While a car's value generally depreciates over time, property has a tendency to do the opposite. Ravindranath K / The National
While a car's value generally depreciates over time, property has a tendency to do the opposite. Ravindranath K / The National
While a car's value generally depreciates over time, property has a tendency to do the opposite. Ravindranath K / The National
While a car's value generally depreciates over time, property has a tendency to do the opposite. Ravindranath K / The National

Why buy a car in the UAE but not a home?


  • English
  • Arabic

Lots of residents own their cars in the UAE but far fewer own their houses. Undoubtedly, houses are more expensive than cars so I will not address my thoughts to the people who simply cannot afford a down payment on their own home, but more to those who have the deposit, own a car but do not own their house.

On the face of it cars and houses occupy very similar places in our lives. They are both essential (a place to live more than a car of course), they are both a very personal choice and they are both expensive assets. They are in fact so expensive that we have the option of either renting them or buying them. People only rent things that are either very expensive or that they will not need for long enough for it to be worth owing them.

People choose to own their cars for a variety of reasons: they like having their own car; they are pretty easy to finance and paying that finance is cheaper than renting a motor. Paying the mortgage on your home is also a lot cheaper than renting it (by up to half if you take into account the repayment of the principal of the loan) but many are not buying at the moment because the market is still falling.

I have always wondered why people buy cars when they know that when they sell it will definitely be for a loss. Yet they don’t buy property because they think it might go down in value. Property, unlike cars, almost always comes back up (believe it or not history shows we will probably see 2008 prices again eventually).

_______

Read more:

Will new residency and company ownership rules raise UAE house prices? 

How buying a home in the UAE can halve your rent

Why every long-term expat should buy a property in the UAE

Should UAE residents focus on retirement or paying down their mortgage?

________

For me there are several reasons for this, your property is probably worth 20 times what your car is worth, so a 5 per cent drop in value of both would be a much bigger hit on the property. Another reason is that maybe we see property as only having value as an appreciating asset. If the value does not go up, what is the point of having it? We know cars always go down in value, so we see buying them more as a saving on car rent rather than as an investment.

In reality, buying property is both saving money on rent and investing in an asset. However, it cannot be denied that in the current market if you buy property, tomorrow it will be worth less. But, there is a way to never lose money on a property purchase. Just make sure you only sell when your property is worth more than what you bought it for. Sounds simple doesn’t it? It is, and the trick is never to lose control of when you need to sell.

The truth is it doesn't matter what the value of the property is until you sell it and crystalise that profit or loss. If you control when you part with it, you can get the price that is right for you, and in the meantime your property investment will be working for you by reducing your living costs.

Many get worried in the UAE about not having a choice over when they sell, as they may have to leave and go back to their home country fast (if they lose their job for example). If you do need to leave, in an emergency or otherwise, you do not have to sell your property even if you have a mortgage on it. You can have your property managed by the bank (or other property managers). The property manager can take care of the apartment or villa for you and you can sell it whenever suits you - preferably at the top of the market.

It really is that simple. Banks will manage the letting of your property for as little as 4 per cent of the annual rent (this would only reduce your yield by a fraction). You will keep making your mortgage payments and exit your investment when it suits you.

Ben Crompton is the managing director of Crompton Partners Estate Agents

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Alaves 1 (Perez 65' pen)

Real Madrid 2 (Ramos 52', Carvajal 69')

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About Karol Nawrocki

• Supports military aid for Ukraine, unlike other eurosceptic leaders, but he will oppose its membership in western alliances.

• A nationalist, his campaign slogan was Poland First. "Let's help others, but let's take care of our own citizens first," he said on social media in April.

• Cultivates tough-guy image, posting videos of himself at shooting ranges and in boxing rings.

• Met Donald Trump at the White House and received his backing.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Visit Abu Dhabi culinary team's top Emirati restaurants in Abu Dhabi

Yadoo’s House Restaurant & Cafe

For the karak and Yoodo's house platter with includes eggs, balaleet, khamir and chebab bread.

Golden Dallah

For the cappuccino, luqaimat and aseeda.

Al Mrzab Restaurant

For the shrimp murabian and Kuwaiti options including Kuwaiti machboos with kebab and spicy sauce.

Al Derwaza

For the fish hubul, regag bread, biryani and special seafood soup. 

Politics in the West
Score

Third Test, Day 2

New Zealand 274
Pakistan 139-3 (61 ov)

Pakistan trail by 135 runs with 7 wickets remaining in the innings

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Super Saturday race card

4pm: Mahab Al Shimaal Group 3 | US$350,000 | (Dirt) | 1,200m
4.35pm: Al Bastakiya Listed | $300,000 | (D) | 1,900m
5.10pm: Nad Al Sheba Turf Group 3 | $350,000 | (Turf) | 1,200m
5.45pm: Burj Nahaar Group 3 | $350,000 | (D) | 1,600m
6.20pm: Dubai City of Gold Group 2 | $300,000 | (T) | 2,410m
6.55pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round 3 Group 1 | $600,000 | (D) | 2,000m
7.30pm: Jebel Hatta Group 1 | $400,000 | (T) | 1,800m

WOMAN AND CHILD

Director: Saeed Roustaee

Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi

Rating: 4/5

Some of Darwish's last words

"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008

His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.

FORSPOKEN
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Tips for job-seekers
  • Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
  • Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.

David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East

Results

Stage 7:

1. Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto Soudal - 3:18:29

2. Sam Bennett (IRL) Deceuninck-QuickStep - same time

3. Phil Bauhaus (GER) Bahrain Victorious

4. Michael Morkov (DEN) Deceuninck-QuickStep

5. Cees Bol (NED) Team DSM

General Classification:

1. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates - 24:00:28

2. Adam Yates (GBR) Ineos Grenadiers - 0:00:35

3. Joao Almeida (POR) Deceuninck-QuickStep - 0:01:02

4. Chris Harper (AUS) Jumbo-Visma - 0:01:42

5. Neilson Powless (USA) EF Education-Nippo - 0:01:45

Ant-Man%20and%20the%20Wasp%3A%20Quantumania
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Dengue%20fever%20symptoms
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French Touch

Carla Bruni

(Verve)

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Venom

Director: Ruben Fleischer

Cast: Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, Riz Ahmed

Rating: 1.5/5

Honeymoonish
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