... Ahhh - here we go: Hte Palm Jebel-Ali Investments are doing a "formation nose-dive" with their Jumeirah sibling - as found in
ArabianBusiness.com - Middle East Business, Financial & Industry News, Events & Information
"House prices on the Palm Jebel Ali, second largest of Nakheel’s palm-shaped islands, have fallen by as much as 40 percent in the last two months as the global financial crisis sees foreign investors move to liquidate assets in Dubai, according to three Dubai-based real estate agents.
“I never expected [prices on the Palm Jebel Ali] would have come back so quickly and by so much,” said Jeroen Van Der Geer, partner at AA Properties in Dubai. “We are back to a level of one and a half to two years ago.”
The global financial crisis has hit demand from foreign investors, which make up a large percentage of property buyers in Dubai, while tightening liquidity has made home financing more difficult, agents said.
Local mortgage providers have slashed home financing from 90 percent to as little as 60 percent in recent weeks.
The price of five and six bedroom signature villas, the most expensive properties on Palm Jebel Ali, have dropped from around 16 million dirhams ($4.35 million) to 9 million dirhams since the beginning of September, according to figures from AA Properties.
But that still represents a premium of between 70 percent to 80 percent on the original launch prices.
A four-bed garden home has fallen from around 7.4 million dirhams to 4.1 million dirhams, according to the figures, with the premium dropping from around 160 percent to 45 percent.
The figures show a three-bed water home, the cheaper of the Palm Jebel Ali properties, is now selling for around 3.8 million dirhams, when at the beginning of September it was selling for 6.2 million dirhams, with the premium falling from about 210 percent to 90 percent.
Jodie Smith, managing director of Elysian Real Estate, said garden homes were currently selling at around 4.5 million dirhams, compared to 8.6 million at the beginning of September, while water homes had come down to around 4 million dirhams from 6.5 million dirhams.
David Rowland, sales consultant at Dubai’s Smith & Ken Real Estate, said he had seen premiums on signature villas drop from 200-210 percent in July/August to 75-80 percent currently.
Rowland said he had also seen garden homes selling at a 35-40 percent premium, compared to 130-160 percent in July/August.
He described the drop as “quite alarming”.
By Claire Ferris-Lay and Dylan
ArabianBusiness.com - Middle East Business, Financial & Industry News, Events & Information