Italian Property Developer Preatoni Acquires Dubai Star Tower

Preatoni, a European property developer, has bought a 100 per cent stake in Dubai Star Tower, a project under construction in Jumeirah Lake Towers, as it expands its presence in the region.

The Dubai Star Tower will rise to 45 floors and incorporate retail, office space and residential units in addition to a spa and swimming pool. The tower is scheduled for completion before the end of 2015.

Ernesto Preatoni, founder and chairman of Preatoni Real Estate, said: “We anticipate huge demand for this tower from investors.”

The company has built $3.3bn worth of projects in the MENA region to date, including the Domina Coral Bay Resort in Sharm El Sheikh Egypt, which has already sold 16,000 units.

“We have started expanding our portfolio of residential and commercial complexes in Dubai. We are scouting other projects for long-term investment and ownership.”

Preatoni recently opened an office in Dubai, to expand its portfolio of residential, hotel and commercial projects.

Real estate is booming in Dubai, with  the value of properties jumping 38 per cent in the first quarter to some Dhs61bn ($16.6bn), the Land Department recently announced.

While some prices have almost returned to their pre-crash peaks, they remain well below other global business cities. Prime real estate in Dubai costs between $6,200 and $7,500 per square metre ($580-700 per square foot), against $27,600-33,700 in Singapore, according to Knight Frank.

However, despite the increase in property prices, concern still looms regarding a second bubble, due to the surge in supply and unsustainable demand currently seen in the market, the same factors that were present during the collapse of the Dubai real estate market six years ago.