Indians topped the list of first-time property buyers in Dubai

Indians topped the list of new investors in Dubai properties


Dubai’s real estate market is starting to show some signs of a recovery after seeing prices drop by nearly 60 percent in the wake of the economic downturn. House prices in the emirate increased by an average 0.5 percent in 2011, property consultants Knight Frank said in March.

Indians topped the list of first-time property buyers in Dubai last year, acquiring US$571.8m of real estate in the emirate, the Dubai Land Department said to arabianbusiness. New buyers from India made up 927 out of a total 35,297 transactions.

Indians topped the list of new investors in Dubai properties and conducted 927 transactions worth AED2.1bn. This represents 16 percent of the overall value of transactions carried out by new investors,” Dubai Land Department in a statement.

“The 2011 results demonstrate Dubai’s ability to fully recover from the challenges of the international crisis and prove once again the strength of its economy,” added DLD department. Asian investors were the largest buyers of real estate in 2011 while British citizens topped the list of European investors, it said.