DOHA: The demand for luxury properties in the country is on the rise, according to Qatar’s leading property portal “propertyfinder.qa”.
The portal’s 2013 Quarter 3 report released yesterday noted that for the third consecutive quarter this year, The Pearl emerged as the most searched location for buyers in the country.
The top five most searched locations remain the same since the last two quarters with The Pearl leading the front followed by West Bay, Al Waab, Abu Hamour and Al Sadd. Taking seventh spot last quarter, Al Sadd has moved up two places to secure the fifth position. Featuring high-end apartments and villas, the locality has some of the best cafés, restaurants, hotels and stores in the city. While Al Gharrafa did not make it to the top 10 this time, Mushaireb made its first appearance on the list this year, garnering close to 4 percent of the property views.
While apartments remained the most searched category among prospective renters, they drew in 62 percent of the searches as compared with 47 percent and 54 percent in Quarters 1 and 2, respectively — a clear manifestation of the growing housing demand in Qatar.
Real estate prices and rents have risen steeply in 2013 due to the higher numbers of freehold property purchases and the increasing expat population. This upward trend is reflected in the report with the securing of the top spot by the QR2,000,000 -2,500,000 purchase price band this quarter, for over the last two quarters, the most popular price bracket searched to buy was between QR1,500,000 and 2,000,000. “Interestingly, we also see demand for properties with a price tag of QR10,000,000 and more take second spot, followed by demand for homes priced at QR 2.5 to 3m, 1.5 to 2m and 3 to 3.5m.
“The six percent rise since Quarter 1 in interest in properties priced QR10,000,000 and more is a good indicator of the increasing market confidence in Qatar’s property market, with over $100bn invested in new projects including residential, commercial, retail, and hospitality developments as part of the build up towards the 2022 World Cup,” commented Monsi Rabah, Country Manager, propertyfinder.qa The Peninsula
