Neighbourhood Watch: Residential sites - why hot spots change

The Emirate has developed rapidly over the past 20 years and just when we think we have seen everything, another incredible project is born.

This is what has made Dubai one of the most desirable places to live in the Middle East and what keeps it dynamic for those who choose to live here.

Several areas are now becoming popular for residents and Jumeriah is no longer the only place to look for villas where schools and shopping are located within the neighbourhood.

With population growth, individual demands vary; community services and the required infrastructure is built and the areas once ignored are immediately no longer off limits.

Thus the villas in the area rent more quickly and additional housing is required. The land becomes commercially more desirable to an investor and so it continues when a village turns into a town and a town turns into a city.

This is the same all over the world, but we generally do not see this kind of growth so vividly. In developed countries one might see the odd suburb sprout up and become popular, or witness a gentrification project, but the effect is not quite the same.

In Dubai we are seeing everything in technicolour, which is decidedly more exciting.

Schools, clinics, recreational facilities, supermarkets and shopping malls are now available and we have all but forgotten when we would not rent a villa past Safa Park. Plans for moving the Hamriya market are underway, its present venue and the beginning of its development in another area, bringing it new life.

The Al Awir, Al Khawaneej and Mirdiff areas were all relatively unexplored territory but very inviting to those who preferred a little more country and less city; and the new waterfront properties being developed within the Dubai Marina, offer the investor much desired views overlooking the gulf.

Development seems to be fast and furious these days. I asked a contractor what he thought about all the construction and where the people would come from to rent the property.

He responded with, "I don't ask I just build!" He said that after so many years in the UAE he has ceased to predict anything.

Choice is what makes life exciting; it is rather dull to have only a couple of areas in which to search when trying to lease a property and the more areas we see developing, the greater the opportunity for choice of rental rates.

The old cliché, "location, location, location" still reigns true. Individuals enjoy the convenience of having recreational facilities, schools, clinics and shopping in close proximity.

In a stable economy "Hot Spots" are created as a result of many factors, but the availability of services always proves to be a major one.

As new areas develop and grow, the rents alter and all the equations change. Older developments become less desirable and the rents begin to drop.

It is a fact of life that nothing stays the same; but it is people who make it happen and we can look ahead to see what Dubai will develop, in order to suit our needs tomorrow.

The author is the managing director of Dubai-based Better Homes LLC. Your views and questions can be sent to Gulf News, PO Box 6519, Dubai. Fax: 3441627. E-mail - editorial@gulf-news.com