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
Charles Goh, a software company owner from Singapore, is living out his childhood dream in Dubai's Emaar South by automating his entire home.
He lives alone in his three-bedroom town house in Parkside 1, having moved from a studio apartment in JLT, but his wife and three children visit from Singapore two or three times a year.
Most of the time, Mr Goh can be found working from a bedroom he’s converted into an office, but in his spare time, he tinkers with his electronics and is looking forward to the nearby golf club opening up so he can hit the driving range.
The National takes a look around.
Please tell me about your home.
This is a three-bedroom villa that has a lot of automation. This was my childhood dream, to have a fully automated home.
How have you automated your home?
I have a robotic dog, but I'm still working on it, programming it to do some useful things.
All the lights have switches that have been converted to smart switches, which means you can control them with your voice or based on certain rules, like maybe the temperature or humidity above, and you can control them remotely from anywhere in the world.
In the kitchen, all the appliances are connected to the internet or home Wi-Fi.
The front door is a smart door – it has facial ID and fingerprint recognition, then the usual PIN code, if you want.
When I walk into the bathroom, it detects my presence and turns on the light. When I walk down the stairs, a whole row of lights come on as you walk. The curtains also open and close on voice command.
There’s a lot of personalisation. The good thing about having automation is that you can be more climate-friendly as well.
What have you done to the bedrooms?
I converted one bedroom into a study area, as I usually work from home.
The master bedroom is my room, but also a theatre. I have a projector and if I want to watch a film and turn the projector on, I can give it a voice command through the iPhone or the speaker box.
I can also close the curtains, turn the AC on or off and the fan can run itself – that is the beauty of automation.
The town houses here are not that big, so I didn’t want to waste the space creating a room for entertainment, so I use my room and watch my favourite movie or series projected on to the wall.
How much have you spent on turning this into a smart home?
Probably about Dh60,000 ($16,300). The electronics are not very expensive these days because most of them are produced in China and they’re very competitive in price.
Installation might normally cost more, but because I’m trained in electronics, I did it myself. The challenge of a smart home is that it requires some form of integration and configuration which requires computing knowledge.
Since I run a software company, it’s part of my DNA. It's more of a hobby, so I spend my nights or weekends figuring it out and sometimes you don’t get it right. You have got to try it and experiment.
Why did you decide to buy your house?
I own a company here and I’m probably going to stay for another seven or eight years. My plan was to only go back when the new airport near my home is ready, which is probably my retirement age, as I will be about 60 in 2030.
That’ll probably be the right time for me to go home and maybe I will have grandchildren.
That’s why it doesn’t make sense to keep paying rent.
How much did you buy the property for?
I bought it about a year and a half ago for Dh1.4 million. It has gone up a lot more now. I think my neighbour about eight or nine units away sold for about Dh2 million.
Pricing in this whole area, I hope, will continue to go up. But, I’m not flipping it. I think I will stay for at least another three or four years before I toy with the idea of selling it or relocating.
Why did you choose Emaar South?
I have a studio in JLT where I lived before. I decided to choose a town house because I have an electric vehicle. I was trying to do my part for the climate but, at the time, I could not install my own charging point even though the parking spot was mine. I went back and forth with the management, but it was too tough so I gave up and decided to look for somewhere I could charge from home.
I was looking around and this fit within my budget and I thought it also has quite good potential.
The only complaint I have is that it’s far from the so-called central areas, like Business Bay or DIFC, but most of the time I work from home, so it’s not important for me to be close to the city.
They’ve also built a golf course, although it’s not open yet. I’m already in my 50s and semi-retired, so I want to have something in the daytime or early morning if I want to go to the driving range or do some walking. I don’t need a car to go there, I could cycle.
Also, I come from a country that has very high density, so I wanted somewhere with fewer neighbours and more space.
I’m pretty happy we bought this place.
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
OTHER IPL BOWLING RECORDS
Best bowling figures: 6-14 – Sohail Tanvir (for Rajasthan Royals against Chennai Super Kings in 2008)
Best average: 16.36 – Andrew Tye
Best economy rate: 6.53 – Sunil Narine
Best strike-rate: 12.83 – Andrew Tye
Best strike-rate in an innings: 1.50 – Suresh Raina (for Chennai Super Kings against Rajasthan Royals in 2011)
Most runs conceded in an innings: 70 – Basil Thampi (for Sunrisers Hyderabad against Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2018)
Most hat-tricks: 3 – Amit Mishra
Most dot-balls: 1,128 – Harbhajan Singh
Most maiden overs bowled: 14 – Praveen Kumar
Most four-wicket hauls: 6 – Sunil Narine
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Charlotte Gainsbourg
Rest
(Because Music)
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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Test squad: Azhar Ali (captain), Abid Ali, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Haris Sohail, Imam-ul-Haq, Imran Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Kashif Bhatti, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Rizwan(wicketkeeper), Musa Khan, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Afridi, Shan Masood, Yasir Shah
Twenty20 squad: Babar Azam (captain), Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Sohail, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Imam-ul-Haq, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Irfan, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Musa Khan, Shadab Khan, Usman Qadir, Wahab Riaz
SHADOWS%20AND%20LIGHT%3A%20THE%20EXTRAORDINARY%20LIFE%20OF%20JAMES%20MCBEY
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The specs
Engine: 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 380hp at 5,800rpm
Torque: 530Nm at 1,300-4,500rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Price: From Dh299,000 ($81,415)
On sale: Now
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
Monster Hunter: World
Capcom
PlayStation 4, Xbox One
If you go
The flights
Return flights from Dubai to Santiago, via Sao Paolo cost from Dh5,295 with Emirates.
The trip
A five-day trip (not including two days of flight travel) was split between Santiago and in Puerto Varas, with more time spent in the later where excursions were organised by TurisTour.
When to go
The summer months, from December to February are best though there is beauty in each season
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre 6-cyl turbo
Power: 435hp at 5,900rpm
Torque: 520Nm at 1,800-5,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Price: from Dh498,542
On sale: now
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
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UAE SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Ali Khaseif, Fahad Al Dhanhani, Mohammed Al Shamsi, Adel Al Hosani
Defenders: Bandar Al Ahbabi, Shaheen Abdulrahman, Walid Abbas, Mahmoud Khamis, Mohammed Barghash, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Hassan Al Mahrami, Yousef Jaber, Salem Rashid, Mohammed Al Attas, Alhassan Saleh
Midfielders: Ali Salmeen, Abdullah Ramadan, Abdullah Al Naqbi, Majed Hassan, Yahya Nader, Ahmed Barman, Abdullah Hamad, Khalfan Mubarak, Khalil Al Hammadi, Tahnoun Al Zaabi, Harib Abdallah, Mohammed Jumah, Yahya Al Ghassani
Forwards: Fabio De Lima, Caio Canedo, Ali Saleh, Ali Mabkhout, Sebastian Tagliabue, Zayed Al Ameri
Fund-raising tips for start-ups
Develop an innovative business concept
Have the ability to differentiate yourself from competitors
Put in place a business continuity plan after Covid-19
Prepare for the worst-case scenario (further lockdowns, long wait for a vaccine, etc.)
Have enough cash to stay afloat for the next 12 to 18 months
Be creative and innovative to reduce expenses
Be prepared to use Covid-19 as an opportunity for your business
* Tips from Jassim Al Marzooqi and Walid Hanna
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
Key changes
Commission caps
For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:
• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• On the protection component, there is a cap of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated.
• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.
• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.
Disclosure
Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.
“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”
Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.
Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.
“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.
Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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HEADLINE HERE
- I would recommend writing out the text in the body
- And then copy into this box
- It can be as long as you link
- But I recommend you use the bullet point function (see red square)
- Or try to keep the word count down
- Be wary of other embeds lengthy fact boxes could crash into
- That's about it
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Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
