The billboards have been plastered all over Dubai once more for Danube Properties’ latest launch, Glitz 3, and plenty of airtime has been booked on local radio stations targeting expat buyers.
Yet the developer’s third project within a year has not experienced the same frantic rush of buyers as its previous two launches.
Glitz 3, a development of 352 apartments housed in two towers at Dubai’s Studio City, held its Dubai sales launch last Friday and a second event at Abu Dhabi on Monday.
The developer’s first two launches, the 171-town house Dreamz by Danube and the 292-unit Glitz 1 and 2 towers, both sold out within hours of their launches.
Danube’s founder and chairman Rizwan Sajan said that the market “is a little slow, to be honest”.
“Glitz 3 is slower than 1 and 2, but nevertheless we are much better off than other private developers,” he said.
Danube Properties still managed to sell 200-plus units at Glitz 3’s Dubai launch, but has more than 100 remaining.
The project is on the same Dubai Studio City plot as the first two towers and prices range from Dh475,000 for a studio to Dh1.2 million for a three-bed apartment.
It is an area where competition at the affordable end of the market is heating up.
The nearby Nshama Town Square project is offering studios from Dh349,998. Dubai Investments has said that more than 1,150 units are currently under construction at the Dubai Investment Park farther along Mohammed bin Zayed Road.
Affordable homes are also set to be a key feature of the Dubai World Central site’s residential zone, where Mag Property Development and MBM Holding last month launched the Dh700 million Mag 5 Boulevard project.
Mr Sajan pointed to the larger inventory at the Glitz3 site as one reason why it has not sold as quickly, but said he remains confident that it will, citing his firm’s track record and reputation in the market.
Danube Properties has sold Dh1.2 billion worth of properties since its launch a year ago, but Mr Sajan’s building materials business has been operating in the UAE for more than 20 years.
“So people have that trust and confidence that [we] are here to stay, and not just start a project and cash out.”
He added that the firm’s expertise in building materials and its knowledge of local contracting and architecture firms meant it had an advantage over competitors. “When we have to give a contract, we know who is a good contractor and who is bad.”
He expects to appoint a main contractor for Glitz 1 and 2 within the next month, and for Glitz 3 shortly after. All of the Glitz towers should complete by the end of 2017, he said.
Mr Sajan plans to move on to find a site for the company’s fourth project soon.
“I am now looking at another plot, with different developers. Before the year-end, I will hopefully come out with a new launch.”
MPM Properties, the real estate advisory arm of Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, reported a 4.1 per cent decline in sale prices in Dubai during the first quarter of this year. It added that an expected glut of new properties coming on to the market in 2015 meant that home buyers were now in a much stronger bargaining position.
“The amount of new projects in the Dubai market means properties will increasingly need to appeal to potential buyers’ sense of value,” said the chief executive Paul Maisfield.
“That means a shift towards more affordable properties, particularly close to the Expo 2020 site, and an emphasis on incentives.”
mfahy@thenational.ae
Follow The National's Business section on Twitter
