Yielding Better Returns

Investment in real estate is a long term one and those who hold properties for periods of over 20 years have enjoyed returns of over 15 per cent. Oommen John P reports

- Oommen John

Real estate transactions might have taken a dip in the Sultanate lately but it is still the number one preferred investment, despite the challenging market conditions.

According to the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI), the value of traded contracts in real estate sector stood at RO971.40mn in April 2017, comprising a decline by 76.8 per cent compared to the same period in 2016. The collected fees stood at RO30.30mn, comprising a rise by 20.8 per cent while the value of traded sale contracts during April 2017 stood at RO442.90mn, comprising a rise of 11.9 per cent. The number of sale contracts during April 2017 stood at 21,675, comprising a decline 19.4 per cent compared with 26,883 contracts during the same period in 2016.

“Investment in real estate is a long term one and those who hold properties for periods of over 20 years have enjoyed returns of over 15 per cent. Probably no other asset class in Oman has delivered these returns,” says M Sudhakar Reddy, CEO, Al Habib, one of the largest real estate companies in Oman.

Faisal Durrani, head of research at Cluttons says, “Since the last global financial downturn, real estate values have not returned to similar levels. In the intervening years, stock market and commodity investments have been somewhat more attractive. However, there are examples within Oman’s property market, such as the retail, hospitality and industrial sectors which offer investors significant value.”