Aston Edwards, Sr. Global Property Consultant of Gulf Sotheby's International Realty, talks about downfall in Dubai's property prices, residential market values, market predictions, and agency's newest projects.
In the past few months, the real estate market in Dubai has witnessed an extreme downfall, what are your long term and short term predictions of the market?
The real estate market is the same all around the world. It is one big wheel that goes around and, at certain points things slow down. After going up so much, we need to stabilise ourselves. So, 2008/09 after the world crises, we were in a buyers market and now, 7 to 8 years later, we are in the sellers market. When the wheel changes direction, it doesn’t just happen – it is a process for things to correct themselves and it takes a while for people to adapt to new situations and that would be sellers needing to accept a loss on their real estate and buyers not being so nervous to invest because the market is trending downwards.
It is about knowing the right opportunity when to buy as it is very common for people to buy when the market is up and when there is many sales transactions going on. But most people are hesitant to buy when the market is correcting itself. Dubai is more developed now than it was 10 years ago because now we have more facilities that allow us to research 2008 prices. Also people have been here for 10 years so they know what the prices were at that time.
Short-term predictions – we will continue to see more end-users as the investors have invested off- plan and bought directly from developers such as Emaar. In 2017, we will see more transactions and the market going at the speed that it was going on before. The closer we get to Expo 2020 in Dubai, the market will create a buzz within itself and we will all come back together and more trading will be going on.
Have you expected a fall in property values? To which factors can be attributed sales price declines?
Yes, I expected this. I worked in the real estate market for 9 years in London and Dubai and sometimes you know when something reaches a limit when you’ve been in the cycle more than once. Around the announcement of Expo 2020, there was a lot of excitement in Dubai with people buying properties but I always knew when it was announced that everything has to go back to normal to how they were prior to the announcement.
What will happen to the residential market values in 2016?
In 2016, we have seen prices decreased. In some areas average 30%, but we have also seen the rents stable. So this is a good time for an investor to buy because he is still achieving a higher rent to a 30% lower sales price, therefore he is receiving a higher renting than his neighbour and receiving a good deal on his investment.
I have also noticed a lot of areas on the outer skirt such as Sports City, JVC etc. are more developed and more people are attracted to these areas as some people cannot afford places like Downtown and Dubai Marina. So wherever you buy there is or will be a demand.
What is the situation in the Luxury segment?
The luxury segment would always be the same. It is a unique market for the selected buyers. The people that invest 10 million+ dirhams, would buy this luxury property for their families and not being affected so much by the current market situations whether up or down.
Has the fall in Dubai property prices come to an end?
No. Dubai is still a new developing place where people are still curious about. It attracts millions of tourist a year, it has a large number of western expats and offers a good style of living for everyone and companies are still moving here for tax reasons. I have actually noticed more people on the roads this year more than I have seen the past 5 years.
Who are the largest investors in Dubai real estate?
The largest are definitely the Indian nationals, the second I would say Pakistani, and the third it is a mix of everyone – from Europeans to North Africans to Gulf.
Could you describe your real estate agency and its speciality?
Gulf Sotheby’s International Realty holds a reputation of professionalism, service, and quality worldwide. It is the only real estate company in the UAE that has the biggest marketing team, has won exclusive projects of prestigious developers for exclusive sales and marketing, and has the unrivalled capacity to connect buyers and sellers around the world.
We do a lot of cross-selling to Europe and North America and we also receive a lot of referrals from Asia and Africa. There is no other real estate company that has the manpower, experience or budget to maintain itself in a stabilising market like Gulf Sotheby’s International Realty.
What differentiates your agency from others to attract buyers and sellers?
Our business credentials. How and where we can market your property. Our services, our professionalism, our highly experienced team of elite brokers in Dubai, as well as our international reach and connection, which enable us to network globally.
What does an agency have to do to set itself apart and be viable? What are your major assets?
The global Sotheby’s International Realty® affiliate network is a powerful real estate brand and network because of 3 key factors: our brand heritage (Sotheby’s), the unique marketing that is available only through us alone, and the exceptional people we have.
What is the clientele profile that you target?
We believe that anyone is a potential client. We target everyone. There are no restrictions on budget, nationality or area. Business speaks in all different languages. So whoever wants to work with us, we will work with them.
The digital world is in constant development, as a real estate agent, how do you approach this new era? What are your strategies?
Gulf Sotheby’s International Realty understands that property marketing takes a comprehensive set of skills, as well as an integrated marketing plan. Our Property Marketing Services GCC & Global Reach is designed to intelligently showcase properties with targeted exposure to a coveted and influential audience. The plan includes innovative and impactful approaches based on current marketing trends, as well as exclusive partnerships with the world’s most influential media reaching all corners of the globe, such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Mansion Global, Architectural Digest, James Edition, and Financial Times. Gulf Sotheby’s International Realty leverages both brand marketing and property advertising to create more opportunities locally and globally.
The goal is to present the properties to a broad yet targeted audience of potential intenders, tenants and buyers, who value and seek the unique. Also, I think it is really important to stay in tune with social media.
Additionally, I also believe that the best way of doing business is a face-to-face interaction with the client especially here in the Middle East. Once you have made contact with the client, it needs to be personal and meeting for a coffee every now and then works wonders.
To be accurate, as an intermediary in the transactions between clients, how do you handle the systems that keep track of clients, deals and forecasted sales?
For me, everyone who I speak to, I make a note and a follow-up date. I do my best to qualify all my clients to find their current situation, to find out the value of their real estate, why are they selling and where they are going to invest next.
I always believe that after three minutes of conversation on the phone, clients always open up a bit more and then you open a discussion rather than being a cold call agent. Most clients who work with Gulf Sotheby’s International Realty are always happier to open up and talk about further potential investments.
To know generally of my area of transactions, I network with a few brokers and I speak to most sellers. That way, some way or another, you always find out what is sold and who sold it.
What are your recommendations to your potential buyers and sellers?
My recommendation to buyers and sellers is to work with one or two agents, do not make multiple offers and play agents off each other. Give your real estate exclusivity and allow two professional brokers maximum to take care of your estate. I believe if sellers respect the market more, buyers won’t be so confused about the value of the property because when you search online you see the same property advertised with different prices with different brokers and that causes confusion in the market.
About Gulf Sotheby’s International Realty
Headquartered in Dubai, Gulf Sotheby’s International Realty has over 90 global property consultants and represents exclusive properties and a multitude of prestigious project developments in the UAE, UK, and Turkey.
Partnerships with more than 845 affiliate offices with over 19,000 independent sales agents in 63 countries and territories through the Sotheby’s International Realty® network give Gulf Sotheby's International Realty the unrivalled expertise and global connection to artfully unite extraordinary properties with extraordinary lives
