Property Finder Qatar Real Estate Market Report Identifies Positive 2022 Trend

Afaf Hashim - Property Finder Country Manager

The latest Qatar Real Estate Market Report from Property Finder Qatar – the country’s largest online real estate resource – points to positive trends for 2022 with sales and rental demand rising as the nation heads towards the hosting of the FIFA World Cup and increased regulation delivers greater sector transparency.

The report points to a year-on-year Q3 2021 rise in the real estate price index of 3%. By the end of the year, an additional 400 villas and 4,380 apartments entered the market mainly in The Pearl, Lusail, and West Bay. The majority of villa completions were in Luqta, Al Aziziya, Onaiza, and Al Wakrah, with another 15,000 units forecast to enter the market by the year-end. “While it may seem that stock is limited in certain high traffic areas at the moment due to heightened demand, in the coming months, a higher number of units will be ready for handover, which will create more supply,” says the report.

The report also identified rising country-wide sale and rental transactions by October last year. Sales continued an upward trajectory which began in 2020 and is being driven by increasingly confident investors and first-time buyers who are taking advantage of lower prices and foreign ownership opportunities. “It is worth noting that the Ministry of Justice Real Estate Department’s work on regulating the market has played a role in paving the way to a more stable pricing index, as well as increasing transparency in the local real estate market,” says the report. 

Qatar’s November hosting of the FIFA World Cup 2022 is impacting the rental market which is witnessing heightened demand over the tournament period for short-term rentals and serviced apartments. The market will also benefit from a decision by The Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy to allow property owners to provide residential accommodation leading up to the tournament, under an Eskan lease option.
 
Healthy inventory stocks were identified from rental listings which rose on the platform by 37% in Doha, 45% in Lusail, and 36% in Al Wakra in H2, 2021 compared to the same period in 2020. Sales listing also rose over the same period with Doha recording a near 40% increase with listings in Lusail jumping just over 50%. Sales prices in Al Wakra rose 12% in the same period, those in Doha jumped by 19.7% while prices per square meter in Lusail nudged up by almost 2%. Rental prices in Doha and Al Wakrah both rose over the same comparative period by 3.6% and 4.4% respectively.

The Rental Landscape:

Apartments:

Apartment rental prices increased in H2 last year compared to the same period in 2020 with heightened interest in short-term units. Demand was high in The Pearl and Lusail Marina, with advertised prices increasing from QAR 10,500 to 11,000 and QAR 9,500 to QAR 10,800 respectively, when comparing July – December 2020 with July – December 2021. Interestingly, while Lusail City continues to gain traction in the apartment market, prices have not changed, despite major increases in the number of listings in that same time frame.

Listings for Msheireb Downtown Doha rocketed with advertised media prices in the sustainable city reaching QAR 14,500 in H2 last year while those for units along Corniche Road, which has a high proportion of serviced and short-term rental apartments, rose to around QAR 8,885. The availability of new stock has however taken its toll on rents in Al Nasr, Al Wakair, and Old Airport Road where prices fell during H2 last year.

Villas:

The addition of newer compounds and standalone villas across the sector drove up median advertised prices in some high traffic locations, such as Ain Khaled (from QAR 11,250 to QAR 12,000) and Al Waab (from QAR 13,000 to QAR 13,846) in H2 last year compared to the same period in 2020. High specification villas in West Bay and Al Kheesa saw significant median advertised price hikes over the same time frame moving from QAR 22,000 to QAR 28,000 and QAR 9,250 to QAR 12,000 respectively. Listings for both areas also increased dramatically with those for West Bay registering a rise of over 50%. New stock availability did impact villa rental in Abu Hamour (year-on-year for H2 from QAR 11,000 to QAR 10,500) and Al Markhiya (from QAR 17,000 to QAR 14,000) and Al Thumama (from QAR 13,000 to QAR 11,000). 

The Sales Landscape:

Apartments:

Demand for apartments for sale continues to increase as first-time buyers and investors benefit from lower prices. Advertised median prices for high-end units, such as Marina District, dipped from QAR 14,024 per sqm to QAR 12,250 per sqm in H2 last year compared to the same period in 2020 with new inventory causing the price slip. The popular areas of
 The Pearl, The Waterfront, and West Bay however still command healthy returns with median prices per sqm, moving from QAR 13,855 per sqm to QAR 13,942 per sqm, QAR 15,600 per sqm to QAR 16,917 per sqm, and QAR 11,078 per sqm to QAR 13,021 per sqm respectively.  

Villas:

The addition of new areas for foreign real estate ownership has stimulated the villa sales landscape with previously dormant demand rebounding. Villa listings in most areas more than doubled over the year-on-year H2 comparison with villas for sale listings in Al Wakair jumping over 80% and those for Abu Hamour and Al Duhail, rising by over 50%.  A push by investors looking for units in emerging areas saw median advertised prices per square meter increase in Izghawa and Lusail City over the year-on-year comparative H2 period jumping from QAR 6,686 per sqm to QAR 7,544 per sqm and QAR 10,787 per sqm to QAR 12,716 per sqm respectively Median advertised prices per sqm in Al Waab, however, dipped from QAR 11,290 per sqm to QAR 9,524 per sqm.Propertyfinder.qa says that while it could be some time before the villa pricing stabilizes, the sector continues to gain traction, with transaction volumes increasing.