The approval to the Cabinet decision to form a dedicated committee on `real estate sector development strategy` will provide plenty of opportunities in the real estate sector, creating a big boom in the market, according to Ezdan Real Estate.
The Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani recently approved Cabinet decision (No. 10 of 2020) to form a committee on real estate sector development strategy. The committee will be chaired by the Minister of Municipality and Environment, with the membership of a representative from each of Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Municipality and Environment, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Ministry of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs, Qatar Central Bank, Qatar Financial Markets Authority and Qatar Chamber of Commerce & Industry, in a move that would herald a boom in the real estate sector, Ezdan’s monthly report noted.
This is considered as an ideal time to establish the committee in light of the pressuring challenges facing this sector, the foremost of which is the widescale Covid-19 outbreak, which triggered a slump in demand for residential properties on one hand, in addition to promoting telecommuting and remote working , which may have adverse effects on the volume of demand for units on the long run, the report noted.
These rapid changes impose on the market the necessity to develop a specific and clear strategy, aimed at improving real estate products in order to gratify the requirements of this market on the one hand, and encourage investors to continue to pump their investments into this sector.
The news of the approval of the Committee on Real Estate Sector Development echoed on the market with great optimism and triggered a positive sentiment being a key step in the series of legislative and regulatory rectifications of the real estate sector, to ensure the sustainability of its growth, as the development process included the law of foreign ownership, as well as The Real Estate Development Regulation Act.
It is worth noting that the committee undertakes several specializations, including proposing a strategy for real estate development and the policies and plans necessary for its implementation, developing the governance system for the real estate sector, and proposing means to support and develop the necessary controls for investment in the real estate sector in Qatar.
Through careful monitoring of real estate activity during the past period, it reflected that the volume of transactions in terms of quantity and quality clearly indicates that the market is still within its normal levels. This demonstrates the stability of the real estate market despite the immense challenges that struck the market. According to the forecasts, real estate activities, construction, and real estate financing will continue to stabilize during the year 2020, driven by several basic factors, of which the size of infrastructure projects, giant roads and transportation.
The State has set up a program to extend about 800 kilometers of the network of advanced and sustainable roads, entailing bridges and multi-level intersections covering Doha, the main cities and the environs.
The Ezdan report cited experts’ projections on the continued growth rates of the Qatari economy, forecasting that the program announced by the government worth QR75bn to support all sectors of the country to overcome the Corona pandemic, will definitely contribute to achieving the necessary solidity to overcome adverse impacts, expected to exceed 3 percent growth next year.
This is affirmed by the latest credit ratings assigned by international institutions such as “Standard and Poor’s” and “Moody’s”, which reflect the stability of the Qatari economy, which builds trust in the economy’s capability to suppress the challenges, especially since Qatar is the first source of liquefied natural gas in the world, accounting up to one third of the world’s exports, and an average rate of production that indicates Qatar’s proven natural gas reserves for 130 years.
In order to continue the pace of work in state projects according to the predetermined plan, and to protect the labours against contagion in all construction projects in general, the Ministry of Administrative Development, Labor and Social Affairs has stressed the need to continue to follow precautionary measures against the virus (COVID 19), through the commitment of workers in the contracting sector to wear personal protection equipment while carrying out their duties.
