FILE PHOTO. An evening view of West Bay towers from Doha Corniche. April 2, 2019. Salim Matramkot © The Peninsula
The Pearl-Qatar has remained as the top searched area when it comes to finding properties, be it villas or apartments in Qatar, according to the latest TRENDS Qatar Real Estate Market Report by Property Finder. In its H2 2018 report, the study has found that between July 2018-December 2018, searches for apartments for sale in The Pearl-Qatar totaled 42.6 percent while searches for villas at the luxury development amounted to 13.9 percent of all sale searches for that time frame. Price reductions and special offers available in The Pearl-Qatar have rejuvenated interest in the area. However, the number of leads dropped slightly in the last quarter of the year, but still remain higher than in 2017, the report added.
Also, as Qatar continues to expand in terms of new neighbourhoods and locations, emerging areas such as Al Sakhama and Umm Salal have gained popularity with both nationals and residents, as they offer new homes with affordable price tags.
However, the top searched areas in the country remain somewhat unchanged, with The Pearl-Qatar, Al Saad, and West Bay remaining the most popular areas when it comes to finding apartments for rent.
When it comes to villa rentals, Al Waab, the country’s top family friendly area, once again topped the list for searches for villas for rent in the same time frame. It dominates over second place Al Gharaffa by almost double the number of searches.
Prices for rental apartments across the country have seen some minor fluctuations in 2018, when comparing January-June 2018 and July-December 2018, with areas outside of the capital recording the most significant price drops.
Al Khor recorded a drop of 18 percent in asking price, while prices for apartments for rent in Umm Salal Mohammad dropped by 6.7 percent. Al Wakra, an area already known for offering budget friendly homes, saw a decrease of 7.5 percent in asking price when comparing January-June 2018 and July-December 2018. Doha and Lusail asking prices for apartments remained somewhat stable, only dropping 2 percent.
Demand for affordable properties is on the rise, and price reductions were recorded across the board for all major neighbourhoods in Qatar between January-June 2018 and July-December 2018, with the exception of Fox Hills, Corniche Road, and Al Gharrafa. Fox Hills, located in Lusail, has been gaining traction in terms of popularity, and more and more people are starting to show interest in the units located there, the study has found.
West Bay, with an average price of QR128.9 per sqm remains to be the most sought-after area for office rentals in the country. As the commercial and business hub of the country, interest in the area continues to soar. Al Saad, with an average price of QR91 per sqm, and known as one of the original commercial areas and one of the most central location in the city, is the second highest searched area for office rentals in Qatar.
Monsi Rabah, Regional Director for Property Finder Qatar, said, “As Qatar continues to develop and progress in preparation for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, despite a complicated geopolitical situation, the real estate market in the country is taking centre stage.’’
