Nine out of ten home buyers in the UAE are now end-users, representing a significant shift in the country’s real estate sector, according to Tamweel PJSC, the UAE Islamic home finance provider. The findings are based on analysis of home finance extended by Tamweel between January 2011 and June 2012.
Tamweel reports that today’s end-users availing home finance stands at approximately 90%, demonstrating a positive change in the UAE home finance market.
As the number of end-users has increased, so too has their equity participation. According to Tamweel, in 2008, its average finance-to-value ratio was 80%. Today, this figure is 75%, signifying that end-users are now eager to keep their leveraging to a minimum.
“The past 18 months have witnessed a profound shift in the UAE home finance sector” said Varun Sood, Acting Chief Executive Officer of Tamweel. “Customers now are very savvy and will have thoroughly done their homework on both the property and the home finance product. Importantly, customers are no longer seeking to over-leverage themselves, and are instead fully prepared for significant equity participation, which is a very healthy characteristic of the UAE home finance sector today.
