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DUBAI EXPAT HOUSING GUIDE

Dubai can be split into districts. Running through the centre of the city is the Creek, which is pretty, dotted with wooden boats (abras), and lined with a mix of the old and the new. North of the Creek is Deira where you will find the spice, fish and most important, gold souks. ToysRUs and M&S are also out there. Back on the South side of the Creek, you're in Bur Dubai. If you have ever walked the streets of Delhi , this will feel familiar. Cosmos Lane is dedicated to fabric shops where you can find both bargains and treasures. Maybe twenty electronic shops compete along side each other on Al Faheidi Road, keeping prices low. It is here also that you will find designer shirts and not-quite-but-almost-designer watches and all sorts of rubbish to send home. Computer shops vie for trade on
Khalid Ibn Al Waleed Road.

the Creek

There's Garhoud and further out still, Mirdiff. These are convenient for the airport, and accommodation tends to be cheaper. One lady I spoke to felt a little isolated in Mirdiff, being a good drive from the mainstream activities, but you will undoubtedly get more for your money out there. And since I first wrote this profile, Mirdiff has grown significantly. There's a growing expat community, a mums and tots group and a large shopping mall will open this year, which in turn will attract more expats, so it's not as remote as it first seemed. Other friends had a really nice flat in Garhoud with a balcony large enough to party, but if you were noise-sensitive these would not be the districts for you. The next district along from Bur Dubai is Karama and then Satwa. These again, are principally dedicated to Indian and Sri Lankan small businesses. Karama has a number of nice apartment blocks and singles/couples with no kids are often directed there. It is handy for a lot of nightlife. There are villas in Satwa, which tend to be a little cheaper than Jumeirah. Again, it's a convenient place to live. The nearest British School would be DESS, which has a good reputation.

Jumeirah

The main haunt of expats here, giving rise to the tag Jumeirah Jane, of which I am a fine example. And Jumeirah stretches into Umm Sequiem, which is more of the same. These two cover around 20km along the coast. Three main roads run parallel. The Beach Road hugs the coast, then farthest out there's the motorway, the Sheikh Zayed Road, and between the two, the Al Wasl Road. It all feels quite compact. These three interlink with many smaller roads, and pretty much all that you need can be found in this area. There's a choice of good schools, nurseries, supermarkets, parks, and even a Lloyds Bank. There are apartments along the motorway, which is another focus for singles/no kids. Often they will have private gyms/a pool, and generally standards are high. Prices range from +/- AED35 000 year for one-bedroom to around AED70 000 for two. Most expat families rent here. There are a few projects where properties are being made available to expats for investment but it is still early days. The apartments around Dubai Marina that are being offered for sale, are priced from AED 750 000 – AED 4,000 000+. A four-bedroom villa in one of the complexes en route to Jebel Ali may cost around AED 2,000 000. Up until recently there was an absolute ban on property being owned by anyone other than the nationals. There are unconfirmed rumours that all property - including Jumeirah - will be made available for sale, and that may affect the long-term investment of properties currently available, further out. But this is very much a planned economy so prices are likely to be protected&. Who knows? If you know you are going to be here for 5 years or more, and your package gives you cash to spend either on rent or a mortgage, then it's definitely worth checking out the options, purely because rents are so high. You can buy a villa on the Palm and enjoy life near one of the Beckham’s holiday homes!

Jumeirah is further classified by number. Jumeirah 1 (nearest to Dubai - Jumeirah Mosque/"old Spinneys" area) is pretty much built up now, full of villas, mosques, hotels, beach clubs and shopping malls. As you move further south, there are more gaps between the houses, empty plots of sand, but they're filling up fast. A typical villa will have three, four or five bedrooms. Many stand alone, or you can opt for a compound. A compound in Dubai means a group of houses sharing facilities. So, it may be 20 houses around tennis courts, a pool and a gym, or ten houses with private gardens and access to a shared pool.

Internet City, Media City, the marina and leisure resort have sprung up over the last couple of years and suburbia is steadily, and quite quickly, spreading south down the coast. Al Barsha, (at J4, across the motorway, near the police college), offers some interesting properties at very reasonable rates, and that area will really flourish when the two new very big malls open at J4 and J5 of the Sheikh Zayed Road. The Lakes and The Meadows at J5 are also new developments and very popular with families, renting and buying. A few km further, you come to Jebel Ali Village, which is just like living in a village, complete with an excellent primary school, a village hall and riding stables. Again prices are reasonable; it's a way out but the town is stretching put to meet them, and once all the new hotels and bars are open in the marina the centre of life will quickly move that way. It's very handy for anyone working in Jebel Ali Free Zone, but Jumeirah isn't out of the way being a 20-minute drive.

If you are offered a visit to look around before you move here, ask to meet an agent to be shown a selection of villas on one of your days. If you have a family and are not interested in an apartment make that clear in advance so as not to waste your time. Prices range typically from AED 85 000 – AED 125 000 per annum for a 4-bedroom villa. In Satwa or Jebel Ali, you may find what you are looking at AED 75 000 – AED 90 000. Check your housing allowance and make your budget clear to the lady showing you around. If you have narrowed your choice to one or two, try to find someone on the compound or living nearby. I don't know about other nationalities, but it's quite un-British to bother a stranger. However, people are generally pleased to help. Just ask them about the feel of the place; have they lived there long, are they happy there? Also ask about maintenance. All villas come with a maintenance contract. We were blessed (in our last house) with a company that responds the same day to any request but they're not all that good. Before choosing our villa, I spoke to a lady and her little boy in the compound pool, and she soon became my first friend in Dubai. If you want to discuss some options available to you before coming out, you could contact a couple of real estate agents direct. I'm often asked for recommendations but have limited personal experience. I would recommend you wait till you get here and pick up a copy of Gulf News. Each day there is an accommodation section. Pick 2 or 3 big ads, give them your details and they'll select some properties to show you. Specifically, I've only ever heard good things about Better Homes and we, and others I've spoken to, have had a load of hassle, and expense, renting through Dome Real Estate. But we could have just been unlucky.

Sources : Articles by Jaye in Expatwomen