Home Integrator
WHY DEVELOPERS SHOULD ADOPT AN INVESTOR MINDSET IN EVOLVING REAL ESTATE MARKET
By Eng. Amer Khansaheb, Chief Executive Officer and Board Member of Union Properties PJSC
In today’s buoyant UAE Real Estate landscape, conventional metrics like unit sales volumes are becoming obsolete. Instead, genuine success increasingly lies in value measured through long-term rental income, growth, asset quality, and capital appreciation. Developers who adopt an investor-led mindset, prioritising yield, durability, and premium standards, are effectively shaping the future of the sector in the UAE.
From Selling Today to Earning Tomorrow
To achieve this shift, developers must transcend the traditional focus on one-time sales. Developers must embrace business models that generate sustainable rental income, ensuring a predictable stream of cash flow even during market fluctuations. Future-focused project planning must integrate rental viability, anchoring developments in steady long-term returns rather than immediate, speculative gains. This investor-first approach positions developers for long-term growth.
Rental Market Momentum: Major Growth Engine
The UAE’s residential leases market is projected to reach USD 27.98 billion in 2025 and USD 33.10 billion by 2029 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.3 per cent. Developers who prioritise rental-ready, high-quality units will be best placed to capture this expanding market, appealing both to residents seeking premium housing and to investors seeking reliable returns. This demonstrates the enormous potential that rental-centric development strategies hold.
Supply Growth and Still Solid Returns
Despite expectations of 180,000 new residential units by 2026, rental yields remain strong at 7.4 per cent. This reveals persistent demand, indicating prime opportunities for value-added investments. Developers can capitalise this by offering thoughtfully designed projects with integrated amenities and sustainability features on strategic locations, elements that elevate rental income and investor appeal.
Attracting Global Capital through Investment-First Mindset
The UAE’s progressive policies such as long-term visas, free zones for Real Estate, and investor-friendly reforms, continue to magnetise international and institutional capital. By adopting an investor-first mindset, developers can meet this evolving demand by offering investment-grade opportunities and high-quality, income-generating assets that appeal to discerning global investors.
Differentiating Through Quality
To differentiate in this present market increasingly defined by long-term value rather than rapid turnover, excellence in design, exceptional finishes and long-term value are keys. Developers who invest in durability, sustainability, and strategic positioning, beyond sheer scale, will attract tenant loyalty and investor confidence. This differentiation fosters both brand equity and financial resilience.
Aligning with Future: Investor Mindset as Strategy
As the UAE Real Estate landscape evolves, we can safely state that those developers that think like investors will certainly emerge as leaders. By aligning projects with long-term income generation, adhering to global investment standards, and offering quality-driven, sustainable developments, they lay the groundwork for enduring success.
This dynamic Real Estate environment is not merely a passing trend but a blueprint for sustainable, value-based growth in the UAE market. Developers who embrace this investor-led vision, integrating rental yield, design excellence, and global standards, will not only thrive but also redefine the future of the sector.
Home Integrator
SOURCE OF FATE RECORDS 80 PER CENT OVERSEAS BUYER INTEREST FOR FLAGSHIP PROJECT MIRAGGIO
Source of Fate (SOF), a high-end luxury real estate developer in the UAE, operating under the Wheel of Fate Group, recorded a substantial inflow in international investments for its flagship development Miraggio with 80 per cent of buyers from overseas. As a first-line seaside residential, located on Al Marjan Island, the project is gaining strong attention from global investors seeking long-term value in one of the UAE’s most promising coastal destinations.
The demand is led by investors from the United Kingdom, followed by Turkey, Poland, France, the United States, and India. With the launch of Miraggio Phase II, the developer has also introduced a competitive payment plan to enhance investor flexibility requiring 20 per cent on booking, allowing buyers to resell at this stage if needed; 40 per cent upon completion, with the option to split into a more flexible payment or loan plan; and the remaining 40 per cent spread over two years post-handover. This further contributes to the project’s appeal, with flexible and innovative payment structures currently shaping real estate decisions in the UAE.
Dr Majid Jack Hsiung, General Manager of Source of Fate, said: “Investor behaviour across the UAE is shifting, with decision-makers increasingly prioritising stability, elevated lifestyle offerings, and assets that deliver sustainable long-term value. Miraggio meets this demand with full sea views, elegant design, high-end amenities, competitive pricing, and a luxurious residential lifestyle. Additonally, our new structured payment plan further strengthens the project’s positioning and appeal among investors seeking practical flexibility, security and certainty, as it eases upfront financial pressure, improves cash flow management and supports long-term investment planning.”
According to the company’s reports, Miraggio’s sales are dominated by long-term investors seeking returns upon project completion, influenced by strategic factors such as Ras Al Khaimah’s expanding entertainment sector, the upcoming Wynn Al Marjan Island resort, growth in tourism, and an increase in company formations. The buyer profile shows a range of seasoned investors to first-time international entrants seeking to diversify their portfolios outside traditional markets.
Following the rapid success of Source of Fate’s previous project, Sunshine Bay, which sold out in just two months, Miraggio continues to demonstrate the developer’s ability to deliver highly desirable waterfront projects that resonate with both regional and international investors.
Coastal developments featuring sustainable design, integrated lifestyle amenities, and flexible ownership options are increasingly capturing investor attention, reflecting evolving investor priorities and broader trends shaping the UAE luxury real estate sector. In Ras Al Khaimah’s evolving market, Source of Fate’s project, Miraggio, is poised to contribute to the emirate’s growth, offering a development that aligns closely with investor expectations while embodying the key trends driving the region’s luxury property market.
Home Integrator
AVENEW DEVELOPMENT SIGNS WITH MARRIOTT INTERNATIONAL TO BRING ST. REGIS RESIDENCES TO DUBAI ISLANDS
Dubai-born AVENEW Development is entering the branded residences space following a signed agreement with Marriott International to develop The St. Regis Residences at Dubai Islands. The upcoming project is designed for the modern connoisseur, reflecting the developer’s forward-thinking approach to residential living, where every detail, from interiors to communal experiences, is crafted to inspire connection, elevate lifestyle, and define what it means to truly come home.
AVENEW Development’s selection of Dubai Islands for this seafront living project highlights its in-depth knowledge and established presence within this transformative area. With other major projects located on the islands, AVENEW possesses a proven understanding of the location’s potential, infrastructure, and growing appeal to residents.
This know-how is crucial, ensuring the development is strategically positioned to capitalise on the benefits of the waterfront community, accessibility, and proximity to key facilities such as beachfront promenades and golf courses. The developer’s confidence in the sustained desirability of Dubai Islands underpins the scale and ambition of this latest residential offering.
Commenting on the signing and the strategic alignment of the project, Rasha Hassan, Managing Partner of AVENEW Development, stated: “We chose this project because its commitment to excellence mirrors our own. The St. Regis Residences at Dubai Islands, will be more than homes; they are spaces of comfort where the finest experiences are delivered flawlessly. This project redefines coastal residential living in the GCC, offering residents a lifestyle of celebration and elegance. With a privileged array of world-class amenities, the community will feel both exclusive and meticulously serviced. AVENEW Development was founded on a singular principle: to create homes that go beyond architecture, spaces crafted with intention and care.”
Jaidev Menezes, Regional Vice President – Mixed-Use Development, EMEA at Marriott International shares, “We are thrilled to introduce The St. Regis Residences at Dubai Islands — a collaboration with AVENEW that brings distinctive design and the legendary St. Regis service to life.”
The Residences are optimally positioned to attract residents seeking a world-class living environment defined by structural quality, intentional design, and unparalleled service integration. It is about a lifestyle that has intuitive wellbeing at its core — designed to nurture connection, celebrate family, and offer every resident an effortless life of refinement. As AVENEW Development’s latest project, it embodies the company’s vision, demonstrating that a home should be cherished, not just inhabited.
Home Integrator
Designing Homes That Anticipate Life
Exclusive Interview with Muayad Simbawa, Managing Director of Nemetschek Arabia
Nemetschek Group has long been a pioneer in digital design and construction software. How do you see your solutions reshaping the modern home in the UAE?
We see our solutions reshaping the modern UAE home by focusing on three core pillars: intelligent design, sustainable performance, and operational excellence. Instead of just modeling a home, our platforms, like Graphisoft and Vectorworks, allow architects to simulate how a home will actually perform in different conditions, ensuring maximum energy efficiency and indoor comfort from day one.
In construction, tools like Bluebeam enhance collaboration, speeding up delivery and ensuring quality. Critically, we reshape the modern home’s operational life. Our Digital Twin solutions turn the design data into a live asset management tool, allowing seamless integration with smart home technology and predictive maintenance. This ensures the home is not only built efficiently but remains comfortable, sustainable, and high-performing for decades. Ultimately, our goal is to help developers and designers deliver homes that reflect the UAE’s vision for a future where technology enriches everyday living in meaningful, intuitive ways.
With the rising demand for smart living, what role does Nemetschek play in helping architects and designers create more intuitive, tech-enabled homes?
As smart living becomes an essential part of the UAE lifestyle, our role at Nemetschek is to bridge the gap between architectural design and technological integration. Creating truly intuitive, tech-enabled homes requires designers to integrate systems like HVAC, security, and smart lighting before construction even begins.
Our BIM solutions enable architects to design the digital infrastructure for these systems directly within the model. This allows for early clash detection and ensures the building fabric seamlessly accommodates all the smart technology. Furthermore, by promoting open standards, we ensure the data generated by design is easily consumable by all home integrators, guaranteeing a smoother installation and a unified, future-proof platform for the homeowner. In essence, we empower designers to deliver homes where the technology is invisible, intuitive, and truly enhances the living experience without overwhelming it.
As the Managing Director, what excites you most about the future of homes and spaces in the UAE?
What excites me most about the future of homes and spaces in the UAE is the incredible convergence of innovation, sustainability, and human-centric design. This is a country that doesn’t just adopt new ideas, it imagines what living could look like in 10 years or even 50 years from now and then builds it. We are entering a new era where homes will be more adaptable, energy-efficient, and seamlessly connected. Spaces will anticipate residents’ needs, reduce environmental impact, and enhance wellbeing through smarter design and technology.
At Nemetschek Group, I am inspired by how our digital solutions are helping bring this vision to life, from AI-assisted design and precise BIM modelling to digital twins that optimize comfort and performance. What truly motivates me is the opportunity to support developers, architects, and designers as they shape homes that are not only technologically advanced, but also warm, livable, and deeply rooted in the UAE’s forward-looking spirit.
You recently announced a strategic partnership with Concerted Solutions to boost AEC/O digital transformation across the GCC. Can you walk us through a few early projects or pilot deployments under this collaboration and how they align with regional home-and-infrastructure development trends?
Our partnership with Concerted Solutions is deeply aligned with the region’s digital transformation ambitions. Together, we want to accelerate the adoption of smarter, more connected, and more data-driven workflows across the GCC’s construction and infrastructure sectors. Concerted Solutions brings strong regional expertise and an extensive network, which will help us engage more closely with government entities, developers, and consultants who are looking to advance their digital capabilities.
The partnership is also designed to support national agendas such as Saudi Vision 2030 and the UAE’s We the UAE 2031 vision by enabling organizations to improve efficiency, enhance collaboration, and make more informed decisions through integrated digital tools. Ultimately, our joint mission is to unlock new opportunities for innovation and help shape future-ready built environments whether in homes, communities, or major infrastructure projects.
How are you tailoring your software and digital workflows specifically for large-scale residential developments in the GCC through this partnership?
Through our partnership with Concerted Solutions, we are tailoring our software and digital workflows to meet the unique needs of large-scale residential developments in the GCC – a market defined by rapid growth, ambitious national visions, and rising expectations for smart, sustainable living. Together, we are helping developers move from traditional, siloed processes to fully connected digital ecosystems that support better planning, coordination, and long-term asset performance.
Our joint approach focuses on enabling clearer design communication, improving construction quality, and ensuring that energy efficiency and sustainability targets are embedded from the start. With tools such as BIM, digital twins, and data-driven collaboration platforms, residential developers can simulate community layouts, optimize material use, streamline handover, and enhance the resident experience through smarter building operations.
Since your expansion into Saudi Arabia, you’ve signaled a focus on giga-projects under Vision 2030. What are some of the major developments (residential, infrastructure, or hospitality) you are already involved in, or planning to be involved in, in the Kingdom?
Our focus in Saudi Arabia is strategically aligned with the core pillars of Vision 2030, including the massive residential, infrastructure, and tourism giga-projects. We are proudly engaged with developments that are setting a new global benchmark for sustainable construction. Nemetschek Group is actively supporting the digital transformation goals of major developers behind flagship projects like the ones by Public Investment Fund. Our solutions are providing the digital backbone for design and construction in the Kingdom’s next generation of cities, whether that’s using Graphisoft for residential master-planning, Bluebeam for site collaboration, or dTwin to power the long-term, sustainable operation of the Kingdom’s emerging hospitality and infrastructure assets.
The Nemetschek Group has an impressive global footprint. How are you tailoring your growth strategy for the UAE’s unique home and hospitality markets?
Our global strategy is always executed with a deep commitment to understanding the needs and expectations of the local market. The UAE’s home and hospitality markets are uniquely dynamic, blending cutting-edge design with a strong emphasis on comfort, sustainability, and guest experience. To help developers create spaces that are both technologically advanced and deeply human-centric within this region, our strategy focuses on three areas. First, service localization to ensure our support and consulting services are delivered by local experts who understand the unique regulatory environment and climate challenges. Second, ecosystem collaboration, which means strengthening ties with key local system integrators and property technology providers to ensure our design and operation platforms integrate seamlessly with the specific smart home technology favored here. Third, specialized solutions, where we champion brands like Spacewell and dTwin that deliver immediate, measurable value in facility management – a critical factor for the region’s high-end, long-term asset owners in both the residential and luxury hospitality sectors. Through this strategy which combines global innovation with local partnerships and on-the-ground expertise, we ensure our solutions truly reflect the UAE’s forward-looking vision.
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