Living within a 12-minute drive from her children’s school has been a great comfort for British national Sharon Moyse, especially in the morning rush hours. Moyse lives with her husband and three children in a five-bedroom villa with a golf course view in Olive Point, Jumeirah Golf Estates (JGE). The couple only recently purchased the property, but apart from the views, it was the proximity to good schools that influenced their decision.
“Living close to school is imperative for us, as schools start early in the UAE, and if you have swim squad kids, it’s a 6.15am drop off,” she says. “With their school being a 10-minute journey, I can easily do two drop-offs and have coffee in between, all before 7.30am.
“JGE is the ideal location as it is situated far enough out of town to get away from the hustle and bustle, yet within proximity to many of the top new schools, [such as] Nord Anglia, Repton, Jebel Ali, Gems World Academy and Safa Community School to name a few. These are all within a 10- to 20-minute drive from JGE.”
Moyse’s children attend Safa Community School, a new primary and secondary school that Moyse says feels like a community.
Top of the list
Tom Bunker, manager of off-plan sales at Better Homes, says the first question asked by most parents looking for a home to buy or rent is nearly always the same: “Where is the closest school?”
“Developers are seeing this more and more, and consequently are adding these amenities to their master plan, or are at least providing plots for these facilities to be added later,” says Bunker. “Most master developers today have made provisions for schools within their projects. These school plots are sold to investors who then construct the schools and find operators to run them.”
Bunker says schools are a major selling point for a community. However, the quality of the school and its affordability also play significant roles, he adds.
Projects such as Emirates Living, Arabian Ranches and Living Legends, among others, have schools within the community, while for many other areas, schools are located nearby. Emirates Living is close to schools such as Dubai British School at The Springs, Emirates International School at The Meadows, Regent International School at the Greens and Dubai International Academy at the Lakes. Arabian Ranches has Jess Arabian Ranches and others nearby include Nord Anglia in Al Barsha South and Gems World Academy.
Recently, Dubai South announced the signing of an agreement with Gems Education to build a school in its Residential District.
Mentality shift
Heather Amiji, director of investments at Gulf Sotheby’s International Realty, notes that Dubai is seeing the end of a ‘build it and they will come’ mentality. “Master developers are increasingly looking for that hook that will prompt end users to buy or investors to feel confident,” says Amiji, pointing out that in the 2005-2008 property boom, master developers often overlooked the livability of their master-plan projects. “School, community retail and health care parcels, as well as allocation for sufficient parking and recreation, were often shrunk or eliminated entirely to make way for more residential [units].”
Amiji says new residents are defining home searches based on where their children go to school, while long-time residents are moving closer to schools and other community services they regularly use.
A JLL report has noted that there is demand for as many as 350 additional private schools in the five major cities in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) over the next five years. While Dubai has the highest proportion of private schools in the region, JLL estimates there is a need for a further 36 private schools by 2020. The report further shows that in 2015 around 1.2 million or 13 per cent of the UAE’s population of 9.2 million were of school age. The UAE population is expected to reach 9.8 million by 2020, with the school-age segment hitting 1.3 million.
Craig Plumb, head of research at JLL Mena, says stiff competition has forced developers to incorporate more amenities in their developments, including international schools, malls and leisure facilities. Several master developers such Al Futtaim (Festival City), Emaar (Arabian Ranches), Damac (Akoya) and Soba (MBR City) are seeking to include schools within their projects, he adds. “Certainly not all communities have schools, but an increasing [number] does,” says Plumb. “While it was difficult to demonstrate the exact premium that adding a school provides to the sale price or rentals, it appears that such a premium indeed exists.
“A school also assists in reducing the [vacancy] period, as many expats still chose a residential location based on proximity to their children’s school. Therefore, most master developers are taking a holistic view and recognising that the addition of a leading school increases the overall value of their project.”
