Housing loans worth Dh7.5 billion will be distributed among Emiratis in Abu Dhabi as part of government efforts to provide its citizens with decent living standards.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed ordered the distribution late on Tuesday night. It is the first phase of an annual 5,000 housing-loan package for Emiratis in the capital that was announced by the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces this month.
No-interest loans are ordinarily granted to Emiratis in Abu Dhabi for the construction, expansion and renovation of a home.
Emiratis are also allotted the land on which they build their homes by the government. Those who earn a lower income are granted land with houses already built – these are plots of land in government housing projects such as Al Falah and Riyadh City.
According to Abu Dhabi Housing Authority, Emiratis seeking to build their own home on a granted plot of land are provided a loan of between Dh500,000 to Dh2 million.
The amount is to be repaid on equal monthly or easy instalments, as specified by ADHA, over a period of up to 25 years.
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Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed announces new social support programme
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The new 2,500 housing loans will be distributed across 1,300 construction loans at a total value of Dh2.4bn.
Up to 700 loans, valued at Dh1.24bn total, will be granted to Emiratis seeking to complete renovation of existing houses. Some 75 loans valued at Dh133m will go towards those demolishing or reconstructing their houses entirely, for demolition and reconstruction, 100 loans worth Dh89.8m for maintenance and expansion, and 325 additional loans costing more than Dh382m.
On Tuesday, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed also approved the allocation of 696 residential plots and 798 government houses at a total value of Dh1.6bn, in addition to 163 loans, worth Dh195.6m, for citizens to buy ready houses in different areas of the Abu Dhabi emirate.
He also sanctioned projects to build government houses in various areas of the capital, including 306 units in Al Sad and 204 in Sweihan, and ordered an expansion programme with 588 houses in Al Dhafra ranches, at a total value of Dh1.5bn.
Abu Dhabi’s new housing plans will push the country towards having 70 per cent private residence ownership among Emiratis by 2020, which would make it number one in the world for home ownership among citizens.
At 69 per cent, the UAE has the second-highest amount of residence ownership after Singapore. However, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, said this month that Abu Dhabi will double the number of housing loans and reduce waiting times for property allocation.
'Nightmare Alley'
Director:Guillermo del Toro
Stars:Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara
Rating: 3/5
How green is the expo nursery?
Some 400,000 shrubs and 13,000 trees in the on-site nursery
An additional 450,000 shrubs and 4,000 trees to be delivered in the months leading up to the expo
Ghaf, date palm, acacia arabica, acacia tortilis, vitex or sage, techoma and the salvadora are just some heat tolerant native plants in the nursery
Approximately 340 species of shrubs and trees selected for diverse landscape
The nursery team works exclusively with organic fertilisers and pesticides
All shrubs and trees supplied by Dubai Municipality
Most sourced from farms, nurseries across the country
Plants and trees are re-potted when they arrive at nursery to give them room to grow
Some mature trees are in open areas or planted within the expo site
Green waste is recycled as compost
Treated sewage effluent supplied by Dubai Municipality is used to meet the majority of the nursery’s irrigation needs
Construction workforce peaked at 40,000 workers
About 65,000 people have signed up to volunteer
Main themes of expo is ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’ and three subthemes of opportunity, mobility and sustainability.
Expo 2020 Dubai to open in October 2020 and run for six months
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
All the Money in the World
Director: Ridley Scott
Starring: Charlie Plummer, Mark Wahlberg, Michelle Williams, Christopher Plummer
Four stars