Nakheel reports threefold increase in sales

6,100 Nakeel units sold
In the year to date, more than 6,100 Nakheel units have been sold (97%) or reserved (3%), exceeding the developer's own ambitious targets.

Unit sales in 2008 comprised more than two thirds apartment sales (68%), over a quarter villa sales (27%) and 5% land plot sales.

These units were released in 13 staggered launches between 1 January and 31 August 2008.

A further 2,650 units are set to be released in 11 additional sales launches scheduled for the final quarter of 2008.

Nakheel developments
The three Nakheel developments accounting for the largest volume of sales were Badrah Manara apartments, with almost a third of sales by volume (32.2%); apartments in Lake District, with 15.2% of the total; and Al Furjan villas, making up 14.7% of sales by volume.

Manal Shaheen, Director of Sales, Marketing and Customer Service at Nakheel, said:

"We are delighted but by no means surprised by this year's phenomenal sales success. Demand for Nakheel's Dubai properties continues to rise across residential and commercial sectors, and we see no signs of this demand abating - despite recent gloomy predictions from one or two analysts.

This year's sales have even been immune to the usual summer dip in July and August, which indicates just how healthy the market is.

If you compare the expansive vision of Dubai to the construction capacity constraint, which is currently around 80,000 dwellings per year, and if you believe that population growth will continue to rise by 6-7% per annum - a conservative estimate, then by 2020 we will still not have enough residences to meet demand - even with the staggering amount of homes that Nakheel is delivering over the next two decades."

Nakheel is providing 50% of Dubai's residential supply by building homes for three million people ranging from affordable housing to the ultimate in luxury living in order to meet the demands of Dubai's growing cosmopolitan population.

Nakheel has developed a large volume of affordable and family living in three distinct areas of Dubai: Waterfront, International City and Al Furjan.

The developer also plans to create 10 million sq ft of retail space through plans announced by Nakheel Retail.

Manal Shaheen added: "Through bold decisions made by our leaders, Dubai has established 'first mover' advantage in the region, with clear property laws and legislation for the protection of the consumer. Homebuyers, including overseas investors, can buy property freehold, safe in the knowledge that legal watchdogs such as RERA exist to protect their best interests. This protection has a vital role to play in the long-term success and stability of Dubai's real estate sector."

Dubai is increasingly becoming the business and tourism hub of the Middle East, and, with 1.7 billion people living within a four-hour flight radius of the Emirate, is set for continued future growth.

Having already played a leading role in establishing Dubai as a leading tourism destination, Nakheel's planned tourism projects will include up to 250 new hotels - a 50% increase on the current number in the emirate.

The Palm Jumeirah alone is more than doubling the number of beachfront hotels in Dubai, with more than 30 hotels and 14,000 rooms.

Numbers of hotel and hotel-apartment guests in Dubai continue to show strong year-on-year increases, with 500,000 more guests in 2007 than 2006.