The construction boom is pushing banks and companies to compete to break into the market, said Adel Al Shirawi, CEO of Tamweel
The UAE and the UAE in general, and the creation of a banking market, has resulted in the increasing numbers of companies and banks that have begun to prepare themselves, to break into the financing market buying housing.
As Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) recently entered the residential finance market, the number of banks and companies offering home loans to ten, Tamweel, Amlak, Mashreq, Ras Al Khaimah National, Sharjah Islamic Bank, HSCB, Lloyds, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank and Emirates Islamic Bank.
Adel Al-Shirawi, chief executive of Tamweel, said the local mortgage market needs 2-3 years to mature as new banks and financing companies enter. However, Al-Shirawi stressed that companies and new banks in the finance sector to buy houses need time periods to complete the work cycle until they reach maturity.
Tamweel was one of the first companies to provide real estate finance in Dubai and has acquired the expertise, knowledge and know-how in the market. The newcomers need a period of time to absorb them. Tamweel's partners have reached 200 partners, Real estate brokers and others.
Al-Shirawi predicted that the size of the finance market for home buying in the UAE will reach 9 billion dirhams (7.5-8.8 billion dirhams) in 2005.
He pointed out that the size of the market during the year will reach 12-14 billion dirhams, of which 63% will be financed through financing loans granted by banks and companies specializing in mortgage finance.
He pointed out that the market reached in 2003 about 2.4 billion dirhams, then rose to 7 billion dirhams in 2004.
Al-Shirawi said the real estate market is growing and will lead to growth in the real estate finance market at a higher rate.
Earlier this month, Tamweel launched a new financing product called Yusr, which offers an opportunity to re-adjust installment payments according to the customer's ability to pay.
Al-Shirawi said the new product, Yusr, is an unprecedented initiative of Tamweel to facilitate options for individuals looking for financing programs tailored to their needs and financial capabilities.
Yasir, the latest Shariah-compliant financing product developed by Tamweel, adjusts the value of monthly payments to allow customers to buy today what they may be able to pay tomorrow.
The new product takes several factors into account, including the possibility of increasing the client's income over the next two to three years, allowing for large-scale thinking when it comes to buying a new property.
"Yesser" starts with a profit rate of 4.99% for a period chosen by the client. When this period ends, the profit rate will be adjusted with the schedule that suits it as well.
Mohammed Al Hashemi, chief executive officer of Amlak Finance Co, has predicted a sharp increase in competition in Dubai's real estate finance market as a result of what he said was a growing number of new arrivals from banks and finance companies.
He said that the housing finance market will reach an estimated size of 15-20 billion dirhams next year, which will lead to the entry of new companies and banks into the sector.
"The number of Amlak customers has increased to about 3,000 customers who have received real estate financing of up to 3 billion dirhams," Hashemi said.
He stressed that the market in Dubai will continue to achieve good growth rates, excluding the rumors of a collapse in prices, and said that most of the properties are still under construction and construction will begin to enter the market soon.
Amlak has announced that it has entered the real estate management and sale market and is managing the necessary funding in the Mohammed Bin Rashid Housing Program, which aims to build 10,000 housing units for citizens with investments of AED 10 billion.
Hashemi noted that the movement of speculators in the real estate sector to the stock sector, which led to the stability of prices and stop them to rise unjustified.
Bankers and experts say that as mortgage companies and banks offer housing and real estate loans, they are first stepping up their operations and profits by tapping into a huge market with investments estimated at 300 billion dirhams over the next 10 years.
Bankers argue that housing finance stimulates the demand machine and drives investors to invest more in the real estate sector.
The role of this financing is reflected in the activation of both demand and supply, with 63% of the real estate market being financed through lending and real estate finance. The volume of financing during this year is estimated at AED 9 billion out of AED 14 billion.
Experts estimate the number of housing units currently under development in Dubai to be 85,000, and the market value of properties on the Dubai market is estimated at more than $ 50 billion (AED 185 billion) To more than 300 billion dirhams, according to some estimates.
Experts confirm that the maturity of the housing finance market in the country needs 3 years, and see that the entry of new companies thanks to increasing demand for this type of financing will lead to increased competition, which will pay more quality and efficiency of services and prices, but they insist that the market is still in And needs further clarification and information, particularly with regard to the legal situation.
The prices (interest or profit) are moving according to the global interest rates that have risen recently, prompting some companies and banks to raise interest rates or profits.
Meanwhile, Islamic finance has grown significantly as the Islamic finance market is expected to grow by about 40% this year.
The issue of valuing real estate and its fair price remains one of the most important issues that concern lenders, as well as pressure from customers to raise lending rates to 100% of the price of the property, which is considered by the lenders as a risk.
Experts called for the non-financing of speculators and the adoption of the market mechanism as a means to stabilize prices and correct them, in addition to adopting fair valuation methods