Morning round-up: New residency visa details

There was a flurry of coverage today about the new residency visas, with

splashing a story across the front page describing their price (Dh2,000) and start date (June 1). Our own Robert Ditcham and Haneen Dajani

[ wrote about some criticisms that the visa restrictions were too tight ]

. I think the most interesting part is where

Brig Gen Nasser al Minhali

, of the Department of Naturalisation and Residency, said this type of visa was not intended for people who invest or work here. This shows the thinking of the Government about who they want to live in the country. Applicants for the visas "could be politicians or businessmen who wish to have a place in the UAE to live in and they cannot leave their businesses in their home countries and stay in the UAE the whole time", he said.

Landmark Advisory put out a report that shows a declining spread between the bid price and asking price of apartments, which Anjana Kumar of Emirates Business 24/7 says

[ could be the indicator that the Dubai market is finding a price-floor ]

. Meanwhile, our own Nathalie Gillet

[ finds that the report shows buyers were flocking to master developers ]

Sorouh Real Estate

and

Emaar Properties

in a "flight to quality". 7Days wrote about Emaar's "monopoly" in Dubai. Definition of the word is

[ here ]

, which you will find is contrary to the situation.

Photo caption: Dubai, 27th April 2009. The Dubai Fountain is undergoing a test run, at the made made lagoon, against the Burj Dubai, where interior fitting out is underway. Jeffrey E Biteng / The National

Read the rest of the round-up after the jump

Ajman's property projects still face major challenges, as the developers try to make sense of what to do with 900 planned towers and few buyers. One broker

[ says that more than 30 per cent of the projects will be cancelled, another 60 per cent put on hold and the remaining 10 per cent built ]

In the latest in a series of stories about there being no truth to merger discussions between Deyaar Development and Union Properties in Dubai, Karen Remo-Listana

[ finds that, again, there is no truth to the rumors ]

The Burj Dubai is being oufitted with "glass, stainless steel and dark stones" on the inside, not to mention "Silver Travertine flooring, Venetian stucco walls, handmade rugs, stone flooring and dark, intricate Brazilian Santos Rosewood to reflect shelter, comfort, and above all, restrained luxury". That was

[ an article ]

in Emirates Business 24/7, in case you were wondering. Here's the rather similar press release: