Almost 4 months ahead of its launch, the International Property Show, the annual event dedicated to regional developers and individual retailers in the UAE, is witnessing increased interest from participants keen to take part in the forthcoming edition. Organisers say both developers and investors are positive about the real-estate market in 2016, with new trends emerging on the scene.
International Property Show is a leading property sales event in Dubai open to consumers, trade visitors and business professionals. The exhibition offers a perfect platform for both international and local real estate markets to showcase their residential, commercial and mixed-use products and to conduct serious transactional business deals.
Speaking about the new trends in the property market in 2016, Dawood Al Shezawi, CEO, Strategic Marketing & Exhibitions, organizers of the International Property Show, quoted the Global Cities 2016 report by Knight Frank saying that regional property sector continues to evolve due to the changing market requirements, changes to regulation – such as the legislation to allow new investment vehicles, which can also help to attract significant amounts of inbound capital. He also said that the launches of mixed-use projects are offering a wide portfolio of characteristics that support investors.
“Diverse new trends are impacting the market, which makes it more immune against vicissitudes, and allow the market to be fierce fighter in its march towards further growth,” added Al Shezawi.
“Despite the fact that realty investors are more cautious due to subdued slowdown in the market, medium to long term investors say current market scenario offers as an opportunity to generate decent returns,” says Al Shezawi. “Investors understand there will be bumps along the road but the real estate industry moves on. Over the past couple of years, they have expressed overwhelming interest in the International Property Show to take advantage of the post-crisis expansion of emerging-market economies, and are still doing so.”68
“There are some who are starting to raise warning flags about where we are in the real estate cycle, pointing to volatile pricing data globally following a run of rising valuations and the potential of interest rate rises to impact the property market. However, there is still robustness in the real estate industry,” added Al Shezawi.
Forecasts show relatively stable match between supply and demand in realty market in the UAE and the region. Investors do seek out opportunities in new markets to consolidate their positions in some of the world’s greatest cities.
The Global Market Outlook 2016 report by EY said the outlook is far more positive, based on sound macro-economic fundamentals. First, a stable inflationary policy over the long term will continue to benefit asset prices; second, unemployment figures continue to show downward trend in most major markets, leading to increase demand for real estate; and third, commodity prices, which affect consumers and the real estate market, are low compared to recent years and look unlikely to rise significantly in the foreseeable future. When all these metrics are put together, there is a clear case for optimism, as the underlying business cycle that drives the need for real estate is stable.
“The stable growth in the UAE realty market has allowed supply to get closer to actual demand and this is a truly good sign economics speaking. Real estate funds continue to attract high levels of capital, with successful closures across the real estate investment spectrum, including value-added and opportunistic projects,” said Al Shezawi.
The Global Property Guide has recently placed the UAE in the 12th position in the Competitiveness Rating category after Switzerland, Singapore, United States, Finland, Germany, Japan, Hong Kong, Netherlands, United Kingdom, Sweden, and Norway. “There is no reason to be cautiously investing in the market. All of this will be discussed along with many other hot trends in the market at the forthcoming edition of the International Property Show,” Al Shezawi concluded.
International Property Show is considered a one-of-a-kind specialised fair as it primarily targets end-users who wish to do buy units on the spot. Al Shezawi said the show has been positioned as powerful retail platform targeting all types of potential buyers who can shop for properties with ease and comfort as shopping for goods in a retail store.
