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Al Areifi faces 'financial jeopardy'

Adding to the increasingly delicate real estate sector in Dubai, Al Areifi Tower in Dubai Marina is shrouded in mystery after its developer told investors he is in fin-ancial jeopardy, Gulf News has learnt.

  • By Suzanne Fenton, Staff Reporter
  • Published: 00:45 April 25, 2008
  • Gulf News

Dubai: Adding to the increasingly delicate real estate sector in Dubai, Al Areifi Tower in Dubai Marina is shrouded in mystery after its developer told investors he is in fin-ancial jeopardy, Gulf News has learnt.

Al Areifi Tower was launched three years ago and most investors have now paid the full amount in cash to Saudi developer, Khalid Saud Al Areifi and Partner Real Estate in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, investors said. The 30-storey tower was half-built in February when investors received faxes and emails from Al Areifi saying he was going through financial jeopardy and therefore couldn't finish the project.

Khalid Saud Al Areifi informed the investors that he would buy back the units from investors at the price they paid originally, plus 10 per cent interest.

As one owner put it, "If he is facing financial difficulties, where is he going to pay us from?"

It turned out that Al Areifi had sold the tower on to Eskan Properties in Abu Dhabi.

However, Eskan Properties' finance manager told Gulf News that the tower had been sold on to a private individual one week ago and so is no longer involved. "We sold the tower on again a week back," he said.

Investors filed a formal complaint to Dubai Land Department two months ago and are waiting for a response.

According to the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (Rera) website, Al Areifi is not a registered developer in Dubai, holds no escrow account and the Al Areifi Tower project is not registered either.

Potential investors should be cautious as Al Areifi is supposedly planning to launch new projects in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.

No one at Al Areifi's office in Dubai was available for comment.

Potential investors should be cautious as Al Areifi is supposedly planning to launch new projects in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.

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