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
Joseph Thadikaran was the first homeowner to move into a villa at Masaar, a forested community megaproject in the Suyoh area of Sharjah.
The Indian father-of-two says he was among the last to buy off-plan in the initial Sendian phase of 430 homes, but got the keys to his completed semi-detached home first.
Mr Thadikaran, head of reward, performance and operations in HR with a UAE bank, had been renting in Dubai’s Al Qusais area since moving to the country, but decided to buy during the pandemic.
His four-bedroom house is part of developer Arada’s Dh9.5 billion Masaar scheme, which will comprise 3,000 homes in six gated districts with 50,000 trees and easy access to Emirates Road.
The family-friendly community’s central precinct will contain sport and F&B attractions including a food truck district, skatepark, children’s adventure playground and an events space.
Mr Thadikaran, 40, shares the home with his wife Treesa, who works as an oil and water chemist, their son Steve, 10, and 13-year-old daughter, Sarah.
Please tell us about this villa
Our home has four bedrooms, a guest room and a maid’s room, with a total of five bathrooms.
There are two en suite bathrooms upstairs and one is shared with two other bedrooms. There’s one on the ground floor and one attached to the maid’s room.
We have two balconies, a backyard and a side garden. We also have covered parking.
When did you buy your home?
In November 2021, during the pandemic. I was one of the last customers to buy directly from Arada, one of the last properties available in this particular phase.
Arada management was here to do the key handover in the beginning of February.
I took almost a month to finish the curtains and other interior work, get the electric, water and gas connections and all my furniture moved in, because I bought all new. March 1 was the first night we slept here.
We’re still settling in, and about 10-15 families have moved in since.
And, because of me, five of my cousins and friends have taken villas in other phases. Hopefully in another seven or eight months, I should be seeing them in the community.
How much did the villa cost?
I got a very good deal, slightly over Dh2.3 million. It’s now worth at least 50 per cent more than we paid for it.
The forested concept is something new. It’s a Sharjah version of Al Barari [in Dubai].
If I had to rent something like this, in this community, I would have to pay about Dh180,000-Dh200,000 a year.
What prompted you to buy?
I came to the UAE when I was 23. I’m 40 now and this is the place where I want to continue my career and to live.
Fortunately, we had enough savings to make the down payment.
We never thought of it as an investment, it was more for our own use.
But it has turned out to be one of our best investments so far.
I was previously living close to Terminal Two of Dubai Airport, because it was very close to my previous office. We lived in the same apartment for 14 years.
What drew you to this type of house?
I was exploring on the internet over a weekend; I wanted a contemporary design villa with a lot of greenery.
I got a call from a broker the next morning saying that there’s this project in Sharjah. I went to their office and by the same evening I’d decided.
My whole villa buying process took almost 20 hours.
This was the only project I’ve seen, although I’d been to other villas in Dubai, to friends’ and cousins’ places, such as Arabian Ranches.
We were looking for a three-bedroom, small villa because it’s a small family.
We believe in having less maintenance and spending our money on something else in life, not just a home. However, we wanted a room downstairs so we had to go for a bigger house.
What made you select this area?
I wanted my children to have access to activities and exercise.
Now, they play badminton in the evening, football or I see them cycling. They are fully engaged and most of the time away from their gadgets.
You can spend the whole day walking in the community and still explore only a third of it. The primary thing is green space; there’s a lot of it, about 150 varieties of trees, as if you are in a forest.
You have swimming pools, the open play area, small football grounds. They have a cycling track around the community, something we’re all going to use.
We have a food truck and a supermarket will open soon, as well as coffee shops. We don't need to go anywhere else.
The entire project is massive. The first phase, called Sendian, is huge but it's only one third of the whole project.
We really loved the theme, the construction quality. This was the last villa available in the whole community. We didn’t want to lose it so I immediately paid the down payment and closed the deal.
What improvements have you made?
I’ve done a lot of landscaping in a small space.
I removed sand and filled the garden with soil and put out planters.
I’ve got a barbecue area, new furniture and 70-plus plants in my garden, lots of bonsai, pebbles, automated irrigation, and a cosy lighting system.
Inside the house I did a minor bit of a work around the lighting system, put in towel holders in the bathrooms, curtains and installed a dishwasher.
How have you personalised the property?
I don’t like to touch my walls, so I haven’t done much except put up one or two paintings and some mirrors in the bedrooms.
I’ve installed some (motion) sensor lights in the staircase, more for a safety perspective, and a sophisticated integrated water purifier system under the kitchen sink.
Do you feel a financial advantage to owning versus renting?
If you want to rent a decent two-bedroom apartment in Dubai anywhere now, you won’t get anything for much less than Dh80,000.
For the past 14 years, I’ve been paying the same kind of rent, so it’s close to about Dh1.2 million.
Now I’ve got a property and if I calculate from a rental perspective, my mortgage repayment is probably the same, if not less.
Do you plan to sell if you leave the UAE?
I don’t have any plan to leave the country any time soon. If we left, we would rent this out.
This is the first home I bought anywhere, but I’m going to have a new house back home in Kerala soon. It’s under construction.
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
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SERIE A FIXTURES
Saturday (UAE kick-off times)
Atalanta v Juventus (6pm)
AC Milan v Napoli (9pm)
Torino v Inter Milan (11.45pm)
Sunday
Bologna v Parma (3.30pm)
Sassuolo v Lazio (6pm)
Roma v Brescia (6pm)
Verona v Fiorentina (6pm)
Sampdoria v Udinese (9pm)
Lecce v Cagliari (11.45pm)
Monday
SPAL v Genoa (11.45pm)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
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
Ahmed Raza
UAE cricket captain
Age: 31
Born: Sharjah
Role: Left-arm spinner
One-day internationals: 31 matches, 35 wickets, average 31.4, economy rate 3.95
T20 internationals: 41 matches, 29 wickets, average 30.3, economy rate 6.28
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
info-box
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Happy Tenant
Started: January 2019
Co-founders: Joe Moufarrej and Umar Rana
Based: Dubai
Sector: Technology, real-estate
Initial investment: Dh2.5 million
Investors: Self-funded
Total customers: 4,000
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
A cryptocurrency primer for beginners
Cryptocurrency Investing for Dummies – by Kiana Danial
There are several primers for investing in cryptocurrencies available online, including e-books written by people whose credentials fall apart on the second page of your preferred search engine.
Ms Danial is a finance coach and former currency analyst who writes for Nasdaq. Her broad-strokes primer (2019) breaks down investing in cryptocurrency into baby steps, while explaining the terms and technologies involved.
Although cryptocurrencies are a fast evolving world, this book offers a good insight into the game as well as providing some basic tips, strategies and warning signs.
Begin your cryptocurrency journey here.
Available at Magrudy’s , Dh104
The schedule
December 5 - 23: Shooting competition, Al Dhafra Shooting Club
December 9 - 24: Handicrafts competition, from 4pm until 10pm, Heritage Souq
December 11 - 20: Dates competition, from 4pm
December 12 - 20: Sour milk competition
December 13: Falcon beauty competition
December 14 and 20: Saluki races
December 15: Arabian horse races, from 4pm
December 16 - 19: Falconry competition
December 18: Camel milk competition, from 7.30 - 9.30 am
December 20 and 21: Sheep beauty competition, from 10am
December 22: The best herd of 30 camels
The biog
Born: High Wycombe, England
Favourite vehicle: One with solid axels
Favourite camping spot: Anywhere I can get to.
Favourite road trip: My first trip to Kazakhstan-Kyrgyzstan. The desert they have over there is different and the language made it a bit more challenging.
Favourite spot in the UAE: Al Dhafra. It’s unique, natural, inaccessible, unspoilt.
Short-term let permits explained
Homeowners and tenants are allowed to list their properties for rental by registering through the Dubai Tourism website to obtain a permit.
Tenants also require a letter of no objection from their landlord before being allowed to list the property.
There is a cost of Dh1,590 before starting the process, with an additional licence fee of Dh300 per bedroom being rented in your home for the duration of the rental, which ranges from three months to a year.
Anyone hoping to list a property for rental must also provide a copy of their title deeds and Ejari, as well as their Emirates ID.
Bundesliga fixtures
Saturday, May 16 (kick-offs UAE time)
Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (4.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Freiburg (4.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Hertha Berlin (4.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldorf v Paderborn (4.30pm)
Augsburg v Wolfsburg (4.30pm)
Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (7.30pm)
Sunday, May 17
Cologne v Mainz (4.30pm),
Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (7pm)
Monday, May 18
Werder Bremen v Bayer Leverkusen (9.30pm)
The Saudi Cup race card
1 The Jockey Club Local Handicap (TB) 1,800m (Dirt) $500,000
2 The Riyadh Dirt Sprint (TB) 1,200m (D) $1.500,000
3 The 1351 Turf Sprint 1,351m (Turf) $1,000,000
4 The Saudi Derby (TB) 1600m (D) $800,000
5 The Neom Turf Cup (TB) 2,100m (T) $1,000,000
6 The Obaiya Arabian Classic (PB) 2,000m (D) $1,900,000
7 The Red Sea Turf Handicap (TB) 3,000m (T) $2,500,000
8 The Saudi Cup (TB) 1,800m (D) $20,000,000
