Property transactions in Dubai jumped 21 per cent to Dh63 billion in the first half of 2012 compared to the same period last year, while transactions surged 82 per cent in value terms quarter-on-quarter, reflecting growing confidence among investors, Dubai Land Department on Monday. Total transactions reached 18,953, with plot sales and mortgages dominating the first half transaction activity, with 3,522 deals worth Dh42.3 billion taking place. A total of 14,428 sale and mortgage transactions on apartments and villas, valued at Dh18 billion, were registered during the period, while 1,003 building sale and mortgage transactions, valued at over Dh 2.7 billion, were recorded. On an average, there were 133 transactions per day and 16 transactions per hour, the Land Department said. Emirates 24/7 had reported earlier that overall property sales for the first quarter of 2012 had touched Dh22.34 billion with cash transactions dominating the total. In 2011, a total of 35,297 real estate transactions of Dh143 billion were reported compared to Dh123 billion in 2010. Land sales dominated 2011 with plot sales and mortgages amounting to Dh94 billion. Total transactions for apartments were 26,465 valued at Dh43 billion while villa transactions touched Dh6 billion. Rising trust among investors Sultan Butti bin Mejrin, Director General of the Dubai Land Department , in a statement, said transactions grew by 21 per cent in the six months of the year compared to the same period last year due to the government's support and facilitation which resulted in enhancing the trust among local, Arab and international investors. Mejrin added that the real estate market in Dubai has shown high levels of flexibility in meeting investor requirements and trends during the first half, especially the new investors looking to benefit from the "price correction" that emerged in the past two years. He said prices have increased in the past few months due to the high demand for land, villas and flats in certain areas. In the first half, Dubai saw 14,652 sales transactions, worth Dh30.8 billion, 49 per cent of the total value of transactions, while 3,363 mortgages transactions worth Dh29.6 billion, 47 per cent of the total value of transactions. A total of 938 musataha, grants and other types of transactions valued at Dh2.6 billion were registered. The results of the first half showed that the dominant transactions were for plots sale and mortgage. Due to "attractive" offers, apartment sale and mortgage transactions outperformed the transactions on villas given their scarcity, Hamda Al Shamsi, Deputy Director, Real Estate Development Department, Dubai Land Department , said in the statement. The number of sale and mortgage transactions for plots totalled 3,522 valued at Dh42.4 billion during the six months of the year. A total of 2,198 plots transactions, worth Dh14.4 billion were done in cash, while 1,092 transactions, worth Dh25.9 billion, were done through mortgages. In the first half, 1,003 building sale and mortgage transactions of Dh2.7 billion were reported out of which 628 building were sold for Dh1.6 billion, while 344 building mortgage transactions worth Dh1.1 billion were documented. A total of 14,428 sale and mortgage transactions on flats and villas worth Dh18 billion were carried out in the first half. In detail, 11,826 sale transactions worth Dh14.7 billion and 1,927 mortgage transactions worth Dh2.5 billion were recorded. However, there was a disparity in the breakup given for plots, building and flat/villa transactions. Market stabilising Market experts say that figures show that the realty sector is back in the reckoning, with Dubai benefiting from its safe haven status. "New businesses even from the Eurozone are looking to open office and buy properties here. Besides, mortgage terms have been relaxed by banks and LTVs have substantially gone up, aiding a number of people to buy properties who have been sitting on the fence for some time now," Parvees Gafur, CEO, PropSquare Real Estate, told Emirates 24/7. Earlier this week, the UK-based Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said funds for investment in the UAE commercial property market are beginning to rise with capital values expectations turning positive for the coming quarter - first time since 2008. Jones Lang LaSalle has said that the Dubai residential real estate market appears to have bottomed out as prices are now at rates similar to early 2008 levels and the general rental trend being positive. Emirates 24|7
