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Hi Breezw where would you suggest to buy?

I was thinking of Maina or JBR or alternatively a 2 bed villa - maybe at the Springs or A Ranches.

Any thoughts advice would be welcome!

It really depends on what you're buying for, to live in or to rent out. Take a development like Sport City in Dubai Land, that is going to be the hub of all sporting events and concerts in the near future and there ar only 3 hotels in the development, so there is opportunity for short term leases as people will come in and always need somewhere to stay. You're dealing with the maste developer, can get the property mortgaged upto 90% and either manage it yourself or get a company to do it for you. Several of my friends have invested there and I think it's a really good opportunity.

It really depends on your take on the market here, I can't see it going into a slump anytime soon, when so many people are coming here every month and the tourism industry is forever growing.

I for one have done my research have a good consultant and have made good, sound purchases which I'm very happy with.

please dont say you have invested in Sports City Chocs

ps there are only 2 hotels not 3 planned for sports city - that should tell you a lot Chocs ie: they are not expecting many people there

Its predicted to be as Successful as Endurance City AKA Ghost Town.

As part of the overall project being Dubai Land the success of this depends on the signing of Universal and Disney. Neither have yet committed.

Invest elsewhere Chocs, i will not charge you a "consultancy fee"

I think the Marina and even JBR are still good investments, watch the quality though some of them can be on the low side .

I personally don't like the look of the JBR towers but I can see it become lively in the future. I also think somewhere near a metro station like the JLTs wouldn't be a bad idea.

Good luck

Personally I think Silicon Oasis is better than alot of areas to invest in if being able to rent is your concern.With 93 companies signed up since April 2007,more to come and next to Academic City there will be plenty of takers.This doesnt even take into account the rumoured 30.000 workers Microsoft will be putting there.

been offered some 1 beds at jbr - ranging from approx 220k to 320k sterling - risk verus reward - seems 2 be more on the risk side presentaly!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes I did invest there. And there are 3 hotels not 2, The Cube, another independent one and one built and run by the master developers. Any other hotels will be condo apartments or serviced apartments.

Sport City is a great project, with lots of potential.

Thanks Arnie, but I already have my own consultant, who I do some referal work for, and they shouldn't charge for giving good advice, it doesn't work like that, they get money from commissions of sales, but sale no sale, not a problem, so long as the advise is good and that's what reputations are built on. Half the agents here will sell crap just to get the good commissions, which is not how it should be.

Anyway I'm sticking to my opinions, as I've done my research and I know what's good and what's not.

I dont think the fact that sports city has only 2 hotels is a major issue.Al Bawadi will have 31 and thats nearby.

Although I'm very much just a lay-man I also wouldn't touch sports city or any other of the developments springing up in the desert.

I'm not of the opinion that many major sporting events will take place there - what events would they be and what time of year (certainly not between may and sept) and who wants to live next to a sports stadium anyway?

I have bought in JBR and Í'm firmly of the belief that this area of dubai i.e marina, jbr, palm j, dubai promenade is a better investment. Whatever happens to this city, the marina and the beach will always be worth a visit. Not sure how many holiday makers will be visiting sports city. Equally this area will always be favoured by people working at media/internet city, jafz, business bay, new airport etc.

Location, Location, Location.

I wouldn't hold on to a sports city property for long, but if you can make a fast buck then good luck.

Just my opinion for what it's worth.

Arabian Ranches ...mmm....no I wouldn't go for that either. Traffic like hell and in the middle of nowhere..

Chocoholic wrote:Yes I did invest there. And there are 3 hotels not 2, The Cube, another independent one and one built and run by the master developers. Any other hotels will be condo apartments or serviced apartments.

Sport City is a great project, with lots of potential.

Thanks Arnie, but I already have my own consultant, who I do some referal work for, and they shouldn't charge for giving good advice, it doesn't work like that, they get money from commissions of sales, but sale no sale, not a problem, so long as the advise is good and that's what reputations are built on. Half the agents here will sell crap just to get the good commissions, which is not how it should be.

Anyway I'm sticking to my opinions, as I've done my research and I know what's good and what's not.

please see here Chocs

http://www.dubaisportscity.ae/living-in ... otels.html

As you can see there are indeed only 2 hotels planned. The Cube is a privately owned serviced residence. Again i repeat this should send alarm bells ringing. If the developer/s were confident that this would be a dead cert then why privatise?.

I am just giving you the benefit of my advice in buying/selling/investing property over the last 27 years Chocs. I have made **** up's i admit, but the lessons one learns in life the quickest, are the ones that costs one dear.

As an example if i remember back in 2005 you were most vocal in slagging off any form of propery purchase anywhere in dubai when I was telling you to buy. Had you followed that advice back then you would have been sat on a very nice sum of money indeed now.

It makes no difference to me whether or not you buy, personally i wouldn't, i am just trying to get you to focus as too whether or not its a wise investment. Dont get sucked into the hype and buyer beware especially as you feel the need to "consult". Ask your "consultant" how many deposits he has "personally" put up in Sports city then ask him to show you the purchase documents.

'Arabian Ranches in the middle of no-where'.Its just about the best villa development in Dubai by far and poss the best residential development of all.A town within a city and only 30 mins from the beach.Also when Dubailand is finished it will be right on the doorstep.

There are reports that Dubai will try for the 2020 Olympic Games. Sports City property will be in demand if that happens.

2020 is a long way off.I dont think Dubai will get the Olympics as it would be way too hot to have it in August and I just cant see them moving it to say May or October.

Olympics are not a possibility here because of the above stated reasons. Unless Nakheel is planning on flipping out again and launching a "cover for the sky" development

Alex1111. It will still feel like the middle of nowhere to me even with Dubailand or at least that's what it feels like when you're on the coast (ie: Marina, Jumeirah).

You know Dubailand's effect will ware off very quickly it's only good when you're a tourist or visiting , when you're a resident you think about things like getting to work and back quickly , getting to the nearest mall, bar , beach , show or whatever without having to spend an hour in the car.

I'll say it again even a beautifull mansion is only worth where it is

That's my personal view mate.


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Arnie, I beg to differ seeing as I was working for BMG the developers of the Cube! It's a reputable German company.

It's a 5 star hotel! Individual investors buy the apartments and the builing runs as a hotel by an independent operator, the investors take a share of the profits made by the hotel. It will run this way for a contracted 20 years, after that period the investors decide if they wish the building to continue running as a hotel or they wish to take possession of the apartments for themselves. Each investor gets 30 days stay per annum within the hotel, not necessarily in the apartment they have purchased.

This way of working things has worked all over the world, but it's a new concept for Dubai.

You can visit the website www.bmg-group.de

The 2 hotels mentioned on the Sport City website will be product of the master developer, hence no mention of the others, of which there is only 1 - The Cube.

And am I not allowed to change my opinion? Alot has changed in the last 3 years, I've done alot of research an have a friend who works in property as a consultant and he refuses to sign up to or advise people to buy bad investments.

I've made my choice, I've formulated my opinions based of research, why can't you just accept that?

No need to be so crabby because my opinion differs to yours Chocs. I am well aware of the Cube, i considered purchasing there. Like i said dont be sucked in by the hype.

http://www.thecubedubai.co.uk/the_cube_ ... hecube.asp

I was merely trying to get you to focus and evaluate the pro's and cons of an investment as i would any friend. I am also aware of the BMG Group as this featured heavily in their sales pitch.

They have NO track record Chocs, the Cube being their only their 2nd project world-wide. This concept is not tried and tested and has no track record.

It is not going to be a 5* hotel, in fact, the official name for the building is going to be "The Cube Condo Residence". Its basically Timeshare with Individual appartment owners Chocs. The Germans are heavilly into this form of scam.

Reputable investors laugh at this concept, and is sold to those idiots who "want to live the dream", and usually sign up whilst on holiday whilst their heads are still in cloud cuckoo land. Time has proved that Timeshare or its derivatives are far from a good investment and the winners are always the developers and managing agents.

There is a guy living up the road from me (Bath), he is halfway through his 15 year stetch, compliments of Her Majesty for taking holiday punters in Teneriffe for £millions. His other business at the time was being the man behind the "Brinks - Matt Robbery", aka Mr Goldman.

Everything in their (BMG) literature is based on assumptions in particular projected income. Unfortunately they make no projections re: the expenditure/ running costs. But they dont have too do they? They have no capital investment in the building, and If no profit is made or even a loss, you and the 527 others will foot the bill. They are in a "no loose" situation. They worst case scenario for them is "break-even", and dump off after 20 years.

The only one they have up and running is the Kaiserdamm and they seem proud to advertise that towels are only changed weekly . Hardly 5* dont you agree ?

No disrespect Chocs, but you were posting originally advocating too others what a great investment it was. You have a right to post your opinion, likewise so do i. My comments although directed at you are there for all to read.

Anyways, Good Luck with your investment Chocs.

Hi on HSBC's website regarding mortgages they stae they will fund JBR up to 60% of value but Arabian Ranches at 85% of value.

Is there any a reason for this or is it because they feel the value of Arabian Ranches is more robust than JBR?

thanks

Well there is a bit of promotion too there ...

To me it looks like some banks try give a push to some developments by offering more , if you ask them they say that it's a safe investment for them (low risk).

suncoast wrote:Hi on HSBC's website regarding mortgages they stae they will fund JBR up to 60% of value but Arabian Ranches at 85% of value.

Is there any a reason for this or is it because they feel the value of Arabian Ranches is more robust than JBR?

thanks

This is a very good observation.
In the early days none of the banks were financing the premiums.
They then started financing a portion of the premiums on villas only.
Now they are financing 85-90% of the full purchase price of villas and in your case 60% for JBR.
Banks in the UAE don't lend money unless they are certain they will get it back.
This tells me that the banks are gaining confidence in the market, but still a bit careful regarding apartments.
As for the Olympics. It would certainly be a huge boost to the whole Dubai real estate market, not just sports city.

ADCB financed 90% of my JBR purchase 3 weeks ago.

Hi John - can i ask what you bought at JBR, how much and waht agent you used?

Also re your mortgage have you been livin in Dubai for some time?

Thanks in advance!

1 bed, high floor, full sea view. 1.2m betterhomes. I agreed the price and signed mou back in sept, think prices are a bit higher now. 2 years in dxb. but I only needed 3 month bank statements.

Arnie, it's not a time share! There will be an appointed operator who runs the building as a hotel, what isn't there to understand about that? The investors don't get involved with the running of the place whatsoever.

I'm well aware that it's called 'Condo residence' having WORKED FOR BMG, dealing with all the clients. But it will still run as a 5 star hotel, that's the whole point of the project.

Anyway I was up at Sport City today and it's starting to look really good, the Victory Heights Villas are lovely. I really can't see that big names like Ernie Els, Manchester United, David Lloyd and the ICC moving it's head quarters there, doing so if they felt it was a bad project.

I like the apartments in JBR and the Marina, but it just all feels too cramped over there.

When it comes to mortgages, each bank decides which project to tie in with, financing certain developments can still be a problem and you might not have a choice with the bank you end up dealing with. And watch out for the level of financing offered, very often they'll tell you they offer a certain percentage, but the level of financing you actually get will depend on your salary, so many people will have to be prepared to pay more cash upfront.

Chocs no one said it was a bad project, i said it was a crap investment. By the way David Lloyd has a Tennis Academy 5 miles down the road in Bristol, he has lots of others, its no big deal.

The ICC is there because a/they have a deal they cant refuse ie FREE and b/ 99.99999999999999999 % of the population may find out who they are and what they do. They are already in Dubai at Media City and occupy the Janitors Room next to the gents restroom in Building 2

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/cricket/4326601.stm

Man U is there because of a/ above and b/ Becks, Cole, Rooney and co want somewhere to kick a ball around in private .

The investors have EVERYTHING to do with the running of the buiding, they bought it , and......... pay the estimated 15% management fee's and 15 dhs per sq foot maintenance charge.

So........ they basically have paid millions for an appartment they can only use 30 odd days a year, then shell out money to a management company that has not produced any form of estimated expenditure and can give NO Guarantee of returns. If a loss is made, the contract states that the Residents must make up the shortfall.

Sounds awfully like an "up market" version of timeshare to me Chocs.

Unless sports city can sign up some regular big sporting events then it could be a dud.Football games will always be Man U,Milan etc for pre-season games or meaningless tournaments like the one just past,so forget that.Cricket,again exhibition games only so forget that too.Hockey the same.Theres no tennis courts as far as I know so no ATP events.Even if they could put on a big meaningful event whos going to watch?population in Dubai is currently 1.5million,maybe 2 million when SC is complete so expect small crowds as with the golf last week.Theres the swimming world champs in dubai in two years but not gonna be in SC also.Personally I dont get the point of SC.

there will be no pre season football training in Sports City - July/August the perfect temperature yer right

Your right,too hot for pre season.So whats the point of the football stadium?think this will be a big white elephant