Dubai’s Public Beaches among Best in World
Dubai’s government has been pouring capital into its tourist sector ahead of hosting World Expo 2020, spending almost €50m to develop the Emirate’s public beaches as part of its investment drive.
As an endorsement of Dubai’s success, The Telegraph recently listed the Emirate’s public beaches among the most popular in the world along with beaches in Paris, Sydney, Shanghai, Rio de Janeiro, Barcelona, Athens, Los Angeles and Cape Town.
Dubai ‘s public beaches are considered one of the most important landmarks in the Emirate and are visited by hundreds of thousands of residents and tourists throughout the year. Beaches from Al Mamzar Creek to Dubai Marina have been improved to provide first-class facilities, services and free internet access, scoring them high among the international beach resorts covered by the survey.
Alia Abdul Rahim Al Harmoudi, director of the environmental department of Dubai Municipality said: ” The effort and interest in improving the services in all the beaches has helped in the nomination of Dubai for the global accreditation “.
She added that the municipality is also working on strengthening the safety and rescue services in all the open beaches in the emirate and improving the quality of the coastal environment by launching educational campaigns on how to protect the environment and how to stay safe when visiting the Emirate’s beaches.
A good tourist infrastructure is vital when considering a property investment in a resort area and a strong government commitment to expand tourism further is a great growth opportunity.
Dubai’s hotel and hospitality sector has enjoyed significant growth since 2014, with many more large-scale luxury hotel projects in the pipeline over the next five years. Consequently, investment in Dubai hotel rooms is currently booming with the supply/demand dynamic spitting out high value opportunities for savvy buyers.
Britons are the third top investors in Dubai real estate, beaten only by Indians and Pakistanis. Statistics from the Dubai Land Department show there are around 19,000 Britons who have invested in the Emirate’s property so far, spending more than £1.6bn during 2014 alone.
Dubai’s tax-free status is one of the biggest attractions for property investors, with zero taxation on rental income and capital gains. Additionally, foreigners have been allowed to buy property with freehold rights since 2002 and mega-events such as 2020’s World Expo is enhancing the Emirate’s appeal to property investors even further.
 
Article by +Roxanne James on behalf of Propertyshowrooms.com
Novotel Brand to Open First Hotel in Manila, Philippines
Tourism in the Philippines is expected to grow by an average of around 5% annually to 2020 and its hotel sector is just beginning to boom.
Novotel are the latest international brand to seize an opportunity in the Philippines main resort destination of Manila, with its four-star hotel set to rise as the sixth and last tower of Century Properties Group’s mega-development of luxury condominiums, Acqua Private Residences.
International real estate researchers Colliers have reported that growing interest in the Philippines as a tourist destination and a business investment option has been driving hotel rooms rates to consistently increase in Metro Manila.
President and chief executive officer of Century Properties Group (CPG) , Jose Antonio remarked on the potential of an ever-growing and booming Philippine tourism.
” We view tourism as one of the low-hanging fruits of the Philippine economy. The country has an abundance of tourist attractions, a rich culture and natural propensity for service and hospitality. We believe that the tourism industry still has a lot of potential to catch up with powerhouses such as Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia and Century Properties sees revenue doubling by 2020, ” he stated to The Manila Times, June 23.
Novotel Suites Manila will become part of the internationally renowned AccorHotels Group of companies with Novotel branding and will stand 41 storeys high with 149 residential units and 310 hotel suites when completed in 2019.
The hotel will be the first offering a fractional ownership programme (FOP) in the Philippines, allowing investors to purchase preferred shares and buy into Novotel Suites Manila from an entry point of around €40,000.
The benefits to the investor include a 28-day stay in the luxury Novotel Suites each year which can be traded for any of AccorHotel’s 400 properties around the world, together with a membership that carries bonus opportunities such as special accommodation or dining discounts.
The Novotel Suites Manila has an attractive riverside location in the city centre which is currently not served by any other hotels. While the Novotel Suites will operate mainly as a hotel, 149 of the total units will be allocated to luxurious residences taking over the topmost floors.
Both residences and hotel suites will enjoy the building’s well-designed amenities including a grand lobby, reception, restaurant bar and café, gym and fitness centre, swimming pool and deck, lounge, a business centre and a spa.
 
Article by +Roxanne James on behalf of Propertyshowrooms.com
South Africa: Rand Investors’ Misfortune is Foreign Investors’ Gain
It’s a situation that has become unique to the 21st Century in recent years throughout the world’s property markets: Foreign investment increasing to the disadvantage of domestic homebuyers.
This situation has intensified in South African property markets in recent years with the sector dramatically undermined by the weakness of the rand, making investment in property an attractive proposition for overseas buyers.
After a prolonged decline South Africa’s housing market is showing signs of growth and is now performing well, despite being almost entirely driven by foreign capital. The rand’s continued slide has devalued ROI further for South African investors while offering attractive gains to foreign investors.
Although South Africa has shown house price growth of more than 20% annually over the last four years, in dollar terms the value of real estate in South Africa has declined by 23% over the same period due to 64% currency devaluation.
The investment dynamic in South African real estate is very much in favour of buyers from overseas while domestically many investors are looking for an international hedge.
And this is another side of the anomalous shift towards playing currency advantages in international property markets that we’ve witnessed elsewhere in the world: foreign buying drives growth in domestic markets while domestic buyers look overseas for affordable opportunities in real estate.
UK property markets are the focus of the majority of South African investors seeking the safe haven of sterling. As well as high capital appreciation and strong yields on offer across the UK’s private rented and student sectors, returns are sterling-based protecting them against FOREX volatility.
South African Standard Bank caution prospective home buyers in domestic markets to carefully assess affordability when buying property. A deposit of 20% of the property’s value is now required together with considerable legal costs and there is a strong possibility of rising interest rates in the country.
However, supply on the affordable side of South African real estate is dwindling as construction favours the high profit margins available at the luxury end. An affordable property is considered to be priced at around half a million rand, equal to €36,000 and competition is fierce on the few occasions new supply becomes available.
 
Article by +Roxanne James on behalf of Propertyshowrooms.com
Business Partners
