Damac sees UAE property market recovery in two years

The recovery of the UAE property market to pre-crisis levels could take up to two years, an executive at Dubai-listed developer Damac Properties said.

The recovery of the real estate market “will be a long one, perhaps 12 to 24 months,” Amira Sajwani, senior vice president at Damac, was cited as saying by the Zawya news site. “Property prices have dropped, and we are expecting further declines over the final quarter of 2020 and into 2021.”

The impact of Covid-19 and a likely reduction in the UAE population will hamper the revival, she said.

Dubai’s property glut has driven home prices down by more than 30 per cent since 2014.

Damac chairman Hussein Sajwani warned this month against the risk of companies “dumping” property in a market already grappling with excess inventory. The developer is expecting a challenging year in 2021, he said.