My Own Home: Banker buys Dh730,000 Sharjah apartment near university for daughter

My Own Home takes you inside a reader-owned property to ask how much they paid, why they decided to buy and what they have done with it since moving in

Nidal Mohamed snapped up an off-plan, one-bedroom apartment in Aljada community of Sharjah for Dh730,000 about three years ago, keeping his daughter, Layan, in mind.

She had been accepted into a university a five-minute drive from the community, and the Palestinian banker, who was born and raised in Umm Al Quwain, believed it would be the perfect base for her.

Aljada by Arada project has one to three-bedroom apartments in a community that is expanding. There are entertainment districts, shopping areas, and even a huge performing arts centre designed by famed Japanese architect Tadao Ando scheduled to be completed in 2027.

Since he bought it, the value has surged to more than Dh1 million.

It is Mr Mohamed's third property in the UAE. He also owns a home in Umm Al Quwain in a plot with other members of his family and a townhouse in Serena Bella Casa in Dubai, which he rents out.

The National takes a tour of his Sharjah apartment.

Tell us about your home

Nidal: It’s a one-bedroom apartment in a very safe building, where the security is very good. It’s very clean and very cosy. It has a lot of restaurants and shops in the building, for example Spinneys, Starbucks, Five Guys and a pharmacy.

Layan: Our community is very nice as it’s a good place for students. Most of my friends live in the area because there’s such a big student community.

We have the swimming pool, gym and restaurants under us. There are so many facilities and it’s about a five-minute drive from the university.

Have you done any renovations?

Nidal: It doesn’t really need anything. We bought it unfurnished since we bought it off-plan, so we bought expensive furniture from places like Pottery Barn, Crate and Barrel and Maison du Monde.

Layan: We all went shopping together as a family to choose the pieces.

Nidal: These are actually my wife’s choices.

What do you love most about the community?

Nidal: I live in another emirate, so it’s important to me that the community is safe. There is security in the building and it’s a smart home, so I have control over the entrance door, I can check whether it’s locked or unlocked, control the AC and the lights, and so on, and everything comes to my phone.

This is what the developer has provided in the community and most of the buildings around here have the same system.

Do you plan on living here for a while?

Layan: I have one and a half years left in my four-year Medical Labs course, then I’ll get my own place. I’ll stay in Sharjah, for sure.

Nidal: Then I’ll rent it out. Or if my other children go to the same university, then the apartment is available to them.
Once you own something in Aljada it’s not something you want to get rid of it because the community is great. It’s a good place to walk around. It has a lot of plants and trees. During winter, it’s amazing.

The coffee shops and restaurants that are in the community are also amazing. It’s almost like City Walk in Dubai – it’s the most developed area in Sharjah so far.

On weekends, it’s almost annoying because the traffic gets so busy due to all the visitors coming to the area now. Once you live in this community, you won’t think of anything else in Sharjah.