UAE expats drive up house prices in Pakistan

According to a Dubai ann­ual market update issued in mid-December, ave­rage residential property prices have fallen 16 per cent and 14 per cent year on year for apartments and villas, respectively, while overall unit transactions declined by 33 per cent.

A soft Dubai property market is encouraging Pakistan expatriates in the UAE to invest back home. This, in turn, is pushing up property prices in Pakistan, resulting in values almost doubling in some areas.
Higher demand, especially in Karachi and Islamabad, was driving prices higher on a daily basis, according to property brokers and developers quoted in a report that appeared on Dawn.com. In contrast, residential prices in Dubai have fallen by up to 15 to 20 per cent in recent months.
According to a Dubai ann­ual market update issued in mid-December, ave­rage residential property prices have fallen 16 per cent and 14 per cent year on year for apartments and villas, respectively, while overall unit transactions declined by 33 per cent.
"Ample liquidity for property investment is pushing prices up everywhere, particularly in Karachi and Islama­bad," said Ashraf Hameed, the director of property developer Value Housing.
He cited closer monitoring of the cross-border movement of money and improved law and order situation as reasons behind the uptrend. "We have no problem of law and order in Islamabad while the situation in Karachi has also improved significantly," he added.
M. Anwar, a private investor in Karachi, said: "Property prices in Dubai have dropped 15 to 20 per cent in commercial and semi-commercial areas, and five to 10 per cent in posh areas."
Pakistanis have been among the leading investors in the Dubai property sector. Most of them were businessmen, politicians, government officials and those who migrated to other countries and shifted their property to Dubai for better returns.

• Pakistan