A new mortgage law was issued by HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai.
The new law regulates the mortgage process in an effort to protect the rights of lenders and borrowers and improve transparency, Marwan Ahmed bin Ghalita said on Tuesday.

The law, which comes into effect 60 days after its publication in the official gazette, stipulates that mortgage contracts be registered with the land department, specifying the size of the loan, the repayment period and the value of the property to which the loan is linked.

“The new law is basically covering the mortage procedures in Dubai … All property purchases happening offplan for example and all financing must be registered at the land department,” said Ghalita. “Before some were and some were not.”   

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The last week was full of speculation regarding a softening up in prices in Dubai’s real estate. Morgan Stanley ini­tiated further discussions on the sub­ject with its new report, Winners and Losers in Middle East and North Africa Property.

According to the investment bank, speculative investment is most evident in the regional land market with plots being bought and resold within a matter of months at potentially very attractive profits. It also stated that there is a lack of data on historical land transactions and selling prices in most of the MENA markets, with the exception of Dubai.

The recent gains in land prices have made land cost a major component in de­velopers’ total costs. Land cost is highest in Qatar, while Egypt still has the lowest despite a string of sharp increases. In Dubai, the Land Department has record­ed a four-fold increase in land prices since 2000.

Although this is driven in part by gen­uine demand, speculative investment has also been a contributor. It is to be noted that Dubai’s top real estate watchdog is looking at measures to crack down on ‘flipping’ property as concern rises over the sustainability of soaring prices.

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Part developer of some of the most popu­lar residential communities in town, Dubai Investments has lifted the curtain on Mirdiff Hills, a Dh2 billion mixed-use project. This is being done through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Dubai Invest­ments Real Estate Co.

“With the launch of Mirdiff Hills we take a significant step towards consolidat­ing our market presence,” says Khalid Kalban, Managing Director and CEO of Dubai Investments.

“With several more projects in the pipeline, DIRC is set to further expand its portfolio and position itself at the forefront of real estate activity within the UAE.”

Mirdiff Hills will feature 680 apart­ments, 380 offices and 129 retail outlets.