My Dubai Rent takes you inside a reader's home to have a look at what they pay in rent, see who they live with and ask what they like and don't like
Kanessa Muluneh moved to Dubai with her family from the Netherlands in the second half of last year.
For their first home in the UAE, she and her husband chose to live with their two children in a seven-bedroom villa in Al Quoz.
They pay Dh300,000, split into four cheques.
Ms Muluneh, 32, who runs her own clothing line, invited The National into her home to show just why it is so special to her.
Why did you choose to live here and not somewhere else?
When we were considering moving from the Netherlands, we thought about moving to the typical expat areas like Arabian Ranches.
We wanted to get as much space as we could for our money and I told my husband that the main condition was there would be a view of the Burj Khalifa from our home.
When we looked here we realised it was a very Arabic area, which was great for me as I was born in Ethiopia and the cultures are extremely similar.
We didn’t want to move here and just live the same lifestyle we lived back in Europe.
It’s the best of both worlds really. The house feels very Arabic and I don’t like new houses as they have no atmosphere.
This feels like a home that has been lived in.
What are the advantages of living here?
It’s only a 10-minute drive to Downtown so it’s quite convenient in terms of location.
There’s a nice park here too, which has a great view of Downtown. It reminds me of Central Park in New York.
The area is quite private too. It’s not like a compound; I love that. Everybody here respects each other’s privacy.
What touches have you made to the property to put your personal touch on it?
Apart from the suitcases of clothes we brought with us and the furniture we bought, after moving in we haven’t changed much.
It just feels so different from our home in the Netherlands, which is exactly what we wanted.
The colours are brown and beige and I never had that before.
Also our home in Europe is full of stuff everywhere so it was nice for us to have a contrast here with a lot of extra space.
We like the minimalist feel here.
Did you look at many properties before settling on this one?
We were originally quoted Dh420,000 for the property, which was a bit outside of our budget, but we negotiated down to Dh300,000.
We looked at about six or seven other houses in Al Barsha and Al Quoz.
Do you see yourself staying here for the long-term?
Everybody knows the market is high right now but as soon as it changes we will buy our own home here.
We also plan to build our own home here in Dubai someday.
What would you change about the property if you could?
My husband would like to have a pool but I don’t really want a pool myself.
I am not sure there’s much else I would change as we rent and don’t own the property.
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Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
- Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
- The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
- Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
- It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
- Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Ibrahim's play list
Completed an electrical diploma at the Adnoc Technical Institute
Works as a public relations officer with Adnoc
Apart from the piano, he plays the accordion, oud and guitar
His favourite composer is Johann Sebastian Bach
Also enjoys listening to Mozart
Likes all genres of music including Arabic music and jazz
Enjoys rock groups Scorpions and Metallica
Other musicians he likes are Syrian-American pianist Malek Jandali and Lebanese oud player Rabih Abou Khalil
The five pillars of Islam
The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands
The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands
50-man Royal Rumble - names entered so far include Braun Strowman, Daniel Bryan, Kurt Angle, Big Show, Kane, Chris Jericho, The New Day and Elias
Universal Championship Brock Lesnar (champion) v Roman Reigns in a steel cage match
WWE World Heavyweight ChampionshipAJ Styles (champion) v Shinsuke Nakamura
Intercontinental Championship Seth Rollins (champion) v The Miz v Finn Balor v Samoa Joe
United States Championship Jeff Hardy (champion) v Jinder Mahal
SmackDown Tag Team Championship The Bludgeon Brothers (champions) v The Usos
Raw Tag Team Championship (currently vacant) Cesaro and Sheamus v Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt
Casket match The Undertaker v Chris Jericho
Singles match John Cena v Triple H
Cruiserweight Championship Cedric Alexander v tba
Brolliology: A History of the Umbrella in Life and Literature
By Marion Rankine
Melville House
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 620hp from 5,750-7,500rpm
Torque: 760Nm from 3,000-5,750rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch auto
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh1.05 million ($286,000)
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence".
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- The Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
Profile box
Company name: baraka
Started: July 2020
Founders: Feras Jalbout and Kunal Taneja
Based: Dubai and Bahrain
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $150,000
Current staff: 12
Stage: Pre-seed capital raising of $1 million
Investors: Class 5 Global, FJ Labs, IMO Ventures, The Community Fund, VentureSouq, Fox Ventures, Dr Abdulla Elyas (private investment)
Kat Wightman's tips on how to create zones in large spaces
- Area carpets or rugs are the easiest way to segregate spaces while also unifying them.
- Lighting can help define areas. Try pendant lighting over dining tables, and side and floor lamps in living areas.
- Keep the colour palette the same in a room, but combine different tones and textures in different zone. A common accent colour dotted throughout the space brings it together.
- Don’t be afraid to use furniture to break up the space. For example, if you have a sofa placed in the middle of the room, a console unit behind it will give good punctuation.
- Use a considered collection of prints and artworks that work together to form a cohesive journey.
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
Neil Thomson – THE BIO
Family: I am happily married to my wife Liz and we have two children together.
Favourite music: Rock music. I started at a young age due to my father’s influence. He played in an Indian rock band The Flintstones who were once asked by Apple Records to fly over to England to perform there.
Favourite book: I constantly find myself reading The Bible.
Favourite film: The Greatest Showman.
Favourite holiday destination: I love visiting Melbourne as I have family there and it’s a wonderful place. New York at Christmas is also magical.
Favourite food: I went to boarding school so I like any cuisine really.
