Arada adds student accommodation to $6.5bn Aljada project

Real estate developer Arada has announced the launch of Sharjah’s first purpose-built student accommodation, which it claims will guarantee investors 10 per cent return on investment for five years.

The accommodation complex, called Nest, will be part of the $6.5bn mega-project Aljada, and will feature 10 five-storey buildings spread across a 35,000 square metre area on the University City side of the development.

Each block will, designed with internal courtyards and meeting spaces, will contain a selection of studios and two, four, five, and eight-bed dormitories, as well as laundry rooms, shared TV rooms and study areas. In total there are 1,288 units and 2,600 bed spaces.

Other facilities include an art studio, music hall, library, running track, amphitheatre, central dining hall, and male and female swimming pools and gyms.

Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qasimi, chairman of Arada, said: “The UAE has made education one of its highest priorities and a key platform for the development of the country. We are proud to support this critical industry through Nest, a state-of-the-art home for the region’s future leaders.

“At Nest, we are dedicated to providing facilities and a living experience for our students that is unmatched anywhere in the Middle East, and where security and safety are top of mind.

“Student accommodation is still a relatively new investment segment here in the Gulf and we’re happy to offer this opportunity in Sharjah for the first time.”

Arada also said in a statement that a number of part-time employment opportunities at local retail and food and beverage outlets will be open to Nest residents –  both in the complex and in Aljada as a whole.

The developer also said that investors in Nest will be guaranteed an ROI of 10 per cent annually for a period of five years after the unites have been completed. The firm plans to hand over the entire community by the end of 2021.

The wider Aljada development is due to become Sharjah’s largest mixed-use community, spread across 24 million square feet. Construction has already begun, with the first homes scheduled to be handed over by the end of 2019.