Middle East Indians Eye Gujarat Realty Market

Ahmedabad: Investors of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and some other countries of the Middle East, such as Oman and Jordan, are believed to be interested in investing in Gujarat’s real estate market. This was revealed by the members of CREDAI-Gujarat chapter, who visited several countries of the Middle East recently.

The Gujarati realtors had gone on a seven-day tour of the Middle East to explore the possibility of attracting investment in the state from oil-rich Arab nations. The developers said investors from these countries are closely watching developments in the Indian economy as they are interested in investing in this country, particularly in Gujarat, a report from Daily Bhaskar said.

Gujarati realtors met investors in Muscat (Oman) and Amman (Jordan). “Investors in the Middle East are happy if they get around 5% annual appreciation of their investment in property. In comparison, the average return on investment in the real estate sector in Gujarat has been around 15% per annum. Hence, investors from the Middle East are interested in investing in Gujarat,” said Suresh Patel, vice president, Credai, Gujarat.

Realtors from the state said that NRGs in Muscat and Amman is affluent and influential.

Till now, NRGs used to invest in the Dubai realty market but now the tide has turned as the Dubai market has gone into a slump. “I have received a couple of enquiries from investors in Muscat and Jordan who are keen to invest here,” said Dinesh Patel, president, Gujarat, Credai. The inflow from the Middle East could be critical for the state’s realty sector as cash flow from domestic investors has dried up forcing developers to focus more on end-users (and not on investors) to sell their properties.

The CREDAI (Gujarat) delegation also visited several famous projects such as the Wave, in Muscat (Oman) and Almouj Golf, Oman’s first sea-facing golf course designed by the legendary Greg Norman, to understand the best practices in quality and service.
Credai Gujarat also plans to invite investors to Gujarat to have a feel and experience of the vibrancy of the state economy during Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors’ Summit-2013 and also at various property shows organised by Gujarat Institute of Housing and Estate Developers (GIHED).