded%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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
Mia Man’s tips for fermentation
- Start with a simple recipe such as yogurt or sauerkraut
- Keep your hands and kitchen tools clean. Sanitize knives, cutting boards, tongs and storage jars with boiling water before you start.
- Mold is bad: the colour pink is a sign of mold. If yogurt turns pink as it ferments, you need to discard it and start again. For kraut, if you remove the top leaves and see any sign of mold, you should discard the batch.
- Always use clean, closed, airtight lids and containers such as mason jars when fermenting yogurt and kraut. Keep the lid closed to prevent insects and contaminants from getting in.
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
