Doha was the most sought after among real estate buyers in 2018. The municipality topped the country in terms of real estate deals last year. Doha witnessed real estate deals worth QR10.7bn last year, leaving behind other municipalities by wide margin.
Al Rayyan came second in terms of value of deals while Al Daayen was on the third place.
Al Wakrah, which has undergone remarkable infrastructure development in the past few years, was on the fourth place in terms of real estate deals.
According to the data of the Ministry of Development Planning and Statistics, the value of properties sold in Al Rayyan Municipality was QR6.37bn in 2018, while it was QR2.76bn in Al Daayen Municipality. Total value of real estate deals in Al Wakrah Municipality was QR1.84bn in 2018.
“The real estate deals is one of the main gauge of attractiveness of any real estate market. High number of deals demonstrate that Doha is real estate buyer’s favourite property market in Qatar,” a senior official of a real estate company firm told The Peninsula.
“Doha is a prime real estate market in Qatar and properties here command premium compared to properties in other municipalities. Even a smaller property here carries higher value than a bigger property in any other municipality. So even if the number of deals in Doha is less than other areas, it comes at the top in terms of total deal value,” he added.
Doha is home to several famous residential and commercial properties such as The Pearl Qatar, Msheireb Downtown Doha, West Bay and has always been favourite among real estate investors.
“Undoubtedly, Doha sits on top in Qatar’s real estate market, but other real estate markets are catching up because of rapid infrastructure development. Areas such as Al Wakrah and Al Daayen are fast developing. They are emerging real estate markets and can provide better returns to real estate investors,” said the official.
Many companies unveiled offers last year to stimulate real estate activity. Rental incentives such as rent-free periods, and rents that are inclusive of utility bills were offered as incentives to attract tenants.
“Overall residential sales activity increased by 11 percent between 2017 and 2018, as purchasers take advantage of a fall in values. In the investment market, apartments in The Pearl Qatar are currently selling for prices of between QR12,500 and QR15,000 per sq m with the highest prices typically being achieved in Viva Bahriya,” noted real estate consultancy firm DTZ Qatar in its recent report.
