House hunting – The real estate scene in UAE

Real estate is one of the booming sectors in this part of the world. The real estate prices are ridiculously high, soaring by the day. But still the demand has not dipped.

The amount of development I see around me makes me wonder, how do all these buildings get filled up? And that too at a cost so exorbitant that it eats up at least one fourth of your salaries.

Some facts about the real estate scene in Dubai

1) Large scale construction has made Dubai one of the worlds fastest growing cities, a feat only equaled by large Chinese cities till date (Wikipedia)
2) More than 25% of the worlds mechanical crane population is concentrated in and around Dubai (Wikipedia)
3) In 2005 alone, more than 13,000 residential developments have come up. (buildings completed in 2005, Dubai Municipality 12.04.2006)
4) Average rent per month of a single room residence (decent studio) is approximately Dh. 2,000 upwards
5) Approved increase on rent on an yearly basis is 15% (Dubai Municipality)

Dubai is completely out of reach for people like me, a one bed room kitchen house here costs more than Dh. 50,000 an year. And this, in one obscure corner of the city.

So people started moving to the other emirates near Dubai, like Sharjah and Ajman. Now the costs in these emirates have soared, they would stand up to Dubai any day now. One of my friends is moving to a place in another emirate about 90 kms from his office. More than this distance is the mad Dubai traffic that kills you.