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
Tuleke “Tilek” Djaichiev, a Dubai expat from Kyrgyzstan, has been in the UAE 15 years and laid down roots here not only by buying a property but also opening his own business.
Despite working in the real estate field, he only bought his first property here three years ago, an off-plan three-bedroom apartment in a new development called Luma22 by TownX.
Since moving in, he's not even thought about living anywhere else, as he quickly settled in.
The National takes a look around.
Please tell us about your home.
It’s a three-bedroom apartment and all the bedrooms have their own shower room and toilet. I have a guest toilet as well, so four bathrooms overall.
The layout and quality are very nice. The kitchen is well equipped. The apartment has one balcony.
I live here by myself, but my wife and children come during school holidays, like four or five times a year.
Size-wise it’s perfect for me.
What renovations have you done?
None, because the building is still new. I've done my furnishing only.
How would you describe your interior design style?
I would describe this as very modern. The interior design is very simple, but it’s good quality. The kitchen is equipped with Siemens equipment. I really like my kitchen.
I like all the building materials they’ve used from the developer. It’s very minimalistic and good quality, very bright with high ceilings. It’s about 3.3 metres to the ceiling, which is what I love about the layout.
How much did you buy your property for?
I got it for Dh1.6 million ($436,000) total. Right now I think it’s about Dh2.4 million to Dh2.5 million.
Why did you decide to buy three years ago?
I spent a long time renting properties and then I realised it’s better to own a house. My business was doing well and I was thinking to buy through a mortgage, but since I had cash in my hand, I decided to buy it off-plan and covered the cost.
Why did you choose this neighbourhood?
I like JVC because of the location and this building because I like the developer. The location first, the developer second.
It’s very central, close to shopping malls like Mall of the Emirates and Dubai Mall, and you can go easily through to Al Khail Road. If you want to go to Palm Jumeirah or you want to go to Dubai Marina, you can easily get on to Hessa Street. It’s very convenient for me.
It’s very rare I go out to the parks or for walks – I’m usually coming by car. I’m about 10 to 15 minutes away from my workplace in Media City, even with traffic. With no traffic, it takes only nine minutes.
What facilities do you have?
In my building there are two swimming pools – one for ladies and a communal one. We also have two gyms, well equipped with TechnoGym equipment, which I like. Again, it’s separate for ladies and one for men − which both women and men can use. I had never heard about other developers doing separate facilities for men and women in Dubai.
How long do you plan to stay in this property?
I'm planning to stay as long as I can. I’m planning to stay in Dubai for as long as I have a job here.
I don't know if I will find some other property to move to. I'm very happy to stay here. I haven’t even thought about it.
For me, most important is the quality of the building and the layout of the property. I know there are so many areas in Dubai, maybe better than JVC, but I cannot find buildings in those areas with the same size properties and layouts for the same price.
The five pillars of Islam
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
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
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The years Ramadan fell in May
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The%20specs
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Glossary of a stock market revolution
Reddit
A discussion website
Redditor
The users of Reddit
Robinhood
A smartphone app for buying and selling shares
Short seller
Selling a stock today in the belief its price will fall in the future
Short squeeze
Traders forced to buy a stock they are shorting
Naked short
An illegal practice
The years Ramadan fell in May
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Transmission: seven-speed auto
Power: 420 bhp
Torque: 624Nm
Price: from Dh293,200
On sale: now
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The low down
Producers: Uniglobe Entertainment & Vision Films
Director: Namrata Singh Gujral
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Nargis Fakhri, Bo Derek, Candy Clark
Rating: 2/5
Zayed Sustainability Prize
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
More coverage from the Future Forum
Biography
Her family: She has four sons, aged 29, 27, 25 and 24 and is a grandmother-of-nine
Favourite book: Flashes of Thought by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid
Favourite drink: Water
Her hobbies: Reading and volunteer work
Favourite music: Classical music
Her motto: I don't wait, I initiate
Read more about the coronavirus
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
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
The bio
Favourite food: Japanese
Favourite car: Lamborghini
Favourite hobby: Football
Favourite quote: If your dreams don’t scare you, they are not big enough
Favourite country: UAE
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
What is a calorie?
A food calorie, or kilocalorie, is a measure of nutritional energy generated from what is consumed.
One calorie, is the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of 1 kilogram of water by 1°C.
A kilocalorie represents a 1,000 true calories of energy.
Energy density figures are often quoted as calories per serving, with one gram of fat in food containing nine calories, and a gram of protein or carbohydrate providing about four.
Alcohol contains about seven calories a gram.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
RACECARD
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THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
