If you were just entering the market now... what would you do?

To all the Gurus who are already in the Property market.. this one is for you:

If you had to do it all over again... starting today.. and you only have 300,000 DH in the back... were would you buy your first property now???

(as you might have guessed... I am that person..

But since this would by my first investment.. .I don't wanna invest in the wrong place.... I was thinking of a studio at Bab-Al-Bader in RAK... I am thinking that would be like investing in the Palm 3 years ago... But then again... will i be able to flip it quickly?? I hate to be stuck with a property that I cannot sell !

Or should I buy in Dubai? With all those big investers around me... will I be having a chance within those big giants?? Emmar and Nakheel...? They are too big for me!

That do you think??

 

Have a back up retaining plan, in case you cannot flip.

RAK has the same " Build and they will come " policy like Dubai. Wherever it is, think of buying to rent. If you go with that in mind and if you can flip on the way ( which you want to )then it's a bonus for you.

Regards

Roshan

 

Hi SamSaf,

It seems that we are both in the same boat. We are late entrants to the market however, I believe it is never too late and the market has potential. I have bought a property in Ajman and planning to buy one soon in La Hoya bay. Even though the prices are higher there, I still believe that as infrastructure develops in RAK, properties prices should go higher. Furthermore, I found this blog very helpful. Visit it frequently for new launches and pre-launches and seek help if need be and i am sure you would learn with time and become efficient in dealing in real estate.

P.S. Bab Al BADAR sounds good but I think it is on the higher end.

Regards.

 

Hi

If I were you I would snap up a Nakheel Badrah apartment from launch 2 on the secondary market at a reasonable premium - 10 to 12% because you can be sure that even if you secure an appointment at badrah 3 launch it will cost more than badrah 2 with 10%. Try a studio or one bed.

IMHO this is a safe bet

 

samsaf,

I think before you leap into the market, there are some funadamentals that you need to look at.

What kind of investor are you? Do you wish to trade properties or do you wish to own for the long term.

I believe that the only reason to flip a property is because you need cash right now for something, or alternatively because you cannot get a mortgage.

I would suggest buying a good property like Emaar, take a 90% mortgage and hold for a longer period. The result is far less effort, stress and importantly bear in mind this achieves similar results to flipping. Leverage here is a key element.

As an example, I bought in the Greens 18 months ago, took a mortgage, so my only payment was the initial one. I sold last month at 55% premium = 3% per month. I think the really slick operators here may achieve better results through flipping, but many of them do this for a living and when you consider the idle time of their cash, the amount of effort required, you must ask yourself if that really is doing better. For the man in the street the mortgage longer term hold is better.

If the bank will give you a mortgage, it means the bank has faith in the developer. A lot of the northern emirates properties do not offer mortgages.......not to say its a bad investment, but think of how your buyer is going raise funds to buy from you.

I will also look at flipping, but I am putting another mortgage deal in place first.

 

You make a good point Kenny.
For me, the ideal portfolio is to do a bot of both. I have some props in Abu Dhabi that I have been holding for one year and they now attract a premium of 90%. I also like to flip on the occasion for cash flow as I am not mortgaging the longer term properties and I also think that some launches hgave far better short term prospects.

At the end of the day it is all about your personal strategy, risk management as well as a sound exit strategy.

 

Hi jennie,

I agree with you......flipping should be part of an overall strategy.

I would just like to make 2 points here :-

1. Flipping takes a certain level of expertise and know how......I don't think it a good strategy for a first time investor.

2. Leverage, leverage, leverage.......most people here know about it and use it. This is why launches are so popular. Lay out 5% and sell within a month at a 5% premium.....basically 1% premium = 20% profit.....great leverage. However, this gets weaker over time because of the amount of cash that you need to lay out gets bigger.

Case in point is Hydra Avenue Furnished Hotel Apartments in Abu Dhabi. IMHO a great investment, however at this stage with premiums of 20% and well into the 30/70 payment plan, I have to haul out almost 50% of the price to buy this great investment. In this case 1% premium = 2% profit.....not so great.

 

I have badrah phase 2, single bed unit at 10 percent premium. Mail me on iimz at hotmail dot com

 

RAK prpoerty

Hi brother, I don’t recommend you to invest in RAK, the property is very difficult to dispose off, it will take time. This is my personal experiance. It took me 6 months to sell of my Town house in Alhamrah Village RAK

I recommend you try to buy a property with minimum premium and easy payment plan, this will help you.

keep in mind you should be able to pay at least 2 installments with the money you have in pocket , and then sell it out . Dubai property is easy to sign off.

Two installments will stretch you up to six months, which is fair enough to earn approximately 100 to 150 dhs per sqft.

Try investing in studios, and the quickest to sell and carry a low price tag.

Try JVC .JVS / Dubai lands.

My last and final advice, don’t think too much while investing, nothing will happen to your original investment in Dubai, and you will never be stuck.

Leave the rest to God, Inshallah you will succeed.

All the best.

Haider

 

Haider,

Thanks a lot for the advice.. I will surely not take too much time to think... Time is money and you're practically losing money if you think too long...

is this rule applicable for all RAK properties? I've found a studio for a mere 650,000 in Al Humira village.. I think there should be more apperication in RAK as the prices are still low..?

Plus, I am a short term investor, I wanna get in and out between 6-9 months with max. proft.

With prices are shotting quite high in Dubai, will it be a good place to start from?

 

have you had a look at la hoya bay or pacific?

they're on Al Marjan island RAK....studios in pacific are quite cheap... not the best of views on wats left, but you can buy direct from the developer. Select Property..

check it out ...let me know what you think

 

Hi dear , in al hamrah village I bought a town house for 1.2 M and sell it for 1 .65 after one year , I only paid 30% , this mean I almost double my money, however it took me 6 months to sell it. The problem with RAK is property traders are not in the market, so one needs to find a real buyer, and they are normally Germans and Russians.

The decision is your, I may had a bad experience you may be lucky.

 

Hi,

I love this website, all the knowledge and expertise you can gain from the tips here in 2 days, would never have been possible without it. I wish I had discovered it first time I invested in Dubai.

I can find myself in many advices given, out of personal experience (except the mortgage). Mortgage can be effective for long term investment, but the hottest deals don't allow you to wait for the (pre-)approval from the bank until your mortgage is ready... especially for short term investment you don't want to go through all the hassle. I agree with Proper Property, that a good location, good developer and good paymentplan are very important in investing in an off-plan property. I would like to add good price and finance availability. I will explain each shortly:


Location: since you want to be somewhere that is attractive for most people to live/invest and in demand for when you want to sell. I always say investors see only in Blue and Green. Blue for See, canal or lake and Green for park, lawns or golf courses.

Paymentplan: is especially important for the leverage as Kenny explained. When the payment plan allows you to start off with 5%, every 1% increase in your selling price = 20% profit. This effect takes off when the payments are heavier.

Good developer: so your off-plan property actually turns into a "real property" within a decent timeframe and quality.

Price: You should always compare the price to the market price for the properties in that location, both when buying direct from developer and in re-sale. Good example is Badrah, which was way cheaper than other properties in Dubai Waterfront and even Downtown Jebel Ali at the time of launch of phase one.

Finance availability: is important, perhaps not for you, but for your buyer when you are looking to sell. When your property has finance, it is accessible for a wider public / prospective buyers increasing your chance to sell.


In general Nakheel projects, If you can get hold of them @ launch, offer good returns. But they are not the only one, Smaller developers like Fakhruddin, Deyaar and Rufi have also shown good returns to investors in the past. Regarding specific opportunities, I think Badrah has had it's Climax. With prices now around 1600/sqft. and premiums up to 20%, it is not that cheap and attractive anymore. RAK, is a place I really look up to, and believe will give good returns, but in a longer term. It is yet not so Hot as Dubai, so selling there in short term, with less players in the field is more difficult, I believe.

A studio in Remraam, Dubailand (around 700.000 AED ) if you find with a good price/sqft. and low premium, I think would be a good investment for you. Especially with your budget of 300.000 AED, you could buy one in phase 3, pay 2 instalments and keep till begin 2009 and sell with at least 100.000-120.000 profit.


I have also made a small Guide for Property Investment in Dubai that can be useful to u. If you like, you can email me at s.khabireh@gmail.com and I will send it to you.


Good luck with your first time investment...


Sally

 

Dear Sally,

Your advice are really great and help full, I appreciate it, I will send you an e mail please forward me your guide

Haider

 

Confused..want to enter but dont know how

Heloo everyone!
I have finally decided to jump on board with Dubai. I have AED 300,000 and want to invest in to dubai and possibly get out in 6 months time. If you were in my shoes what would you do. I am completly lost and confused. Sports City seems good but pre-launches have shot through the roof. Where to go if i follow the simple rule of good payment plans, great location and reputable developer??

Please Help

Uzair
contact me at mzavary on hotmail com

 

"Hi,

I love this website, all the knowledge and expertise you can gain from the tips here in 2 days, would never have been possible without it. I wish I had discovered it first time I invested in Dubai.

I can find myself in many advices given, out of personal experience (except the mortgage). Mortgage can be effective for long term investment, but the hottest deals don't allow you to wait for the (pre-)approval from the bank until your mortgage is ready... especially for short term investment you don't want to go through all the hassle. I agree with Proper Property, that a good location, good developer and good paymentplan are very important in investing in an off-plan property. I would like to add good price and finance availability. I will explain each shortly:


Location: since you want to be somewhere that is attractive for most people to live/invest and in demand for when you want to sell. I always say investors see only in Blue and Green. Blue for See, canal or lake and Green for park, lawns or golf courses.

Paymentplan: is especially important for the leverage as Kenny explained. When the payment plan allows you to start off with 5%, every 1% increase in your selling price = 20% profit. This effect takes off when the payments are heavier.

Good developer: so your off-plan property actually turns into a "real property" within a decent timeframe and quality.

Price: You should always compare the price to the market price for the properties in that location, both when buying direct from developer and in re-sale. Good example is Badrah, which was way cheaper than other properties in Dubai Waterfront and even Downtown Jebel Ali at the time of launch of phase one.

Finance availability: is important, perhaps not for you, but for your buyer when you are looking to sell. When your property has finance, it is accessible for a wider public / prospective buyers increasing your chance to sell.


In general Nakheel projects, If you can get hold of them @ launch, offer good returns. But they are not the only one, Smaller developers like Fakhruddin, Deyaar and Rufi have also shown good returns to investors in the past. Regarding specific opportunities, I think Badrah has had it's Climax. With prices now around 1600/sqft. and premiums up to 20%, it is not that cheap and attractive anymore. RAK, is a place I really look up to, and believe will give good returns, but in a longer term. It is yet not so Hot as Dubai, so selling there in short term, with less players in the field is more difficult, I believe.

A studio in Remraam, Dubailand (around 700.000 AED ) if you find with a good price/sqft. and low premium, I think would be a good investment for you. Especially with your budget of 300.000 AED, you could buy one in phase 3, pay 2 instalments and keep till begin 2009 and sell with at least 100.000-120.000 profit.


I have also made a small Guide for Property Investment in Dubai that can be useful to u. If you like, you can email me at and I will send it to you.


Good luck with your first time investment...


Sally"


Dear Sally,
Could please provide me with more information on Remraam and your guide.

Thanks
Uzair

 

hi there,

plz share your expertise and knowledge as I am also interested in Remram and would like to read through your guide. Appreciate it if you can email me at waqarahmadi@gmail.com. Thanks.

 

Hi THEENDORPHIN I would b interested in ur studio @ 850 sq foot. If interested contact me

 

Hi TheEndorphin!
I am also interested in your studios. Email me at mzavary@hotmail.com with details of what you have.

Thanks,

Uzair

 

Mail me at iimz at hotmail dot com, i will try to dispose them for you