Abu dhabi launches new price index

Residential property prices in Abu Dhabi have fallen by 15% in the first three quarters of 2010 compared to the same period last year, according to a new property index being launched in the emirate...

The new Reidin.com data is the first in Abu Dhabi to be based on the valuations and listings of property and follows a successful launch in neighbouring Dubai.

According to property professionals it represents a new era and shows how the emerging real estate markets in the Middle East are maturing as they provide accurate and frequent data that can be relied on.

Full details will be released when the new index is published for the first time but company chief executive officer Ahmet Kayhan said that the price decline was witnessed across all the areas of the capital.

The real estate information company has used property agents to collate data for the index since the Abu Dhabi Land Department currently doesn't have the actual registrations from freehold areas.

Last week, Reidin.com said sale prices of apartments and villas in Dubai fell 2.3% in September compared with the previous month. The September sales price index showed a year on year decrease of 4.86% compared with September 2009.

Kayhan believes property prices in Dubai have reached the bottom, but is uncertain where the floor lies in Abu Dhabi.

‘I believe the Dubai market has already found the bottom. The numbers are showing the same thing as well as our forecast analysis. However, where is the bottom for Abu Dhabi is the question? Anyone who got in at the peak lost a lot of money, but who hasn't got in has a great opportunity,' he added.

Apartment prices fell by 2.435 while villa prices dropped by 2.4%, the Reidin.com index shows. However, the company said there was a sense of optimism as prices of smaller and larger apartments rose moderately during the month.

Prices for apartments of 50 square meters and under rose by 0.77% last month compared to August but they are down 13.37% year on year. Meanwhile, apartments of 151 square meters or more rose by 0.86% month on month but are still down 5.74% year on year.

Source: www.propertywire.com