21 May 2017
By Irfan Bukhari / The Peninsula

Nearly 1,500 units comprising about 17% villas and 83% apartments have been added in Qatar in first quarter of 2017 while an estimated 5,800 units will be added by the end of 2017, said a report by ValuStrat on Qatar's real estate market.

The First Quarter Review 2017 by the a real estate consultancy firm on Qatar Real Estate Market further reveals that by the end of 2016, the total housing stock (villas, residential houses and apartments) was approximately 281,000 units.

“For 2017 Q1, nearly 1,500 units were added comprising about 17% villas and 83% as apartments. Majority of new residential projects were concentrated in Lusail, The Pearl and Al Sadd,” it adds.

The report has said that an estimated 5,800 units will be added by the end of 2017, assuming minimum construction delays. “These include apartments in 5 buildings to be completed in The Pearl and 10 buildings in Lusail.”

“This year’s Cityscape exhibition unveiled major off-plan residential projects such as Al Swida Village in Al Thumama (77 apartment buildings), Lusail Azure (serviced apartments and villas), Telal 2 in Lusail (luxury apartments), Millennium Apartments in The Pearl, Jumanah Tower 2 in The Pearl and Ezdan Oasis in Wukair (8,679 housing units). All the projects mentioned are expected to be completed by 2020,” the ValuStrat report says.

On residential demand in Qatar, the ValuStrat Q1 Review says: “In the past few months, due to various private/government organizations minimising costs, there has been increased numbers of redundancies of personnel in high income brackets.”

Regarding residential prices, the report says that compared to 2016, the median transacted price for residential houses fell by nearly 12% YoY, although the volume of transactions increased by more than 50% YoY. “This annual increase in transactions volume of residential units illustrates a positive response to falling prices.”

On residential rents, the report reveals: “Compared to 2016, median monthly asking rents have declined by approximately 15% YoY and 5% QoQ.

Median asking villa rents decreased by 18% YoY and 8% QoQ while median asking rents for apartments declined by 15% YoY and 5% QoQ.”

The report further shows that apartment asking rents were relatively stable in some areas like Al Sadd. It also says that many landlords did not reduce rents, but offered incentives and promotions which translated into a fall in effective rents. “Moreover, in areas like Abu Hamour or Fereej Bin Mahmoud, rents were stable as majority of these districts cater to low-middle income segment.”

ValuStrat is a leading consulting firm headquartered in Dubai providing advisory, valuation, research, due diligence and divestment services across a diverse range of industry sectors since 1977.

© The Peninsula 2017