UAE landlords reply to 7Days
Dear 7Days,
Re: your open letter "Explain Yourselves"
"An open letter from 7DAYS to UAE landlords: tell us why rents are sky high"
1. Because we're greedy.
2. Because we can.
3. Because we couldn't care less about driving you out of your homes.
We hope that this sufficiently answers your query.
Yours sincerely,
UAE landlords
PS If you try with any of the rent tribunal crap - we'll announce a "refurbishment". You'll be out on your expat ears and we'll have new tenants moved in at treble the rent within a week.
Re: your open letter "Explain Yourselves"
"An open letter from 7DAYS to UAE landlords: tell us why rents are sky high"
1. Because we're greedy.
2. Because we can.
3. Because we couldn't care less about driving you out of your homes.
We hope that this sufficiently answers your query.
Yours sincerely,
UAE landlords
PS If you try with any of the rent tribunal crap - we'll announce a "refurbishment". You'll be out on your expat ears and we'll have new tenants moved in at treble the rent within a week.
Labels: housing
63 Comments:
3. Because we know that you are here only for the money
BTW, cannot see the atricle on 7days ...
so very true...
It strikes me as odd what the Landlords are doing - I mean I am SERIOUSLY considering purchasing a property now as I am expecting another rent hike this year. To pre-empt that I am forced to buy a house.
Only trouble being that what with the Geo-politcial situation, medium/long term view of Dollar is that it will definitely go down - so our 'dollar' assets will be worth less in thr future.
Also in the medium term - its almost def that the Fed will have to increase interest rates to prop up the dollar. This will mean higher interest rates in the US - and therefore in the UAE!!!
Will we have a yo-yoing interest rates like UK circa 1990! I dont know
But the UAE has to DEFINITELY has to do something if it wants to maintain its prominence as an easy place to do business!!
Just realised I have slightly digressed!
UAE Landlords need to realise that my increasing rents by double digit % they will only force prospective tenants away
(and my Landlord isnt Arab - but an EXPAT)
where is Balushi?
SD, well done! Some serious comment on a real issue here in this part of the World. Interestingly, the IMF puts UAE's inflation at 4.5% - I find that a bit hard to believe! The Marginal Propensity of Money here is way too high and rents are a real problem in this part of the World. As if this alone was not enough, the effect is exacerbated by the coupling of stagnated income.
I am seriously contemplating leaving Dubai and there is no way in hell I am going to buy property here! It's just too shady to "invest" here. It's back to Pakiland for me!
Cheers!
But the UAE has to DEFINITELY has to do something if it wants to maintain its prominence as an easy place to do business!!
Herein lies the rub. I don't think the Dubaians realise that if they carry on the way they are going, they will completely eradicate the city's competitiveness and regional dominance they built up so well over the last decade, and everyone will simply bugger off elsewhere. Even now, I think a company would think twice about putting a regional office in Dubai; four years ago it would have been a no-brainer.
Was looking at jobs in Saudi!!
Much better
More money
Less expenses!!!
Just worried - as I am Danish!!
A few questions pertinent to this issue...
Are the landlords driving up the prices?
OR the real estate companies and agents?
If the government really, i mean really wants to stop inflationary rental increases and have a slab on yearly % increases, don't you all think they can?? OF COURSE THEY CAN IF THEY WANT TO ..
Its very simple to implement. All they have to do is put a NO RENT INCREASE BEYOND 'X' percent for all buildings and no 'refurbishing/renovating' unless authorised by a competent muncipal authority after checking whether its done merely as a ruse to get all the tenants out of a building. any landlord/ agent not abiding by the rule can be fined heavily. ITS NOT ROCKET SCIENCE.
BUT THEY WONT as 'supposedly' this will have a negative impact on the so called economic bubble which is threatening to burst at the seams. It's all done in the name of 'free market enterprise'... funny is'nt it, free market enterprise in this part of the world, means an individual or family has to put up with the rising cost of rents, school fees, food, electricity, petrol etc BUT TO PAY FOR ALL THESE RISES HE CAN'T CHANGE INCREASE HIS SALARY BY CHANGING HIS JOB.
I know a little bit about how real estate companies here work and frankly its mindboggling how callous and insensitive they are.
"Treble" ... hehe
I guess I'm lucky with my landlord, possibly because I'm a local. ... Discrimination, eh?
And other people like to call it Patriotism (to treat other nationals properly, and expats horribly... Never understood the reasoning.)
Please tell me I'm being too pessimistic. But here's what I think: There is no solution here until people come together Landlords and renters to compromise. And that, ladies and gentlemen will never happen.
In the UAE, everybody's trying to one up everybody.
Case in point: House rents. There's no set regulation that has been established and aggressively enforced for the hikes in rent. Even if the government "attempted" to do so, most landlords will think they can always go around the law and not follow it.
There's nothing that can be done as long as there are more expatriates coming over looking for a job in Dubai. Landlords will always someone else paying them higher rents...
A conspiracy theorist colleague shares this thought:- He believes there is a reason the government has not laid down any (of the much-called for) 'regulations' as yet. In his opinion, landlords are 'encouraged' to hike up rents, as a form of ... how do i put this gently?..."ethnic cleansing".
In an attempt to upkeep the bright and beautiful image of Dubtown, this system helps do away with the riff-raff, and helps lure the right kind of residents.
Those who can't afford it, leave.
Those who manage to get by, start to think it makes much more sense to simply use the same rent funds towards buying a 99-yr lease apartment. God knows, there's plenty of gleaming Manchester Marina towers going up.
And voila - 2,3 and 4 birds with one stone.
Yes, the landlords are greedy bastards and will try and squeeze every penny out of their tenants. And forget loyalty - even if you've been living in a villa for years and have been model tenants, chances are your landlord would gladly see the back of you and your rent money if he thought he could get twice the amount from a gang of villa-sharing shady drug dealers.
As expats, we have to admit that a large part of the problem is people not realising that rents in certain areas are wildly inflated, but rather just accepting that 100,000 for a 3 bed villa in Mirdif must be the going rate. And what doesn't help is when friendly estate agents publish their totally inaccurate property price comparisons in the newspapers - you know which ones I mean, where they list the price of a 3 bedroom house in various areas. Of course, higher rents mean higher agent commissions, so it makes sense for them to up the prices.
So, for the uninitiated, the stupid, or for those fresh off the plane, I'm here to tell you that a 3 bedroom villa in Mirdif with a small private garden should cost you not a penny more than 70,000. (2 years ago I would have said 55,000). Sure, we have more facilities now but at the end of the day we live right underneath the airport and we have nooooo community services like parks, beaches, malls or evening entertainment. If you are paying much more than that, then I'm afraid you have been suckered and can now get yourself a t-shirt printed that says "I am a greedy landlord's bitch".
I can't speak for other areas, but maybe regular visitors to this blog who live in those other places would be kind enough to list fair property prices for renting standard accommodation in their neighbourhoods. If enough people take part, perhaps we can compile the 'Secret Dubai Renters' Guide', and maybe save a few naive renters-to-be from the greedy landlords that plague Dubai. Imagine if every time a smarmy landlord tells a potential tenant that he wants Dhs *** (insert massively inflated sum of your choice in here) for his pokey little villa with no garden, he gets laughed at and informed of what the normal rent would be.
So come on people, take this opportunity to educate others on what would be fair rents in your area.
It will probably have zero effect, but do it just for interest's sake!!
Somebody help me out. I read just recently on one of the UAE blogs that the intended desire of the powers that be is to drive up the rents to eventually get rid of expats who are on the low end scale of things and make the Dubai model more like the Pacific Rim city states of Hong Kong or Singapore. The down shot of that is some pretty big players will be driven out too. I know one American expat who works for a Fortune 500 company in Dubai that's looking at moving to another GCC state that is less expensive to live in.
Don't worry, their time is coming.
250,000+ units will soon be on the market with not enough 'quality' ex pats to fill them. I know a lot of these properties are still in the hands of block investors (Iraq/Iran/Russia etc.) who(and let's just say for reasons of their own) do not want to sell and have the cash.
Large numbers of these units will find their way onto the rented market and rents will fall. When you have $20,000,000 being washed you don't quibble over Dhs. 20,000 rent increases.
That's my opinion and I think the rental market is about to collapse.
anon @ 12.27
we've been hearing that for some time and rather than falling , rents are going up as we speak ( and blog )..
don't get me wrong, i hope the prices crash to pre 2000 levels.. so that everyone can at least aspire to a decent standard of living.
It's the invisible hand at work- whenever demand exceeds supply it will be a landlords market. Eventually landlords will price themselves out of the market, as multinationals refuse to pay London level rents and more housing stock becomes available. It's only a matter of time. The government don't need to do anything just let market forces come to play. Landlords will get the come uppance soon
Interesting comments so far. Here are mine. I am an expat ( Brit ) and have lived and worked in Dubai for + 35 years. I brought a villa in the meadows at the start and have rented it out. I have not raised the rent in two years but will this year. ( 4% ) This is to cover the extra increase from my friends at Amlak. That said, the "average" price on the market for my 4 bed villa with private pool and lake view is 150-180K depending who you ask. I rent it for 125K, because the tentants look after the house. They are happy and so am I. However, in my opinion just when you think the market will "crash" a simple "freehold" solution will bring it bouncing back again. There will be a drop, but not like some are expecting.
If you are thinking of buying, then my advice is buy off plan but do your homework on the development.
None other than the chairman of Emaar himself was recently quoted as saying that real estate prices have over-heated and a correction was due.
This is a bubble just like any other in history. There will always be the optimists who predict higher prices, but when one least expects it, the bottom invariably falls out.
I see no underlying strong fundamentals to justify such rampant hikes, and once the crash comes it will be mighty.
Just ask the Japanese....
It'd only be a bubble if there was no demand, there is demand and there will continue to be so for many many years, the bubble will not burst.
The bubble that everyones talking about will only burst if this economy was a free economy. A generous helping of a few billion dhirams will patch up those about-to-burst seams. And then we go back to square one. As long as theres no taxes, the filty rich will continue to settle here to play more with their money. Obviously dubai has more bang for the buck.
I do agree with someone who pointed out that this is ethinic cleansing. It's cleansing alright, but not ethinic, rather middle-class cleansing. The lower class has become persona non grata. Next in line - the middle class.
Few things here:
1- Demand and suply, pretty clear cut. No?
2- How may expat live in a villa with swimming pool back home? Or high rise aptmt? or condo?
3- Stop wingeing. Put up or shut up.
4- Of course you can always invade the country for whatever convenient reason you can come up with.
One friendly and sooo greedy landlord.
Dear all
You seem to ignore the economic chain. Each thing leads to another. For example the land lords built these condos, towers, etc in exchange for cash to the construction company who also has to pay for tools and supplies and labourers. The supplies such as steel and cement cost and have seen a huge price increase. FYI steel used to be brought in from turkey through IRAQ. What happened to IRAQ??!! One dumb ass low expectation jerk off decided to invade it.. This man never even knew where IRAQ was. The furthest point he got to from Texas was Guadalajara!! So look at the bright side what you all are making a fuss about is the doing of your own governments. So cheer up.. I wonder what you all are going to do when the fuel prices break the $100 barrier?! Putting in mind that the same jerk off mentioned earlier is thinking of attacking IRAN??!! Probably cuz it rhymes with IRAQ…
anonymous dxb:
That was a stupid point. Please explain why my parents house that they've stayed in for over 10 years has increased in rent astronomically? Once the landlord got his 15% increase he tried to boot them out, saying he was "upgrading" the house or whatever you call it. yeah. right.
i totally agree this blog has transformed into a bitching post.. what ever man if its yours you can do whatever you wana do with it..
dubai is growing fast every one. its gona be the kind of place that has a welcoming sign saying:"if you cant afford it the next exit is 100 meters away
"3- Stop wingeing. Put up or shut up."
Stupidest saying ever.
If you're putting up, you're shutting up, if you're shutting up, you're putting up. If you want to tell people to shut up don't be a chicken and say it directly.
Samuraisam. There you go directly as you want it:
Shut the F***k up!
I get the feeling we're not wanted here:
In the midst of the current rent hikes that have seen both Locals and Expats becoming concerned with the day to day cost of living, it makes sense to invest in buying your own property here. Although it may cost thousands of dirhams to buy a plot of land and build your own villa or even millions to move to one of Emaar’s developments; taking the ownership option will work out more financially viable as it is a cheaper alternative to renting.
Yet the reality of living in Dubai on a budget less than that of a prince or an A-List celebrity does not allow for everyone to consider buying their own place. If you are an expat and happen to fall into this financial bracket, rest assured you are already on the list to be eventually booted out from of this Emirate. On the other hand, if you fall into this category and are a Local, then understand that the comparative misery of your life will continue for you, your children and their children. Unless, assertive steps are made to take advantage of the present situation and accept everything that Emiratisation offers as a means.
This is the conspiracy that has cloaked Dubai for some time now. The powers that be have a long term plan to weed out the expat riff-raff, and to get the entire local population contributing to the growth of this country; leaving Dubai to the domain of the highly skilled, highly educated and super rich. Exponentially increasing the cost of living in this Emirate is not an accident. It serves as an incentive for those of a lower social class to eventually leave when their purpose here has been fulfilled, while those who are indigenous to the land and have no other place to go… to stay, get skilled, educated and work in whatever field is available to them.
Depending on which side of the fence one sits, this conspiracy theory may not be considered as a sinister plot, but an essential quest for survival in a global market place that is becoming more and more competitive.
The important question is: Will this plan work? Or is Dubai setting itself up as a place that could soon mimic a post apocalyptic waste land of big shiny buildings and expensive compounds, that is void of people to fill them?
http://secretarabian.blogspot.com/
I don't think it can get any more plain than that. Start packing your bags folks. They don't want us here.
ppl where expecting prices to go down but projects are dealayed little apartments come on the market... by mid yr 2006 prices should come down.......
according to some big cheese i met in Dubai Properties, 2008 will be the year things go back to "normal"
Well I must agree that there is no regulation on property rents...and yes it is a problem, but I am from the UAE doing my post graduate studies abroad, and you know what...people in the west are just as greedy, they would like to take advantage of expats too...if those expats are not familiar with the rules and regulations...so for those who are you that are swearing..please remind your self..this is business and everybody wants to make the best out of it...doesnt matter how long you have been living in that unit really if they can make more money thats what matters most..and YES its the same in all the "western" countries that you are comparing us to. And its as simple as this..you either like it or leave it..
At the end, I hope there will be a tighter control on the rent increase.
But in England for example the tenants have protection, in the UAE they have none. The 15% cap was an utter joke of a policy designed to devrease tenents rights.
The best economics books are yet to be written. Main region: Middle East. Main country setting: UAE.
Forget everything they taught us in school about micro and macro economics. Those age-old theories are pre-telecoms and pre-internet era. The "invisible hand" already went up in smoke. Big things are made possible to happen through careful and elaborate planning. Nothing beats planning, not even the "invisible hand" theory.
So, those who are going to business schools anytime soon, study the rudiments of planning longer than making hypotheses based on a few observed data.
To the expat community(including me): Let's face it. We came here to find better lives. I owe it to the UAE for giving me this opportunity at a certain point in my life where I can and still able to work.
This place is the "dreamer's paradise". Let's enjoy it while it last.
The cap is a sure way of putting figures on inflation.
Do we expect to hear the car saleman saying: "the mgt decided to increase its price by 10%. At least, that is still 5% off the rate of rent increase."
Or this: "the mgt decided to limit its overall pay/allowance increase to no more than 15%, enough to cover the main cost of living in Dubai."
What goes up must come down, the law of gravity. rents are excepted.
samuraisam actually did shut up !!!
wonders never cease !
well booo hooo hooo....
lets face it most expats who live here enjoy a free of cost life.. most expats and i say most work as top shot managers in big companies.. the package includes education for the kids, cmpany car, jumaira villa, and a huge basic salary. and most of expats are stingy.. there for by the end of the month all you spend is maybee AED5000.. locals dont get the good jobs in pvt companies. pay morgage, car loan, personal loans, credit card loans and end up broke on the 15th of every month.. why is it that you all complain and bitch? do u know that expat managers in Emirates get a dog allowance?! yes they get money for having a dog??!! a local gets dhs 500 per child for child allowance.. the dog allowance is AED1000 lol go figure?! :s
today's gulf news has a story .. 'Bachelors now live in their cars'
they can't even afford bedspace which rates have gone up from AED 200 a month to sometimes AED750 !!!!
i can't believe the authorities are not doing anything to stop the exploitation of these poor, lower class workers...
let's face it.. it's all about the money now!! from top to bottom !
sad !
most expats and i say most work as top shot managers in big companies.. the package includes education for the kids, cmpany car, jumaira villa, and a huge basic salary. and most of expats are stingy
Good god - what decade are you living in?
the same one you used to work as a waitress in before coming to dubai to work as a PR bunny
Today morning as I was driving down SZR into Dubai, I noticed a yellowish green haze low in the sky just before in the vicinity of all the new buildings at the marina and opposite the gardens. Pollution from the Dubai Aluminium factories, and I remember reading somewhere aluminium factories are notorious for emitting pollutants containing sulphur.
I guess that really didnt matter when they first built the company (it was in the middle of nowhere) back then.
But today it really hit me. All those flashy new high rises are smack nect to Dubal. They practically share the fence.
Can't be too good for the new tenants coming in
Strewth - as someone who is flying in at the end of the month with my family and have to find somewhere to live within a month, this thread sends shivers down my spine!
:)
ANON @ 14:21
Are u serious?? which part of world u live in??
Just because the crowds that hang out on this blog can afford to live in villas and shop in big malls makes u think that very expat is capable of doing that????
i am really suprised on your approch.
Majority and let me repeat majority of expats draw salaries ranging from 3000/ to 6000/- DH
Do u really think these ppl can survive on this?
Majority and let me repeat majority of expats draw salaries ranging from 3000/ to 6000/- DH
Well - if we include labourers in that, given they are the majority population here - their average salaries are around Dh400/month (assuming they get paid).
For non-manual, semi-skilled labour (eg company drivers, office boys) there is a huge salary cut-off around Dh2,500, to prevent them bringing families here.
Only 10% of ALL the expats earn more than 10K a month.
The expats pay the water, sewage and electricity for the locals. They also shell out for schooling. I mean university diploma holders, with families - what is the most endangered speciaes in the world, middle or upper middle class.
Rents on top.
The all expenses paid jobs are for a few ... that get kicked out after a year or less, more often than not (see the news on CEO of Aldar today).
Get your facts straight ... if you get rid of manual labourers, who is going to build/clean/wait/serve? If you get rid of EDUCATED middle/upper middle class, who is going to WORK?
Management is an activity of managing something. Not all can be managers.
But, the freeze by HH today on new projects in Dubailand says a lot ... let's hope the Internet proxies will be in same bag.
Is it only me? I see ALOT of expats who are complaining...why complain when you have a country that is "better" to go back to...
Please say goodbye and go where it fits you better...after all I am tired of expats telling us how to live our lives and run our country when we did not ask them for their opinion or force them to come...
nag nag nag nag nag and nag thats the only thing u expats do... sad
Actually, expats do tell you how to run your country, because without them, you would still be setting up tents in the middle of the desert.
To all people who tell us to leave if we dont like it: Just imagine ALL expats leaving the UAE. It would all crumble back to where it was 40 years ago. What you dont realize is: expats built this country and without them you cannot survive!
Expats came cause they make money..they are not doing it just for the sake of it...so dont do us a favour...we are paying you and so far respected you but still..you complain..
Indians I really appreciate..they did help us build this country and we relate to them, they never came wanting to change the people, they blend well with us, unlike some other expats...
Will not forget those ingorant people in Spinneys making fun of my uncles wife who was covered...
imagine racist people in my own land...
so yes...goodbye...
lol expats built our country?! you mean you did not get your pay chqa yet?! i'll see into that.. indians are fully respected here. they built this country and as anonymous said we do relate to them. our cultures are not that different. and yes they do blend in. but some expats and yes i'll be a racist by saying europeans and americans just keep complaining? the problem is you all forget that you came here by your own will. not forced. so quit the nagging plz. we are all sick of it. instead of nagging on this dumbass blog all day put your tracks on and go jog around safa park or get a few drinks in boston bar. westeners seem always to have this urge to "fix" was is it with you all. the US bombs the living shit out of countries to "fix" it.. and you all complaining here to "fix" ours... lol that is just sad. by the way to the person who posted that with out expats we'll be living in tents in the desert.. lol yeah maybe that was your idea before you came here.. did you pack your camping equipment b4 coming?! oooh dubai gov is so not clear... ooooh etisalat sucks... oooh emaar builds crapy houses.. oooh dubai police is the cause of traffic... go back to your countries if they are so perfect.. thats if you take out the income tax, the bad weather, the imigrants, the crime ooops its not that perfect back there after all. so STFU
Hey Anon guys..
You forgot to mention pakis!! they had their contribution in building UAE
sub cons have been in the UAE for ages and they witnessed it all. the arab-Sub con relationship goes back thousands of years through trade. Indians and Pakis have built this country not rednecks.. so cut the bull.. to the person who said dubai will go back to what it was 40 years ago.. FYI if you ask some ppl they would rather go back to those days than having our country invaded by u all. we used to live a quiet life, knowing our neighbours and sticking together before all this EMAAR NAKHEEL crap.
To all: I'm an expat. I came here to work for the money. It is very true that a certain thing/situation needs a stimulant for it to grow and prosper. Let's just say that if these "rednecks" didn't bother to take a second look at the prospects of Middle East and refused to share their technology in spudding its wells and bringing forth crude on the surface.... would it be possible that the ME will be at par with North Africa and not become an oil giant that it is today? Let's stick to what's written in the history books - the "rednecks" came because they have been invited to come and see the potential of these beloved deserts. The rest, so to speak is history. I'm not a "redneck" but I'm thankful for their risk-taking nature, to the Arabs for their trust, to the Indo-Pakistan community for the unrelenting willpower to do all sorts of jobs here including spending long hours under the intense July sun, to the other nationalities who brought in their good nature, knowledge and culture and make this country what it is today. Everyone counts and matters. Let's be patient and tolerant with each other.
The issues are there, they will never go away but we can always find better and constructive ways of handling them - and that includes a sounding board like this blog space.
Let's stick to the issues and avoid name-callings and at the same time be aware of the facts - that we expats are here for the money but we don't take sh*t from anyone, not here and certainly not back home either; that this is Arab Land and we respect that; that morality transcends nationalities and religion; that whether we like it or not - our future lies in our own hands; and that all of us have varying degrees of choices including the choice to stay or leave and move on.
It's your choice to make. It's my choice to make.
oK...I should have included Pakistanis too...and I thank them and all who have seen the potentials of this land and help build it..
But still I dont appreciate those who come here..forcing their culture...complaining of ours...
and really...the ones who do that most are mostly and I repeat mostly europians americans.
I agree with all the anonymous who left comments after mine (the one who asked you to say goodbye)...
It is an Arabic and Islamic country and all of you come knowing that..yet ready to disrepect both of these facts by throwing your way of life in our face...
Do you know...that I got complains from work here in Canada for putting the flag of my country!! yes in Toronto...
So I must say to all of you who complain...stop the double standards...
Going back to the main issue...YES the prices of rent is unpredictable..I am not happy about it..and no if I had my own property I wouldn't do that to anyone (although being a human it would be hard to resist)..
Instead of swearing and saying all this crap about the locals here (who by the way suffer like you do)..problem solve and do something about it...
I love Dubai..I love the UAE...I appreciate it even more now that I am TEMPORARILY away...
and I know all you expats do too...thats the only reason you remain here despite all what you say.
So...I will ask YOU to be tolerant...LOL in my own country..to my own people..to our religion and tradition...
And I salute and welcome all of you who already do (cause I know many who do)...
People complain when it hurts their pockets. Instead of taking offense to the complaints, the UAE should take note and look into continuing to make the country an attractive place to be. The real issue here is that the UAE is slowly but surely losing its advantage of being a good place to come and work. The fact that the UAE nationals are: a) Not enough to take over all the jobs in the country, b) not qualified to take over all the jobs, should be a clear indication that one cannot just ignore all the whining and say that these are European and American moaners. It isn't the case.
As an Arab, I find the UAE culture to be great. I love the people and I also love the country. I sure as hell don't love the spiralling expenses that are slowly choking my bank account. Indian, Pakistani, Europan, American, Arab, etc. will all feel the same pinch.
What is happening here is that people are saying, hey, this is too much.. and pretty soon, those people will do exactly what many are proposing.. they will up and leave. The UAE then will have to continue to import labor, except that the labor they will bring will be of lesser quality as only the desperate will accept a lower living standard than what we have today.
I am not in my country, not because of the money -- it is because of the conveniences afforded to me by the UAE. Believe it or not, I would be making considerably more money in my own country. I also enjoy living in different countries and experiencing different cultures.
So, to the Emirati's.. please don't take offense to the whining about the costs of living -- it really is running out of hand. The landlords, your own people, are hurting you, more than they are hurting the people whining.
Lets face it, at the end of the day the vast majority of people ( I include all, even the UAE Nationals ) are affected by the higher costs of living. By making issues public, things can and do change. But don't stereotype a race because of a single persons viewpoint. ( or apparent whinging )
The UAE is probably one of the finest examples of multicultural integration. It has made enormous steps and will continue to do so and everyone one here has something to offer...
Well said Mr. Elzubair!
I'm an Indian expat (somehow stating that seems relevant) who's lived here all his life. I didn't have the choice of moving here as I was born here.
All of us are hurting... an explosive inflation, the weakening dollar and stagnant incomes have really made survival difficult here. It may be relevant to some wether Indians, Pakistanis, Americans... etc. built/moved into this country but the basic issue is that even highly experienced and educated people (no I dont get a dog allowance!) aren't able to make ends meet.
On the flip side, I totally understand what the government is doing... though my daily interaction with locals is highly limited, I can safely say that they're not the uneducated bunch of people they used to be. They've come a long way from pitching tents - most of them have basic education and many of them have college degrees. Some of the leaders (Sh. Mo, Mohd Al Abbar, et al) are more than equipped to make an impact on the world scene. I believe this 'driving the expats out' theory may be part valid and I understand it. Look at countries like Bahrain and Oman that went 'cold turkey' with their nationalization schemes... their economic structure just collapsed! What was worse, from an expat perspective, was that expats didn't have time to react and had to 'close shop' almost overnight.
Atleast here in Dubai, they're doing it slowly... people are prepared and anticipate higher fees, rents, taxes. Additionally, the 'time buffer' has allowed them to equip their own national through education and experience.
I firmly believe that the 'expat era' is over. I don't think the government is responsible for our plight. They also have a growing population to deal with and there's no surprises about who they're priorities lie with.
Now if only it was easy to get up and walk away!
What will happen to Dubai when Fortune 500 companies start pulling out of Internet city because it's too expensive for them to operate here?? Grapevine has it three are moving as we speak.
Well besides the expensive rates to rent at the internet city, the city it self is not a successful project to begin with..so I guess that reason is a factor as well..
I dont think Dubai is to worry about people leaving because of the rent...the attractions and the opportunities outwieghs that...
Hahahahah, The shadow...I like your comment, I hope the UAE never becomes a free country as I know what happens to a free country...
People whine regardless...so why bother pay attention to those who do it alot..cause thats in their nature..
There are many of us here to work and support our families in a very family friendly environment..and I think its worth it despite the inflation..I have more time for my children and my self...I love it.
As someone who is not "local" I think I have always the option to leave..which is always a comforting thought. But I compare my life style here to what it would be like backhome...although the pay will be alot better, I will have less time for whats most important to me..my family.
I love the culture..the people..their warmth and maybe some of you should mix with these people and see their way of living in their homes...they know and enjoy family and I love that.
Too bad I had to move to another apartment because of the rent three months ago, but I alway know I have the choice...
hello all, i'm a nosy desi living in Hong Kong, the business centre that i know Dubai is modelling itself after. i've been reading your comments and find them most interesting. you probably also know about our sky-high rents and living standards, despite being located next to "low cost" china. i just came back from a visit to dubai after 7 years and am still reeling from the pace of development. it's very impressive, but where's the sustainability? as far as i understand, there is still no clear law regarding property ownership - that leaves expat/non-UAE nationals nowhere doesnt it? fortunately, in HK we do have choices and the govt does provide protection. it doesn't matter if you are not chinese, as long as you have a permanent residency, you are treated like a local and under the same laws. anyway, my point is that property market in dubai is very young and kind of reminds me of HK in the 80's. the market was insane, but it burst spectacularly just after 97 (the handover) becuase everyone thought that china would kill HK. the rents came down & it became the renter's/buyers' market. since then, the market has creeped back up but cautiously and on the back of rich chinese investing in HK. now, with increasing interest rates (our $ is also pegged to US$), the prices are coming down again - buyers are staying away as it's too expensive. only big companies are paying outrageous rents for their expats. But these are dwindlin as more local poeple are being hired for the same jobs (locals studied abroad & returned to HK with their US, UK, Australian degrees will work for less). So, i think the UAE market will find it's feet after a couple of years when all the new developments are finshed and the real competition begins. Landlords will then realise what it means to have a "quality" tenant who will look after your place and pay you on time, over one that will pay you more but will trash your place and eventually abscond with 3-4 months of rent unpaid. And tenants will unfortunately be at the mercy of landlords till the govt puts a Rent or Land Tribunal into place that can help tenants being unreasonably harassed/persecuted..!
IT IS EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE TO LIVE IN THE UAE. MOST PEOPLE, NEW TO THE COUNTRY THINK ITS A TAX HEAVEN AND THAT THEY'RE GOING TO SAVE ALOT OF MONEY;HOWEVER,IN MOST CASES ITS NOT TRUE. SOME PEOPLE HAVE A GREAT LIFE IN THE UAE, YET MOST SUFFER FROM LOW WAGES AND LOW QUALITY SERVICES.THERE IS MANY HIDDEN COSTS THAT MOST FORIEGNERS DON'T HAVE A CLUE ABOUT. IF AN EXPATRIATE DECIDES TO LIVE IN UAE, HE SHOULD, MAKE SURE THAT HIS WAGE IS HIGH AND THAT HIS ALLOWANCES MATCH THE HIGH INFLATION.PEOPLE FORGET MANY ISSUES WHEN THEY COME TO UAE 1- THEY DON'T GET A NATIONALITY.
2- THEY WILL NEVER BE TREATED LIKE CITIZENS
3- PAY SO MUCH RENT MORE THAN TAXES IN OTHER COUNTRIES.
4- WHEN THEY GO BACK HOME MOST WILL BE TO OLD TO START ALL OVER AGAIN.
5- MOST WILL END UP WITH NO SAVINGS.
IE.HUGE OPPORTUNITY COSTS
FINALLY, ITS UP TO THE PLANNING, REMEMBER, SOME PEOPLE LOVE THE LIFE IN UAE ESPECIALLY DUBAI.
MANY landlords are greedy. Try living in so.ca. My rent has been increased 11 times in 11 yrs. Its set to increase again this summer. Im on rent control. Go figure. May all the greedy/selfish landlords burn in hell & god not have mercy on their souls. So it is written & so it shall be done. Amen.
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