My Dubai Rent takes you inside a reader's home to have a look at what they pay each month, see who they live with and ask what they like and don't like
Indian Aakriti Thakur grew up in the Al Seef area of Dubai and used to go for drives in Jumeirah 1 with her family to admire the villas there.
Little did the youngster realise at the time she would one day call one of those villas home.
Now the 33-year-old, who works in the entertainment industry, lives with her family in a four-bedroom villa at that same address, which costs Dh180,000 across three cheques.
She invited The National into her home to see why it was so very special to her and her family.
What is the best part about where you live?
The best part is the house itself as it is so spacious. There are four bedrooms and we often have family and friends staying with us from all over the world.
There is a big backyard, which is perfect for barbecues. There are great views from the roof too, especially on New Year’s Eve when you can see the Burj Khalifa.
We have celebrated a lot of occasions up there.
We are very close to many places like supermarkets, hospitals and the beach.
There is also a swimming pool, which is shared between the 10 villas in the community.
What touches have you made to the property to make it your own?
Because it is a rented home we cannot change too much but we have tried to compensate with the decor in the house.
We are from Delhi and it is common for us Delhiites to prefer a beige, rustic, contemporary look mixed with vibrant colours.
There are many artworks from India on the wall, to make it feel like home to us.
It was important that we create a warm and cosy atmosphere in the property.
That is at the core of how we want it to look like.
Is there anything you would change about the property or area if you had the chance?
Honestly, there is nothing. That is one of the best things about living here.
Everything is so close by and I do not have to travel too far if I want to go to my office.
Unlike many other parts of Dubai, there is not a lot of heavy traffic so we do not spend much time stuck in traffic jams.
Everything is within walking distance and there are also plenty of cafes around the area where you can just sit outside and relax, so we are really happy with what we have here.
When did you move into the property and do you see yourself staying for much longer?
We moved in here seven years ago and we are well-settled.
There are no plans to go anywhere else. I remember when I was younger, driving along here at the weekends with my parents.
They used to always dream that one day we could live in one of these villas.
Seven years ago that is exactly what happened. Living here is my family’s dream fulfilled. Where else do you go after that?
Multitasking pays off for money goals
Tackling money goals one at a time cost financial literacy expert Barbara O'Neill at least $1 million.
That's how much Ms O'Neill, a distinguished professor at Rutgers University in the US, figures she lost by starting saving for retirement only after she had created an emergency fund, bought a car with cash and purchased a home.
"I tell students that eventually, 30 years later, I hit the million-dollar mark, but I could've had $2 million," Ms O'Neill says.
Too often, financial experts say, people want to attack their money goals one at a time: "As soon as I pay off my credit card debt, then I'll start saving for a home," or, "As soon as I pay off my student loan debt, then I'll start saving for retirement"."
People do not realise how costly the words "as soon as" can be. Paying off debt is a worthy goal, but it should not come at the expense of other goals, particularly saving for retirement. The sooner money is contributed, the longer it can benefit from compounded returns. Compounded returns are when your investment gains earn their own gains, which can dramatically increase your balances over time.
"By putting off saving for the future, you are really inhibiting yourself from benefiting from that wonderful magic," says Kimberly Zimmerman Rand , an accredited financial counsellor and principal at Dragonfly Financial Solutions in Boston. "If you can start saving today ... you are going to have a lot more five years from now than if you decide to pay off debt for three years and start saving in year four."
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
if you go
The flights
Emirates fly direct from Dubai to Houston, Texas, where United have direct flights to Managua. Alternatively, from October, Iberia will offer connections from Madrid, which can be reached by both Etihad from Abu Dhabi and Emirates from Dubai.
The trip
Geodyssey’s (Geodyssey.co.uk) 15-night Nicaragua Odyssey visits the colonial cities of Leon and Granada, lively country villages, the lake island of Ometepe and a stunning array of landscapes, with wildlife, history, creative crafts and more. From Dh18,500 per person, based on two sharing, including transfers and tours but excluding international flights. For more information, visit visitnicaragua.us.
Shubh Mangal Saavdhan
Directed by: RS Prasanna
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Bhumi Pednekar
