Abu Dhabi
Cityscape Abu Dhabi kicked off on Tuesday with property developers showcasing a number of projects that are in different stages of completion.
The three-day event was inaugurated by Shaikh Hamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, chief of Abu Dhabi Crown Prince’s court and a member of the executive council of Abu Dhabi.
Aldar Properties is showcasing its Dh10 billion Al Ghadeer mixed-use master plan close to the Abu Dhabi-Dubai border.
Sales for the first neighbourhood of 611 homes began at Cityscape Abu Dhabi with a number of people lining up outside the Aldar stand to inquire about the latest offering from the Abu Dhabi based property developer.
The project will have more than 14,000 homes with the first phase expected to be completed in 2021. Maisonette prices start from Dh290,000 and town houses from Dh899,900.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the event, Talal Al Dhiyebi, CEO of Aldar Properties, expressed optimism about demand for affordable housing.
“We promised that we are going to focus on the affordable segment over the last few years. Today we brought that number close to over 5,000 units starting with Shams Meera with over 400 units, The Bridges with 1,300 units, Water’s Edge with 2,200 units and The Reflections with 400 units. Al Ghadeer master plan has over 14,000 units.”
He said there is demand for ‘affordable housing’ in Abu Dhabi with demand surpassing supply. “What Aldar is doing in the last few years is that we launched over 5,000 units in the affordable segment that we’ve never been developing before. We are continuing to launch new projects, which show that this particular segment of the market is underserviced and demand is more than supply. There are other segments of the market that are saturated.”
In 2017, Aldar achieved Dh3.5 billion worth of new off-plan sales despite the current market conditions, he said.
The company is also looking at acquisitions in Abu Dhabi and outside due to a number of opportunities available in the current markets opportunities, Al Dhiyebi added.
Bloom Properties, on the other hand said they are looking at international expansion with a project in Minnesota in the US for senior living housing.
“We are waiting for the final approval from the city. We already have a commercial building there, which we acquired, renovated and we are currently leasing,” Sameh Muhtadi, CEO of Bloom Holding told Gulf News.
Locally, the company has plans to develop community retail areas in Al Ain, he said.
It is also launching phase two of two projects in Dubai including Bloom Heights and Bloom Towers.
In Abu Dhabi, the firm is planning a major mixed use project in a 2.2 million square meter plot of land which will be constructed in six phases over a fifteen years period of time.
Speaking on the real estate market, Muhtadi said there will be a rebound in 2019 due to economic growth, stability, improvement in the price of oil and development of mega projects that will attract expats to the market. “I think all of these issues help real estate market and the demand.”
Other developers like Imkan, Tamouh Investments are also showcasing their projects at the event.
