Abu Dhabi Chamber discusses property investment opportunities with the Real Estate National Committee of the Federation of Saudi Chambers

His Excellency Dr. Ali bin Harmal Aldhaheri, 1st Vice Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Chamber, chaired the meeting, which was attended by Saeed Ghumran Al Remeithi, Deputy Treasurer of the BoD, and his fellow Board Members Ahmed Khalifa Almehairi, Amer Fayez Kakish, Fouad Fahmi Darwish, Khalid Anib, and Rashed Mikati along with the Chamber’s higher management.

Representatives of the Department of Municipalities and Transport, and Al Dar Properties attended the meeting as well along with other real estate companies operating in Abu Dhabi.

From the Saudi side, the meeting was attended by Muhammad Abdullah Al Murshid, Chairman of the National Real Estate Committee of the Federation of Saudi Chambers and the accompanying delegation consisting of representatives of authorities and property development businesses, and members of the Representative Committee of the Real Estate Sector Working Group at the Federation of Saudi Chambers.

H.E. Dr. Aldhaheri welcomed the Saudi delegation, congratulating them on the 91st Saudi National Day, expressing his appreciation for visiting the Abu Dhabi Chamber with the aim of solidifying cooperation relations in diverse economic and investment sectors, especially the property development one.

In his remarks, Dr. Aldhaheri said that the Abu Dhabi Chamber is aware of building the best cooperation relations with its peers, regionally and internationally, especially Saudi Arabia by sharing experiences and ideas and forming new investment partnerships.

“The Property sector is a key engine to all other economic sectors. It is one of the most promising and attracting sectors for foreign investors considering its feasible investment returns,” he said, pointing to the diverse economic and trade base of both Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia.

Real Estate Sector

Dr. Aldhaheri pointed out that Abu Dhabi has become the most progressive real estate market in the world in 2018 - 2020, based on JLL’s Global Real Estate Transparency Index.
In its 2020 edition, the report recorded substantial improvement in Abu Dhabi, further strengthening its position as having the most improved transparency in the real estate sector.

Several initiatives launched by the Department of Municipalities and Transport contributed to further strengthening the real estate sector in Abu Dhabi, most noticeable is the ownership law issued by His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, Ruler of Abu Dhabi, in April 2019.

The law allows foreign investors to own land and rights such as mortgage, sale, and entry into owners' associations, which provides flexibility for the investor and companies. It also allows public shareholding companies, in which foreign ownership does not exceed 49%, to own real estate outside investment areas.

Presentations

During the meeting Al Dar Properties introduced its property investment opportunities in Abu Dhabi, while the Department of Municipalities and Transport presented the laws and legislations governing the property sector in the emirate.

For his part, Muhammad Al Murshid presented a roadmap to the property plans in the Kingdom, stressing that his visit to Abu Dhabi Chamber will act as a starting point for signing several memorandums of understanding and for building new partnerships.

The Chairman emphasized on the need for coordination in order to identify the features of property competitiveness, how to market property investments, the challenges of the property sector and the laws, legislations and procedures related to the performance of this pivotal sector.

Discussions between the two sides and B2B meetings between property developers in Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia followed.