| Monday, 01 September 2008 | |
Western investors look aside from Gulf
Western investors have cooled on Gulf property markets, probably because of global credit conditions, according to consultants. In Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Kuwait it is domestic investors who are calling the shots in real estate as British and US property buyers have refocused on other areas they see as cheaper and more competitive. ‘Given current economic conditions, US and British investors and institutions are taking a lot of convincing to splash out in the Gulf,’ said Fadi Moussalli, a director in Jones Lang LaSalle’s Dubai-based International Capital Group. ‘There is less enthusiasm for Gulf property because foreigners are busy dealing with crises elsewhere,’ he added. Before the credit crunch, Western property buyers were making good progress in opening up fledgling Gulf property markets. But the balance of power has shifted back to local investors and their fabulous wealth. Citing data from emerging markets researcher REIDIN, Jones Lang LaSalle said less than a fifth of real estate purchases in Dubai in 2008 so far were made by European or US investors. continue reading at…………http://www.propertywire.com/news/middle-east/western-investors-gulf-property-bargains-200809011562.html |
