PROPERTY

Dubai prices slump 40 per cent

August 2010

PROPERTY PRICES in Dubai have plunged by up to 40 per cent since December last year, a new study has found, as industry experts express hope in the possibility of an upturn in the real estate market of neighbouring Abu Dhabi.

Real estate consultancy firm Colliers International released the new figures as analysts try to take stock of a turbulent period in the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) previously buoyant property market.

The firm’s regional director, Ian Albert, said lay-offs made by Dubai-based companies had raised fears about job security among potential homeowners, deterring them from entering the market.

“Whilst we believe 2010 could see a levelling period and the hopeful matching of sellers’ and buyers’ expectations, in the absence of any strong underlying global indicators, this is at best optimistic,” Albert conceded in the report, additionally telling reporters at property exhibition Cityscape in Abu Dhabi that the Dubai market could have “further to fall”.

To see the full contents, please login or subscribe.