Real estate to recover in MENA this year

M

ay 18 - Real estate recovery will be immense in the MENA markets including Dubai, said a report released by Jones Lang Lasalle. According to details, the hotel investment market in the region is at “tipping point” with the sector moving from being development-led to investment-led this year. "2010 is expected to mark a new beginning for the MENA hotel market...the sector is showing signs of reawakening, which is expected to result in additional transactional activity over the next 12 months," said the report. Various factors such as increased supply along with the willingness to sell will bring about the creation of more hotel properties this year. For example, in Saudi Arabia, the cities of Makkah and Madinah were "witnessing a strong surge in demand for hospitality projects" while Dubai "has seen increased interest from opportunistic investors attracted by more realistic pricing and the relatively high transparency of the market,” said the report.