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
Vish Patel, the owner of a project management company, lives with his wife, two children and mother in a five-bedroom villa in Dubai Hills, not far from the sprawling golf course.
He built the property from scratch, buying the land for more than Dh5 million ($1.3 million), before spending at least Dh20 million – although he says it’s probably more, as there were plenty of additions and upgrades he didn’t account for – creating his dream home.
Now, he’s listed it for Dh65 million as he looks to build an even better project elsewhere in Dubai. The National takes a look around.
Please tell us about your home
It’s a five-bedroom house, with a basement, ground floor and roof terrace. It’s on a 12,000-square-foot plot. With it being my own house and me being a perfectionist, I wouldn’t say it’s finished even now. But it’s been two years since we moved in.
Why did you decide to build your home?
I'd wanted to build a house here for a while. We have an old house in the UK, it’s a listed building that we’ve renovated. Here we wanted something modern, opposite to what I have over there. And a family home – something practical that we can use for my kids, who are teenagers, and my mum, who is staying with us now, too.
We wanted somewhere that we could use all of the areas, entertain in the house. It’s not just a show home, it’s something that suits all of our needs.
I knew in my mind how that would work, I sketched it out then called an architect. I chose the materials, equipment, everything. It was an exciting time.
Of course, Covid caused some changes in direction due to the availability of materials and so on.
Why have you decided to sell?
I’m not selling because the market is great and now is the time to sell. I put my heart and soul into this house.
I’d never sell my house in England no matter what offer someone made. But, emotionally, here I can sell the house and I know I could do something similar again. I wanted to liquidate some funds from the value of the house to do it again.
The needs of the family have changed and I might not build something as big again.
Why did you choose Dubai Hills?
I love Dubai Hills. The million dollar question we used to get asked since we’ve been in the UAE 20 years was, 'Where’s the centre of Dubai?' It was the Marina, then Downtown. Now I really feel Dubai Hills is the right place to be.
It’s so central, you can get out to everywhere, it’s a practical location.
When we move on, I’d like to stay here. Having a villa is absolutely amazing as it’s a private space but it comes with responsibility, maintenance.
Now we’re toying with the idea of moving into a penthouse and having a change, where we can go down and use the pool, instead of worrying about the pool cleaner coming. Short-term, we’re potentially looking at a flat or something similar, but in Dubai Hills.
What facilities do you have access to?
The master plan has community pools, but I also have a pool at the house and a Jacuzzi outside. The basement has a gym and a steam room, and we have a home cinema as well.
It’s a small cinema, with only four seats, but it’s for our use, not to invite people round.
The entertainment space is in our basement. Our whole plot was excavated and the basement is our biggest floor.
Growing up, watching movies, basements were always dark, scary places, so I’ve excavated the plot and it has three-metre-high ceilings and windows with natural light coming in.
We’ve got a sunken terrace, a green living wall on one side, a barbecue pizza oven, kitchen and so on that we use – that’s all on the lower basement level as well.
How would you describe your interior style?
It’s pretty neutral. When you enter you notice a skylight at the top that goes up to the roof.
The whole house is built on this spine wall. Outside, it’s clad in basalt, a lava stone. With heat and dust, there are very few dark colours you can use, but basalt doesn’t heat up the house.
It’s black outside and we boldly use it in the master bedroom, too. Inside is the white marble, which serves a purpose as it stays cool.
The flooring is porcelain tile that’s made to look like white marble slabs.
We have wooden floors for bedrooms, which are solid oak. Every two to three years you need to oil the floor, but otherwise it’s low maintenance and, because it breathes, it allows for shrinking and expanding with the humidity.
It was a considerable expense, but we also have floor-to-height windows in every room – and most of them are motorised. People forget how heavy they are, so the motorised option really helps. For many months of the year we have our windows open in our bedrooms, so it’s nice to have those sliding doors.
The glass is clear and transparent, but it limits heat protection without the tint. It’s one of the best investments I made. You can put your hand on it and not feel the heat even during the summer.
We wanted light to come in and didn’t want to have to close the curtains during the day because it’s hot.
What other features have you installed?
Storage was really important and everything can be hidden away. All the cabinet and joinery has been made bespoke.
There’s a lot of automation – the way the music works, the locks on the doors, the cameras. We can programme it how we want and control it all even when we’re not here.
There’s also a double-height wardrobe in our master bedroom. You can never have too much wardrobe space, and there’s a lift in there that takes you up to the same wardrobe floor above it.
Another element that’s been practical for us is that the master bedroom has two separate bathrooms – his and hers – so no more arguments in the morning.
What will you miss about this house?
I’ve been dreaming of building this house for a long, long time. In my head, I’ve been bookmarking pages, saying, ‘When I do my house, I want to do that or this.’
And I have to say this is the best community I’ve stayed in – we know the neighbours, my son plays basketball and this is the first time he’s met kids that aren’t in his school.
We go walking the dog as a family and get to meet loads of people.
On this street, most people have built their houses from scratch and they are mostly here to stay forever. It’s not just houses getting flipped and sold all the time. That gives more stability as well.
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
Which honey takes your fancy?
Al Ghaf Honey
The Al Ghaf tree is a local desert tree which bears the harsh summers with drought and high temperatures. From the rich flowers, bees that pollinate this tree can produce delicious red colour honey in June and July each year
Sidr Honey
The Sidr tree is an evergreen tree with long and strong forked branches. The blossom from this tree is called Yabyab, which provides rich food for bees to produce honey in October and November. This honey is the most expensive, but tastiest
Samar Honey
The Samar tree trunk, leaves and blossom contains Barm which is the secret of healing. You can enjoy the best types of honey from this tree every year in May and June. It is an historical witness to the life of the Emirati nation which represents the harsh desert and mountain environments
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
French business
France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.
Pearls on a Branch: Oral Tales
Najlaa Khoury, Archipelago Books
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
Profile of RentSher
Started: October 2015 in India, November 2016 in UAE
Founders: Harsh Dhand; Vaibhav and Purvashi Doshi
Based: Bangalore, India and Dubai, UAE
Sector: Online rental marketplace
Size: 40 employees
Investment: $2 million
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Company profile
Company: Eighty6
Date started: October 2021
Founders: Abdul Kader Saadi and Anwar Nusseibeh
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Hospitality
Size: 25 employees
Funding stage: Pre-series A
Investment: $1 million
Investors: Seed funding, angel investors
Squads
Sri Lanka Tharanga (c), Mathews, Dickwella (wk), Gunathilaka, Mendis, Kapugedera, Siriwardana, Pushpakumara, Dananjaya, Sandakan, Perera, Hasaranga, Malinga, Chameera, Fernando.
India Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rohit, Rahul, Pandey, Rahane, Jadhav, Dhoni (wk), Pandya, Axar, Kuldeep, Chahal, Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar, Thakur.
FA CUP FINAL
Manchester City 6
(D Silva 26', Sterling 38', 81', 87', De Bruyne 61', Jesus 68')
Watford 0
Man of the match: Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
From exhibitions to the battlefield
In 2016, the Shaded Dome was awarded with the 'De Vernufteling' people's choice award, an annual prize by the Dutch Association of Consulting Engineers and the Royal Netherlands Society of Engineers for the most innovative project by a Dutch engineering firm.
It was assigned by the Dutch Ministry of Defence to modify the Shaded Dome to make it suitable for ballistic protection. Royal HaskoningDHV, one of the companies which designed the dome, is an independent international engineering and project management consultancy, leading the way in sustainable development and innovation.
It is driving positive change through innovation and technology, helping use resources more efficiently.
It aims to minimise the impact on the environment by leading by example in its projects in sustainable development and innovation, to become part of the solution to a more sustainable society now and into the future.
Bareilly Ki Barfi
Directed by: Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
Starring: Kriti Sanon, Ayushmann Khurrana, Rajkummar Rao
Three and a half stars
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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
Yahya Al Ghassani's bio
Date of birth: April 18, 1998
Playing position: Winger
Clubs: 2015-2017 – Al Ahli Dubai; March-June 2018 – Paris FC; August – Al Wahda
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
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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
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
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