Dreaming of Home in Dubai
As Towers in the Upper Marina Rise-upphotos: 8-Dec-2006
Dream Estate: MAG 218 tower on offer.
If there is anything that keeps prospective buyers of UAE property from ultimately casting their lot with a purchase, it is just that. It feels like casting a lot. It isn't like the dream home experience one is likely to experience in another country, where you start with a mental image of what you want, consult architects and builders, negotiate the specifics upon which a contract is drawn up, and arrange finances. Once work gets underway and construction proceeds you monitor the progress, discuss alterations if the need arises, and within months or a year or two, you have your dream home--no mystery, no surprises.
The Dubai Way
Unfortunately, it isn't anything at all like that in the UAE. Whatever images exist in one's mind of the dream home, you start out by looking at ads and brochures. You may in fact had not yet been considering a home purchase, but the fanciful ads tempt you. You settle on the property that appeals to you most or comes closest to your specifications. You sign the contract then arrange finances, or vice versa. From there on it is step back and watch. You make payments over the span of a year or two, while waiting two, three or four years for the project to be finished.
What goes down eventually comes up: Marina 23's foundation pit makes progress.
You had no input in decisions on size, layout or design, much less on materials, contractors, etc. Nor were you allowed any input or permitted to make modifications in the contract. It is a completely take-it-or-leave-it proposition.
As the years pass you keep your fingers crossed and wait for the day you are handed your keys. For some there will be surprises, maybe even disaster. Then you are faced with a decision to either wage endless battle or make do with what you have. If lucky, however, the end product will be passable if not exactly what you had been expecting. After a two, three or four year wait, you'll have your dream home Dubai style.
On the Rise: Marina Pinnacle rises above its podium.
But if the success of such a huge investment is, as some might say, in God's hands, then why do so many take the plunge? Is it faith, greed or naiveté? Or is the situation really not as bad as portrayed here?
The most suitable answer is probably, Yes, to all of the above. Some are acting on faith in the reputation of the builder, in Dubai and its rulers and, I suppose, in God. As time progresses and projects get completed (or not) it becomes easier to judge the reputation and reliability of a given developer.
Laws are being implemented on both the federal and emirate level, although often lacking detail. In the early days, and even now for many projects, trusting the developer and the government of Dubai, Ras Al Khaimah or any other emirate or Gulf state, was in large measure an exercise in faith.
Topping Out: Emirates Marina Serviced Residences reaches 59 floors, 254 meters.
Others who buy are so attracted to the chance to make quick money that they are willing to take risks. In this case, the early days were when there was the greatest potential to make substantial profit on one's investment. Though it is still possible to flip property and make money, it is harder to do so when there is so much choice available direct from developers. The rate of increase in property values is considerably lower than it had been and some are predicting a property glut.
Finally, there is the buyer who simply lacks experience. Many will have never bought property before in any country, and some will just be lured by the utter simplicity of making a purchase. Without the need or even the option to offer input, buying a home is almost as simple as point and click. Overseas buyers, especially, are likely to appreciate that there are few details to haggle over. It is both buyer naivety and the convenience in simplicity that lead some to take the ultimate plunge.
Final Stages: Marina Crown with finishing touches being done on exterior and interior.
Dreaming of Dubai Marina
There are other things that distinguish buying one's dream home in Dubai from doing so in other places. That home in Dubai is likely to be perched high above ground level. Unlike Hong Kong or Manhattan islands where building vertically was, in part, out of necessity, in Dubai sitting high is all about prestige--firstly for the developer who is able to proclaim, "This is what I've built," and secondly for the homeowner who hopes to be able to say just as proudly, "This is where I live." Buying a home in the sky in the Dubai Marina is an attractive way to fulfill the Dubai dream. The Marina is, in fact, home more to condominium towers than boats. In this regard, building a home in Dubai is bound to be different from elsewhere--yet it isn't for the faint of heart.
Dream Fulfilled: Recently completed Marina Heights tower stands tall.
Would you buy property in Dubai? Tell why in a poll.
Return to MAG 218 Community homepage.
Dream Estate: MAG 218 tower on offer.If there is anything that keeps prospective buyers of UAE property from ultimately casting their lot with a purchase, it is just that. It feels like casting a lot. It isn't like the dream home experience one is likely to experience in another country, where you start with a mental image of what you want, consult architects and builders, negotiate the specifics upon which a contract is drawn up, and arrange finances. Once work gets underway and construction proceeds you monitor the progress, discuss alterations if the need arises, and within months or a year or two, you have your dream home--no mystery, no surprises.
The Dubai Way
Unfortunately, it isn't anything at all like that in the UAE. Whatever images exist in one's mind of the dream home, you start out by looking at ads and brochures. You may in fact had not yet been considering a home purchase, but the fanciful ads tempt you. You settle on the property that appeals to you most or comes closest to your specifications. You sign the contract then arrange finances, or vice versa. From there on it is step back and watch. You make payments over the span of a year or two, while waiting two, three or four years for the project to be finished.
What goes down eventually comes up: Marina 23's foundation pit makes progress.
You had no input in decisions on size, layout or design, much less on materials, contractors, etc. Nor were you allowed any input or permitted to make modifications in the contract. It is a completely take-it-or-leave-it proposition.
As the years pass you keep your fingers crossed and wait for the day you are handed your keys. For some there will be surprises, maybe even disaster. Then you are faced with a decision to either wage endless battle or make do with what you have. If lucky, however, the end product will be passable if not exactly what you had been expecting. After a two, three or four year wait, you'll have your dream home Dubai style.
On the Rise: Marina Pinnacle rises above its podium.
But if the success of such a huge investment is, as some might say, in God's hands, then why do so many take the plunge? Is it faith, greed or naiveté? Or is the situation really not as bad as portrayed here?
The most suitable answer is probably, Yes, to all of the above. Some are acting on faith in the reputation of the builder, in Dubai and its rulers and, I suppose, in God. As time progresses and projects get completed (or not) it becomes easier to judge the reputation and reliability of a given developer.
Laws are being implemented on both the federal and emirate level, although often lacking detail. In the early days, and even now for many projects, trusting the developer and the government of Dubai, Ras Al Khaimah or any other emirate or Gulf state, was in large measure an exercise in faith.
Topping Out: Emirates Marina Serviced Residences reaches 59 floors, 254 meters.
Others who buy are so attracted to the chance to make quick money that they are willing to take risks. In this case, the early days were when there was the greatest potential to make substantial profit on one's investment. Though it is still possible to flip property and make money, it is harder to do so when there is so much choice available direct from developers. The rate of increase in property values is considerably lower than it had been and some are predicting a property glut.
Finally, there is the buyer who simply lacks experience. Many will have never bought property before in any country, and some will just be lured by the utter simplicity of making a purchase. Without the need or even the option to offer input, buying a home is almost as simple as point and click. Overseas buyers, especially, are likely to appreciate that there are few details to haggle over. It is both buyer naivety and the convenience in simplicity that lead some to take the ultimate plunge.
Final Stages: Marina Crown with finishing touches being done on exterior and interior.
Dreaming of Dubai Marina
There are other things that distinguish buying one's dream home in Dubai from doing so in other places. That home in Dubai is likely to be perched high above ground level. Unlike Hong Kong or Manhattan islands where building vertically was, in part, out of necessity, in Dubai sitting high is all about prestige--firstly for the developer who is able to proclaim, "This is what I've built," and secondly for the homeowner who hopes to be able to say just as proudly, "This is where I live." Buying a home in the sky in the Dubai Marina is an attractive way to fulfill the Dubai dream. The Marina is, in fact, home more to condominium towers than boats. In this regard, building a home in Dubai is bound to be different from elsewhere--yet it isn't for the faint of heart.
Dream Fulfilled: Recently completed Marina Heights tower stands tall.
Would you buy property in Dubai? Tell why in a poll.
Return to MAG 218 Community homepage.
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