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
Marketing director Lucy Holmes and her husband Lee, who works for the Walt Disney Company in Dubai, have been living in the UAE for 14 years but bought their first home here in 2021 after a decade of living on Palm Jumeirah.
They had been living in their villa in Sustainable City for four months when they got the opportunity to buy it for Dh3.4 million ($930,000).
Now they live there happily with their son Barney, 15, and daughter Daisy, 8, and plan to stay put for at least another decade.
The National takes a look around.
Why did you decide to buy?
We were given the opportunity after about four months of living in our villa to buy it, so we did. We were really lucky that we were able to figure out how to get it.
We had probably lived in about eight apartments on the Palm already and I was fed up of moving. I wanted my children to have something that they knew was their home, that we can make memories in as a family, that we felt would give them a stable environment.
We were so sick of being given notice by landlords and just wasting money on rent, and after 10 years, we realised we'd spent an awful amount of money on rent.
Why this neighbourhood?
We fell in love with the community. I said to my husband, 'if we ever get the opportunity to buy, this is now where I want to live.'
I love the safety aspect for the kids. There are no cars. I wanted them to have the freedom to go around on their bikes.
The sustainable lifestyle is also really appealing to us. We are eco-minded, I’ve always recycled, and we were really intrigued by the whole solar panel idea.
We just felt that it was such a beautifully landscaped community, it's set back from the road and it's really quiet, you can't hear any cars or anything at night, just birds. And we thought that it would really be a difference from living on the Palm. We needed a change.
It ticked every box for us and eventually we even moved our children to the school. They cycle or walk to school or get on the golf buggy every single day. It means I have no school run.
How much is your house worth?
We paid Dh3.4 million and now I think it's worth Dh4.3 million or Dh4.4 million.
What renovations have you done?
We completely redid the garden, the landscaping, the tiling. We've done a few more bits of decorating stuff inside but we haven't renovated inside that much because we're happy with how it is.
After we bought it, we actually had to do quite a big renovation on our British home that we rent out. It's a really old Victorian house and it needs a lot of work, so we had to invest in that rather than our home in Dubai. But that's fine, because it's super-modern here and we love it anyway.
We could redo the kitchen, or I could redo the bathrooms but actually I'd rather go on holiday.
How would you describe your interior design style?
Very beach house style, very clean and white, with lots of wood.
A lot of my pieces have been made to order by The Garden Concept carpentry and I'm really happy. They made my rabbit huts, they made the furniture in my bedroom, they made my dresser. I like to have a lot of colour among the white and wood, and it's quite modern.
How has your experience of Dubai changed since moving from Palm Jumeirah?
It has changed massively. We've gone from being able to go everywhere at night and on the weekends, doing a million things because we were so central and going to the beach all the time and having a sea view, to having more of a quieter life. And that suits us. It suits our children. We have more barbecues, more dinners with neighbours, have friends over.
I'm not zooming around Dubai all weekend like we used to on the Palm because it takes too long to get anywhere. Although we are busy and I do a lot of stuff, we have a more wholesome existence.
It’s just really nice to have your own space and to feel that you don't have to leave Sustainable City if you don't want to. It's become more of a lifestyle for us. We’ve gone from that city lifestyle with the beach on our doorstep to a suburban lifestyle because the kids were at an age where they needed it.
What facilities do you have?
We have pools, a gym. We've got a Zen garden now, which is lovely. There's a running track, a cycling track. There are the shops and cafes, there's a yoga studio. There's a horse-riding school.
We also have our own golf buggy. You can access the community ones but it's great to have your own.
We make good use of everything. My son's playing football at the pitch every single night because we can book it through the app. My husband plays football three times a week. I'm part of the running club. Even my daughter comes on a Monday night.
We’re very much part of the community here, we get involved and we have a nice time.
How long will you stay in this property?
Until Daisy finishes school, so probably another 10 years, all being well. I know I could get a bigger house for my money, but I would really struggle now to live on a road where there are cars and I don't know anywhere else in Dubai that's got a no-car zone like we've got.
If went to Arabian Ranches 2 or Dubai Hills, for example, I would love it, I'd have more house, but my kids wouldn't have the freedom they've got here.
Now I’ve had the opportunity to buy after 10 years in Dubai, it makes me think I should have bought earlier but everything happens at the right time.
I firmly believe Dubai is a very excellent, perfect, exciting place to live and very safe. And that's definitely what Sustainable City is. It's super, super safe and we love it.
Read next: How to plan your finances for buying a home
How the UAE gratuity payment is calculated now
Employees leaving an organisation are entitled to an end-of-service gratuity after completing at least one year of service.
The tenure is calculated on the number of days worked and does not include lengthy leave periods, such as a sabbatical. If you have worked for a company between one and five years, you are paid 21 days of pay based on your final basic salary. After five years, however, you are entitled to 30 days of pay. The total lump sum you receive is based on the duration of your employment.
1. For those who have worked between one and five years, on a basic salary of Dh10,000 (calculation based on 30 days):
a. Dh10,000 ÷ 30 = Dh333.33. Your daily wage is Dh333.33
b. Dh333.33 x 21 = Dh7,000. So 21 days salary equates to Dh7,000 in gratuity entitlement for each year of service. Multiply this figure for every year of service up to five years.
2. For those who have worked more than five years
c. 333.33 x 30 = Dh10,000. So 30 days’ salary is Dh10,000 in gratuity entitlement for each year of service.
Note: The maximum figure cannot exceed two years total salary figure.
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
It's Monty Python's Crashing Rocket Circus
To the theme tune of the famous zany British comedy TV show, SpaceX has shown exactly what can go wrong when you try to land a rocket.
The two minute video posted on YouTube is a compilation of crashes and explosion as the company, created by billionaire Elon Musk, refined the technique of reusable space flight.
SpaceX is able to land its rockets on land once they have completed the first stage of their mission, and is able to resuse them multiple times - a first for space flight.
But as the video, How Not to Land an Orbital Rocket Booster, demonstrates, it was a case if you fail, try and try again.
How to vote
Canadians living in the UAE can register to vote online and be added to the International Register of Electors.
They'll then be sent a special ballot voting kit by mail either to their address, the Consulate General of Canada to the UAE in Dubai or The Embassy of Canada in Abu Dhabi
Registered voters mark the ballot with their choice and must send it back by 6pm Eastern time on October 21 (2am next Friday)
Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin
ICC Women's T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier 2025, Thailand
UAE fixtures
May 9, v Malaysia
May 10, v Qatar
May 13, v Malaysia
May 15, v Qatar
May 18 and 19, semi-finals
May 20, final
Tree of Hell
Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla
Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
Key recommendations
- Fewer criminals put behind bars and more to serve sentences in the community, with short sentences scrapped and many inmates released earlier.
- Greater use of curfews and exclusion zones to deliver tougher supervision than ever on criminals.
- Explore wider powers for judges to punish offenders by blocking them from attending football matches, banning them from driving or travelling abroad through an expansion of ‘ancillary orders’.
- More Intensive Supervision Courts to tackle the root causes of crime such as alcohol and drug abuse – forcing repeat offenders to take part in tough treatment programmes or face prison.
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
Meydan race card
6.30pm: Baniyas (PA) Group 2 Dh125,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
7.05pm: Maiden (TB) Dh165,000 (D) 1,200m
7.40pm: Maiden (TB) Dh165,000 (D) 1,400m
8.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh170,000 (D) 1,900m
8.50pm: Rated Conditions (TB) Dh240,000 (D) 1,600m
9.25pm: Handicap (TB) Dh175,000 (D)1,200m
10pm: Handicap (TB) Dh165,000 (D) 1,400m
Formula%204%20Italian%20Championship%202023%20calendar
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
THE BIO
Ambition: To create awareness among young about people with disabilities and make the world a more inclusive place
Job Title: Human resources administrator, Expo 2020 Dubai
First jobs: Co-ordinator with Magrudy Enterprises; HR coordinator at Jumeirah Group
Entrepreneur: Started his own graphic design business
Favourite singer: Avril Lavigne
Favourite travel destination: Germany and Saudi Arabia
Family: Six sisters
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
ETFs explained
Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.
ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
Britain's travel restrictions
- A negative test 2 days before flying
- Complete passenger locator form
- Book a post-arrival PCR test
- Double-vaccinated must self-isolate
- 11 countries on red list quarantine
TUESDAY'S ORDER OF PLAY
Centre Court
Starting at 2pm:
Malin Cilic (CRO) v Benoit Paire (FRA) [8]
Not before 4pm:
Dan Evans (GBR) v Fabio Fogini (ITA) [4]
Not before 7pm:
Pablo Carreno Busta (SPA) v Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE) [2]
Roberto Bautista Agut (SPA) [5] v Jan-Lennard Struff (GER)
Court One
Starting at 2pm
Prajnesh Gunneswaran (IND) v Dennis Novak (AUT)
Joao Sousa (POR) v Filip Krajinovic (SRB)
Not before 5pm:
Rajeev Ram (USA) and Joe Salisbury (GBR) [1] v Marin Cilic v Novak Djokovic (SRB)
Nikoloz Basilashvili v Ricardas Berankis (LTU)
Book%20Details
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