My Dubai Rent takes you inside a reader's home to have a look at what they get for their money, how much they pay in rent and asks them what they like and don't like
Shona Hind and her husband Paul rent an apartment on Palm Jumeirah, fulfilling a pledge they made to live on the island at some stage during their time in the UAE.
Initially, they lived in the Shoreline apartments, which Mr Hind helped to build in a job that brought them to the Emirates from Britain 17 years ago.
The couple, who also own an investment property in Abu Dhabi, initially leased a three-bedroom ground-floor flat until their daughter moved out.
They now rent a two-bedroom unit in Marina Residences from where Ms Hind, 54, also runs her organic mosquito repellent business, Free Me Company.
Ms Hind took The National on a tour.
Tell us about your home
We’re on the seventh floor, my lucky number, and we’ve just signed our third renewal. Before that, we were in Shoreline for two years.
We just needed two bedrooms, one for us and one for the office and for visitors, so moved over to Marina Residences. At the time, they were cheaper than where we were at Shoreline.
It’s got four bathrooms and a maid's room we use for storage.
Where have you lived previously?
We’ve moved a few times. We lived in Arabian Ranches, started off in The Springs, then moved to a bigger house in The Meadows.
Before the Palm, we were in JBR and moved out to Silicon Oasis, because I was starting a flip-flop business so needed more space for storage.
Although it was a beautiful place to live, it was little bit too far from work.
Why did you choose this area?
It was always our goal to live on the Palm at some point, but it wasn’t really practical when we had kids of school age. That’s why we started off in the communities and then [moved] when the time was right.
Paul came over in 2005 to train scaffolders. He was on the Palm, doing scaffolding for Shoreline apartments.
We prefer Marina Residences, however, being near Nakheel Mall and halfway to Atlantis. And if you’re going to live on the Palm, it’s nice to have a view.
We love to do the walk along the crescent, or the [hire] bikes, and cheaper cab fares if we go out anywhere.
What are the advantages of living here?
Paul’s got a full-time job in scaffolding and construction for Zayed National Museum and drives to Abu Dhabi every day. So what works for us is that where we are is central and it suits me for my business; it’s easy for me to meet people.
The view out of my window is the edge of the Palm, so when I’m working I’ve got a lovely outlook. If I’m on the balcony, I’ve a full view of the Atlantis.
This side of the road gets the sunset and the other side of the building gets the sunrise.
We’ve got two lots of friends living in the same building. They were always saying how homely it feels and the most comfortable place they’d lived in in Dubai.
What kind of facilities do you have around you?
There are six Marina Residence buildings – east and west both have a marina. It’s lovely to go for a walk there and both have little clusters of restaurants.
Every building has a gym and a swimming pool.
Is it a sociable neighbourhood?
It’s getting that way. One of my friends started "meet your neighbours" events. We went to one at a little new restaurant downstairs called The Strand.
Community is something that you can’t expect to just happen.
How have you personalised the apartment?
We had a 16-year-old rescue cat, so it was important we had a balcony, which we cat-proofed because she loved going outside to look at the birds. Unfortunately, we lost her two weeks ago because she got ill, and have now taken the netting down.
I always look for a place to put my drinks fridge. My dad is the driving force behind me doing my own business and making it successful; he bought us that fridge and it’s come with us to every home.
We’ve all our own furniture and curtains. Years ago Paul used to be a DJ, so we have his records on display.
Wherever we’ve travelled in the world, we always pick up a souvenir for our bookcase. We’ve got family photos on there. Also, a nice big framed picture that my mum and dad bought us. It came out on the ship with us.
Does living here offer value?
Now, yes, because we moved in three years ago and we were really lucky because of the capping (Rera rent calculator) system here.
You can’t get a two-bed in Marina Residences now for less than Dh180,000. When we moved here, we were paying Dh97,000. It went up to Dh108,000, and this year it’s gone up to Dh118,000. You can’t even get a one-bed in Shoreline for less than Dh140,000.
Paul’s job pays the rent and my company pays all the bills, because this is also my home office. I looked around for offices for Free Me, but thought “what’s the point?” because I’ve got a storage unit in Al Quoz and minimal product in my maid’s room here for website orders. If I have meetings, I arrange them in Nakheel Mall or, if it’s somebody I know, I have them here for coffee.
Are there any downsides?
The swimming pool and gym, which are lovely, only have a flight of stairs to access them. No lift, no slope. So when our family came over with a six-month-old, you had to carry the buggy up. So, no chance for someone in a wheelchair. It’s the only downside.
Do you plan to stay there?
We love it. We’d never live anywhere else. We’re really fortunate that we can stay here because of the rent.
