Alabbar: ‘Greed Is Natural, Flippers Can’t Be Stopped’

Dubai’s property flippers can never be fully stopped, said the chairman of Emaar Properties on Wednesday.

Speaking at the Global Business Forum Africa in Dubai, Mohammed Alabbar said that flipping is ‘a part of life’.

“The government is watching these activities. We are human beings, we forget. Greed is part of our DNA,” he said.

“Last year was the first year the market picked up after a four year global slowdown and we’ve reached the level where the police are called to our events.

“Emaar does launches every week, that’s our strategy. I see very strong demand for the middle and upper property markets, providing the flipping activity is controlled of course.

“Dubai is only 10 per cent done and we still have a lot of time. New York had 200 years, we’ve had 30.”

The chairman said Emaar was looking at a new rule where the firm adds 10 to 20 per cent to the trade price if they are aware that investors want to flip properties.

“People will always trade. It’s natural. If you ban them, they will just ask their friends and uncles to invest the next day. But it is important to minimise the risk.”

Alabbar added that the newly regulated UAE banking system has also made it more difficult for flippers to conduct their financial activities.

The chairman also said that Emaar is ramping up its African activities, with particular focus on Uganda, Mozambique, Nigeria, Ghana and Angola.

“We look at market size and potential. We look for large size developments,” he said.

He added that investors must ‘be able to stomach and understand’ Africa’s risks.

“All countries have their risks, I lost $1.2 billion in the United States,” he quipped.

“My advice is to go to the country you want to invest in, meet the people, and see for yourself. We have to be fair to the Middle East and Africa.”