Dubai’s Best Investment Locations Revealed

Hi, this is Ghada GG Benitez. I'm a licensed realtor in California as well as a certified international property specialist connecting the incredible luxury real estate markets of Dubai with the United States. I'm here today with my partner on the ground here, Ahmed, always a pleasure G. For here and how excited are we to have one of our most fun and intelligent and incredible and beloved clients right here, Mr. Abdul Latif from Ellington. Yeah, that was very nice introduction by the way. I love it. It doesn't even do you justice by the way. It would take me an hour to properly introduce you so that everyone can understand how much we enjoy being around you and your energy and your soul. It's really a pleasure to be here with you and let's do this. Let's do it. So pleasure is all ours, Abd. It's always a pleasure to have you here with Ahmed. Tell us a little bit about who you are and who you work with. Well, my name is Abdul, as you already introduced me in a very short sentence. I make people more money in Dubai. That's my job. Yeah, so yeah, I make my investors more money. That's your tagline exactly. But no, my name is Abdul Latif. I'm a senior property consultant at Ellington Properties and I'm here to help everyone when it comes to real estate. Yes. My journey started with Ellington in September 2020. I'm crossing my fourth year almost with Ellington. I've been part of Ellington since the beginning almost. I saw off-plan properties become ready. I saw many happy clients, many happy investors. The best part is that majority of my investors are my friends now. Well, I don't know how anybody could meet you and not become your friend. Seriously, you're such a pleasant personality. So Abdul, tell us a little bit about who is Ellington exactly. Ellington is basically a boutique developer that started 10 years back by Mr. Robert Baho. The founder of Ellington is one of the well-known names in this market. He used to be part of Emaar where he held the position of CEO for around 14 years. The biggest and most mega projects that you see today in Dubai were done by him. When he started Ellington 10 years back, his idea was quality over quantity. We are a very customer-centric company. We design homes in a very smart way as well. The locations that we choose have to be prime locations. We don't just choose any locations. The best part is that we have very exclusive, limited number of stocks. That's why most of our clients are end users. Okay, okay. Because they love the finishing, they love the lifestyle, the quality. When you say most and users, that says a lot, exactly. That says a lot and we can explain what's the positive effect of this on investors as well. However, as I mentioned, quality of lifestyle, quality of the amenity, some people think quality is only material and finishing, no. Quality of the community has its own definition as well. In general, most of our projects have been awarded by Arabian Business Property Awards. We have won an award from Dubai Land Department as well by having one of the highest customer satisfaction rates. That's huge, especially knowing that customer service rate because I know some other developers don't have that same reputation. They market well, they sell a lot, but when it comes to customer service, when Ahmed and I are speaking to international-based investors, they want to make sure that customer service level is high. You've been awarded that, exactly. Been awarded that. Believe me, I remember when we delivered one of our projects located in Maiden, one of the most important persons in the band department came to the opening ceremony of that building. For my career, I didn't see Maran himself come to a building and take a picture with the owner. That was a really good sign for us. We have zero complaints in Dubai Land Department. Something like this is amazing. You know, I actually met with the Dubai Land Department on this trip here and they speak quite highly of you and they are fully understanding of what my mission is, helping Americans and Canadians understand what's happening in Dubai. Which I'm going to ask you about because obviously you have a sense of all these things happening here on the ground with regards to real estate. There are so many developers to work with and for an international investor to come here, it could become quite overwhelming. Part of our job is to advise and consult our investors on who to work with. Ellington, your name is always top tier as they call it, top few. Exactly. Quality, customer service, the awards and then you. Thank you. Well, Abdul Latif, as I recall, I've been following up with Ellington for a very long time. I've been in the industry for 18 years. One thing for sure I can say is that Ellington is the one who actually introduced luxury quality to JVC. If there's one developer that could honestly say they brought JVC into the radar for end users and for investors, it had to be Ellington, because your first project Belgravia is worshipped until today. Exactly. The Belgravia project actually changed the entire demographic of JVC. What you guys delivered, I'd never been a big fan of JVC until Ellington came into the picture. Exactly. And then you guys continued with a pattern. You kept on getting better and better and your name kept on getting bigger and bigger. Yeah, it became a brand in JVC as you mentioned. I remember when we started in JVC but some people said Ellington in JVC is, you know, they were underestimating the area. If we're going to speak about JVC itself and why we chose JVC, it has its own subject. Tell us a little bit about that though. JVC is located, let's say 20 minutes away from Downtown. It connects Muhammad Bin Zayed Road, which is the most important highway in UAE, Al Road, and H Street. Why choose JVC? It's basically J Village Circle. If you look at it from above, it's just a circle. It has everything that you need on a daily basis. It has hot restaurants, around 35 parks, schools, nursery, everything. When we entered JVC and we brought the concept of luxury to JVC, it was with the Belgravia series. Exactly. Believe me, till now, I'm still meeting some investors and clients of mine. When I ask them where do you live, they say Belgravia. Yeah. Belgravia. That's like a 6-year-old building now. Say yeah, but we love it. Why? They love it because it's very boutique building, low rise in JVC. There's also a funny story by the way. Two days back, I had a friend who stays as a tenant in JVC. He said Ellington became a reason that the rental prices have gone up in JVC. Well, that's what you said and you make people money, so here you go. Ellington's making these owners money. Exactly, right. Exactly. We started in JVC with Belgravia 1, then we came with Belgravia 2, 3, Square, Belgravia Heights and the Belgravia series to the end. I saw some people as well. They know Belgravia but they don't know Ellington. When you tell them like, they go JVC okay, we want Belgravia. Yeah, Ellington? No, no, we want Belgravia. It's turned into a brand basically. Not Ellington Belgravia, but Belgravia. That's turned into a brand. Two years back we delivered Belgravia 3. Belgravia 3 today, if you go to JVC, the best building in JVC is Belgravia 3. Amenities, the layout, the finishing, everything has the checklist in front of it. Belgravia 3. I remember when I sold one of the properties in Belgravia 3 to my investor when it was off-plan, she asked me how much can I rent it. It was a one bedroom, decent size, 920 square feet. I told her well, Ellington always provides 30 percent minimum above the average rental in the same area. To be quite honest with you, I've noticed that majority of the developers who started launching in JVC, especially in the last three years, 70 percent of them have tried to copy and imitate the exact same concept as Belgravia. Same concept, inside, layout, exterior, G plus 3 concept. It's exactly the same copy because they know if it worked for Ellington it would definitely work for us. So why do something different? But trust me Gigi, they are still not able to catch up to Ellington. What is Ellington most well-known for? Share with our viewers and our listeners. So elevating the rental and the Belgravia and the quality. What are some of the other iconic Ellington properties? We're going to speak about the locations. We started in JVC. We moved to Downtown with one of the best buildings in Downtown, which is DT1. DT1 got sold at the highest price per square foot in Downtown after the Addresses. When was this? 2021. So recently. Yeah, yeah, yeah, recently because it was handed over at that time. The success of DT1 was not only because of the location itself. When people go to Downtown, they want Burj Khalifa view. They want Fountain view. Believe me, DT1 has no Burj Khalifa view. It has no Fountain view. It's next to an empty plot. So all the disadvantages of any building were directly on DT1. So then what do you think were the differentiators that made it sell so high? Exactly. Number one is the sizes. The one bedroom in DT1 is around 1,000 square feet, where it's impossible almost to find such sizes with a new building in Downtown. The quality and finishing, obviously, and exclusivity of the building. I remember I sold to one of the very high net worth individuals in DT1 multiple units and he, I'll never forget this, he described DT1 like this: It's the only standalone building in Downtown, very boutique, very luxurious and it feels so homey. That's why if you check on online portals, you will see that if you want to find a unit in DT1 to rent, you will never find one. Quite people keep it and like Abdul said, majority of them are not investors. End users. They ended up buying it in order for themselves to live in it. Yeah. And we're not going to say any names. We already know who owns majority of the projects in Downtown, but suffice to say that they can't even come close to the finishing that Ellington has delivered in Downtown. Incredible. Yes, yeah. Taking the fact that the building has no view, it's all about itself. Still sold for the highest price per square foot. Exactly. Exactly. Okay. Next area. So JVC, Downtown, we went to Maiden, an area called Sharjah Leo Heartland or Muhammad Bin Rashid City. We delivered five projects. Two of them already delivered, and the rest to be delivered. It has the same story. Very boutique, very exclusive. Believe it or not, there was a guy that used to take his clients to that area, showing the area because the area is really nice. It has two international schools, standalone villas, retail, everything. And we're going to have a nice Crystal Lagoon that passes through that area. The area itself has its own story and why people should buy there. But the guy used to take clients to that area, show them the area and everything. Then come to Ellington for the most exclusive units, all right? Like you're in the same area, but if you see, you're more exclusive and the price is more affordable. So it's actually less per square foot for the Ellington in that area than other developers. It's within the same range, but you get more exclusivity. And it has the same finishing and everything. So this is the story of Maiden Sharjah Heartland basically. Then we went for the first time to Dubai Hills. Yes. Tell us about Dubai Hills. It's my favorite area, okay? To be honest, it's being developed by one of the well-known developers in Dubai, Emaar, and Emaar always makes the best community. They will take care of the community even 20 years later. Emaar's community base, it's all about the lifestyle. You have the mall. You have the school, a very nice golf course, everything basically. That's why whoever lives in Dubai Hills cannot leave Dubai Hills. Yes. Majority of Dubai Hills people are our families, basically. So when we launched Dubai Hills, Ellington View, Lakeshore House, basically the first building had 150 apartments. They got sold in 24 hours. I've had this conversation with Americans and they don't believe when I tell them. But we've shot some video just to show them what it is like. 24 hours to sell out? 24 hours. 24 hours is incredible. Incredible. That's what happens in Dubai's real estate. This is common in Dubai actually. And believe it or not, some projects are being sold even without official launch. We've had situations where they then have to announce on the launch day we're already going to start selling phase two because phase one is sold out. The demand is such that if it is the right location with a really good developer and the price matches, the project will be sold out. We have to keep pressing on that, that it has to be a good developer that has the reputation. A few different things that you mentioned, and five or six years later, that the condition is still excellent. That's huge, right? Then the customer service, 100 percent. And then the location and then the price per square foot. Exactly. And then the rental returns. These are all very important because what we're appealing to are investors. So they're looking to invest all the way across the world, right? In this mysterious land of Dubai. Which I say this with ultimate respect, but a lot of the agents in Dubai are spoiled and share with you why. Yeah, the business is flowing for you. You're not really sales people here, right? Every day you probably open your phone to how many messages of interest from people. Even being able to sit down with you becomes a challenge because you've got clients coming in trying to work around that. Thank God you are very busy. Right now, Americans are still learning about what's happening here. Canadians are actually picking up more and more. But Americans are still learning. Some of the really important conversations I'm having with them is who the developer is, what are the capital appreciation expectations, what are the rental return projections, what is that property going to look like in five or six years afterwards? Is it going to be they're all the way over there and it's here? And we're by water and sand. Is it still going to be in good shape, right? What's the customer service? Is the developer reputable? Are they financially stable? So you check all those boxes exactly. I know like it's far away, hours of flight and all this stuff. Do I trust someone watching online? That's why we have people like you and Mr. Ahmed, certified people in that market for 15, 20 years right now. Like Gigi said, the last three years have been a blessing for a lot of new agents, a lot of newcomers in the market. But there will be a time because I went through that time in 2008, tough time. That's the time when you separate the boys from the men and of course the girls from the ladies. It has all come down to this because I've seen this in the last 18 years. The turnover is extremely high in our industry. Agents come and go. It's like a season. But the ones who are really looking out to see what benefits the client, as far as being an educator to have that long-term relationship with them, that's what Gigi is trying to create here. I'm not sure if I should say that this is how we were taught in the US, because that's how our customer service is based. I mean, we are known for our customer service back home and that's the principle that we are bringing here. I've continued with the same principle. For me at the end of the day, I like to have a relationship with my clients. I treat them like family, period. As simple as that. Very simple. Because there's nothing like a word of mouth and a referral from a client who is satisfied with the service that you've given them. This is the best marketing. It is the best marketing. Absolutely. You could put all the videos you want on social media. You could wear the nicest suit you want. You could have your Rolex on your wrist. Trust me, if you're missing that aspect of being an educator, trust me you will only last for a while. Exactly. And speaking of educator, that's a lot of what I've been doing and we've been helping with this is to educate Americans and Canadians about why Dubai. So Dubai right now is, I believe, the number one busiest luxury real estate market in the world. It's also the top city right now just got ranked as a top city that people are looking to even move to. We know it's a top global destination for tourism. So I would love to ask you, why Dubai? Have you seen this TikToker that says Habibi, come to Dubai? See, Dubai is a very big subject. I believe a lot of people know Dubai, they don't know UAE. When they say I'm from UAE, where is UAE? I'm from Dubai. Oh okay. Dubai. Dubai basically has always the best, the biggest, the tallest. Always. All the records. Sometimes I forget how many bests or biggest we have. If we're going to speak about why Dubai, first of all, Dubai is located strategically in a good location that connects many countries and cities within travel distance of 4 to 6 hours. A very nice location as a business center where East meets West exactly. In terms of safety, I'm sure you've seen videos all over social media as having the best safety in the world. In terms of the real estate market as well, capital appreciation has shown very good numbers for investors in terms of capital appreciation and ROI. Besides all this, Dubai is really growing at a very good speed, and it's growing globally across the world as well. There's this big master plan of Dubai 2040. If you don't know that, this is a big thing. Dubai has already laid out a clear vision of each 20 years what's going to happen. We know now the population is 3.1 million. Dubai is going to reach 5.8 million in the future. All those people need homes. They need somewhere to live. Believe me, we have a shortage of properties. If we're going to do the calculation, not only this increase in population but also the increase of public beaches, increase of factories and all the stuff that helps the city grow. That's why I notice a lot of headquarters now have offices here in Dubai. So Dubai, as you mentioned, connects West and East together. If we're going to speak or promote Dubai, we will never stop. But for a lot of people, especially investors, it really generates good capital appreciation and good rental returns. And we forgot one huge point: tax-free. Yeah, tax-free. It's one of the essential tools over here. Essential. Property taxes, no. Capital appreciation taxes, no. Income taxes for people, no. So I mean, we have this conversation all the time about the cost of living in San Diego versus Dubai because San Diego is not inexpensive. It's actually the most expensive city right now in the entire United States. And with comparable income, the difference is here you're not getting 30 to 40 percent taken away because it's already a very successful, solid, wealthy country and your leadership has a vested interest in this brand of Dubai because it's a brand, right? Dubai succeeding. So even for example, the way you handled COVID is a testament for investors to see. This was a disaster that nobody could have predicted. And look at how Dubai handled it versus the United States and other countries where so many businesses were affected, real estate was affected, investors lost their money. Yeah. So it's another testament to the safety of an investment in this growing economy. So I want to add one thing: Dubai is the fastest city to recover. We've seen it in 2008 and we've seen it in 2020 when COVID hit. We had a lockdown for what, 30 days only? While the rest of the world was months and a year. What is lockdown? I forgot about this. Quarantine world, basically. I remember in late December or New Year, next to Burj Khalifa, I see people, oh stay at home. All around the world. One of my friends, he lives, used to live in Paris. He moved his whole business to Dubai after being in that industry for 20 years. I asked him, how did you find that courage to come after 20 years to a city just to start your own business? He said I want to be where people are. Very simple. Absolutely. This is the way. I mean, Abdul Latif, we were just joking on our way, texting each other about the traffic. Have you noticed this traffic just got out of control? What I would say six, seven months ago it was just normal and suddenly like that. So I was sitting with a few gentlemen who are in the land department and one of them mentioned something that surprised me and shocked me. He said Gigi that in the last 7 months, they've had 50,000 families who actually moved to Dubai. Imagine. 50,000 in 6 months. So you're talking about that continued demand increasing at exponential rates, which means there's that need. Not only this, like, everyone wants to come to a safe city, right? You want to see your kids growing in front of you without any harm. I'm a perfect example sitting in front of you. I have two boys. I decided not to go back to the US for this one particular reason. I'm willing to stay in one of the most expensive cities. I mean, I hear a lot of people say well Dubai is one of the most expensive places to live. How can you afford? But for that peace of mind, for the sake and safety of my children, I'm willing to pay whatever it takes. By the way, it's I disagree that they say it's very expensive. Believe me, I can take you to places where you can have a proper meal for like 20 Dirhams. So anything you look for, you can find in Dubai. The thing is, people think they say Dubai, or Americans, a lot of Americans will say Dubai is Las Vegas on steroids, right? Yeah. Okay, there's an aspect that is that. If you're coming here and you're looking for the fanciest, the most glamorous, the finest dining, the most beautiful views, the best shows, you have it. Dubai has it. However, there is also like you said that whole other piece of it. For example, the Arabian Tea House in Deira and that's my favorite place. Oh nice. And oh, I will. My favorite is their mint lemonade and the Emirati style breakfast. I love Kak. I love it too. I love it. Oh my gosh. Oh she did try that at the Global Village by the way. First experience. That was another thing that we didn't touch upon: the diversity of Dubai. 85 percent of Dubai are expats. The warmth, the diversity, the safety, how welcome I feel, is something I've never felt anywhere else. Let me tell you from my own experience. I watched Dubai growing. I saw the construction of Burj Khalifa in front of me while playing with the camels and the goats by the way. That moment, never. I'll never forget. Till today by the way, I can drive without using Google Maps and this is something that I'm proud of. From that point exactly. The good thing like Dubai has over 200 nationalities. Connects different cultures, different mindsets and everything. People, when they come from outside to Dubai, suddenly they become successful. They feel the positive energy. Everyone here, we are all racing. We want to go like, to be more successful in our lives. So this is something I really love. That's when I go. I travel somewhere around the world. I miss Dubai always. For this. Being clothed with each. We don't see here. We don't like if you are Black, if you are whatever. We really don't care. Religion and religion, nobody asks you your religion here. Christian are friends of Muslims and I'm a Christian Muslim partner and nobody asks. Nobody asks. There was this phrase and I said this in another podcast. When I was walking in the Al Manara neighborhood, that's when I knew I had to come back to Dubai. It was my first time coming there. I knew I had to come back. There's an Arabic phrase on the wall. I asked a local to translate what it said and it said tolerance is what pushes society forward. Yeah. It's such a message that you feel so deeply when you're here. That welcoming, that everyone is just like you said, working together to innovate, create, have their family, live in a safe environment and everyone gets along. You're not allowed to make racial or xenophobic comments to people based on their religion or their color. There's just this sense of unity and safety and harmony and that everyone is on that same journey of family life and successful business. Everyone here loves to respect the law. Very simple. I can see like if there is a red light, just the honking. Just the honking. The honking on the driving. That's the only thing. But it reminds me of New York. Can be used in multiple ways. No, it's like they have to. They can't drive behind you and honk. It's not even green and they're honking at me already. Let me somehow connect this diversity of like being a multinational on the real estate. Since we have different nationalities, that means some people choose different types of properties. Believe me, I like I sold to some clients that they only want a ground floor and some people want only the top floor. Some they love pool view and some they don't love pool view. Some choose like they go with a specific type of religion where they have to have a specific direction towards their unit. Some have different numbering. When like, and this is a beautiful thing about Dubai, like anything you buy, no matter which type or where, you will find the right buyer and the right tenants for that unit. This is something I've faced a lot. I rented the ground floor. I rented the first floor. High floor. Back view. No view. Some people really they don't care about the view because their whole job is from home and they just want a spacious unit and good quality. That's it. I remember I was dreaming to work in somewhere. I see every day. First month was nice. Second month, and the third month, said I'm done. Abdul Latif, here's the million dollar question. Oh my God. What's happening in Ras Al Khaimah now that you guys have entered that territory? And you know why you guys have entered that territory? Tell me what's happening. Very nice question. This will be for the future as well. I hope if someone sees this video after 10 years, this is a proof that I'm telling you. What you're saying right now is going to manifest. The future is in Ras Al Khaimah. If we're going to speak, where is Ras Al Khaimah? First of all, Ras Al Khaimah is like 1 hour 15 minutes maximum from Dubai. It's an area that has let's say more natural weather compared to Dubai. The weather is a bit nicer there. It's closer to the mountains and all this. That's why we have one of the best hotels and resorts in Ras Al Khaimah. It's a station, not only internationally but also locally. Those who live in the capital Abu Dhabi and Dubai, they love to go to Ras Al Khaimah to stay there with their families. The biggest factor that Ras Al Khaimah is booming right now is the casino. Casino exactly. When Resorts World is building a 4 billion dollar project coming from Las Vegas. Yeah. And it's happening. It's happening 100 percent. Already the construction started and the contractor already allocated the delivery will be in 2027, hopefully. That's where like all the eyes now are on Ras Al Khaimah. See? Very simple. When you see the major developer of Dubai is launching in that area, that area has to go, right? Yes. We've seen Emaar. We've seen Ellington. We've seen Dubai Investment Aldar, which is one of the biggest financially as well, biggest in the Middle East and UAE are launching in Ras Al Khaimah. So Ras Al Khaimah is an area that is just next to the beach and the sea. If we compare the prices to Dubai as well, the prices are much, much more affordable. So you have more space, capital appreciation, and the prices right now. Ras Al Khaimah used to be 600 Dirhams per square foot, then it reached up to 1,000 with the casino. That's it. It's hit 1,500. Now it's around 2,000 per square foot. This is in the past several months. Yeah, several months only. Yeah, yeah. I remember when we used to, it's right after, basically, the Dubai developers, the minute they stepped into Ras Al Khaimah, they brought the prices with them. Can you guess which developer was the first to be a part of increasing the prices there? Ellington exactly. And this is what they call the Ellington effect. When they launch in any area, by the way, JVC was one of the areas. Dubai Hills. We were the reason Dubai Hills prices per square foot increased. Ras Al Khaimah, we were the biggest factor that the price was increased in Ras Al Khaimah. We brought the concept of luxury to Ras Al Khaimah again. In Ras Al Khaimah. That's why and by the way, the price is still there. There's a huge room for the prices to grow. That's what we were talking about. That it gives you that capital appreciation ability. And that actually touches upon something else I want to talk about. People will ask me in America, well, with the increasing pricing and the record number of price per square foot in Dubai, is Dubai facing a bubble? Very good question. Well, if you just Google and you see the reports by UBS bubble index global, you will see Dubai is the safest city still. Fair buy. It's still fair. It's still undervalued compared to many major cities. Huge. Like we have to really. I feel like a whole podcast has to be just on this topic. That UBS, internationally renowned, has studied all the top markets in the globe and ranked them and that Dubai, still even though it's record breaking, even with all your growth that you had, is still considered a fair buy. Exactly. That's a fact. That's a fact. I mean, like if you just compare the prices in Dubai with other cities like Hong Kong, Los Angeles. Los Angeles. You could like here you can have a very nice three bedroom with a good size, good view, waterfront. Exactly. And when you go back to those cities, you might end up buying one bedroom maximum. We have a market which basically reaches out, entertains globally. We have people from all over the world buying here. So when Ellington for example is launching a project, this is why they're selling out in the first two hours because you have people from all over the world who want a piece of the action. You're definitely, with regards to international, we're talking about I think the most recent numbers were Indians number one. And then we have Russians, we have Brits, yes, Germans, French, we have Iranian as well, Lebanese, Chinese, of course. And I heard recently this. I just got this news yesterday and I was shocked. Egyptians have come into the market because of their currency issue that they're having, just like the Iranians. So they're like why should we lose on that? So I've heard now they're starting to bring their funds here and invest in real estate. And actually some figures just came out that show that with regards to ultra high net worth individuals, that Dubai has taken the place as the top location of their migration and their investment. I mean, these are ultra high net worth. Obviously they have their own accounting team that are advising them, strategizing on what to do with their money and where are they choosing to invest? Dubai. And you were talking about businesses as well. I believe it's 75 percent of Fortune 500 companies have a headquarters here in Dubai. Yeah, many startups as well. They choose the first location in Dubai because they know this is where people are coming to do business, right? That's why like real estate is not about only homes being sold. It's about everything connects everything together. That's why if we have very healthy businesses, companies are making good money, real estate is growing. So it's just supply and demand. But if we look, that's why we just have. If you read also a clear vision of Dubai, which is the Dubai Economic Agenda D33, you will see a trillion in Dirhams and dollars being planned perfectly and precisely that will attract foreign investor to Dubai. It's very strategic. That's the problem. A lot of people have this misconception that Dubai's government just sits over one night and comes up with an idea. OK, we're going to do this tomorrow or the next month. They don't realize that the planning has been done for 10 years ahead. They foresee and plan for what's going to happen 10 years from now on. So it's not something they come up with randomly overnight. Everything is pre-planned and everything falls into the exact brackets. It's conducted like a business. Dubai is a business. It's a brand exactly. And it is attracting foreigners and the opportunity for real estate, opportunity for business, opportunity for living, lifestyle, family. As a woman, the opportunity for women with regards to business and in the workforce is incredible. Since you mentioned women, let me just tell you one thing. The ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Muhammad, he said one thing: If you saw a woman walking all alone, okay, at 2 a.m. at night, safely, you need to know that's Dubai, 100 percent. That's Dubai. So I, a very well-traveled woman, have traveled all over and I used to go to New York quite often for my PR business that I own. My daughter lives in Chicago for college. You do not walk around at 2 o'clock in the morning by yourself in Dubai. I've been here for several weeks. I'm staying for several weeks. There is not even one second where I'm not comfortable driving, walking, at restaurants, by myself. I go sit at some of the fanciest restaurants by myself. I feel so safe. I would send my daughters here in a heartbeat. It is incredibly safe. Do you know how we book the table sometimes so no one can take our table? You put your wallet down. Yes. I mean, or we put our phone. That's it. And we go, come back. That's it. We had some business meetings today and then we had to go run an errand and we left our computer, everything, on a table for 2 hours. Came back and it was still there. And I actually have some Instagram reels showing this because again, I think some people just don't believe it unless they see it. So I did an entire little experiment where I left a designer bag on a Friday afternoon at JBR on a bench with a camera backed up for about 15 to 20 minutes. See that nobody even looks at my bag. You know what the funny thing is? I just came back from my Europe tour and I was in Spain and I know this habit of us leaving our phone on the cable. Do that in Spain. I did that and immediately my friend comes running who was also joining me on this trip and he's like, what do you think you're doing? You're not in Dubai. I'm like, oh yes, right. This only happens in Dubai. So yes, I was constantly in Spain, constantly warned by the locals over there. Please, when you're walking, don't grab your phone. When you're talking, they will just run and snatch your phone. You cannot have your backpack facing the back. You know, have it in the front because they will just come from the back and snatch it. Although it's a backpack, it has to be in the front. So to be very honest with you, this trip made me realize how fortunate and blessed we are to live in Dubai because it was very uncomfortable to have this back of your head all the time. To worry, to be cautious. Your wallet might get stolen. Your phone might get stolen. It was a very uneasy feeling, especially knowing you've been in Dubai for so many years. You're so comfortable walking where you don't have to worry about such a thing. If we're going to speak about the safety in Dubai, an investment of safety in Dubai is like one of the biggest things that Dubai did after 2008. I'm so glad you brought that up because that's probably top three questions I ask about. How safe is it to invest? Let me tell you one thing about like, as a developer's point of view. First of all, the land has to have 100 percent ownership of the land. We have to own the land to be able to build. We have to generate something called an Escrow account. An Escrow account basically is a bank account that controls all the parties: developer, the DLD and the investors for transparent transactions. To get that, we have to put already 50 percent of the fund, all of it, of the cost of the construction and developing into the Escrow account already. Then we are able to sell. So it's not just like you come and build and you go. No. All your money is safe in the bank department with DLD. This is the good thing. And as a developer, how we get the money out of the Escrow account is just by completing and stages by stages we take. It's monitored and then they are able to release that. That's why as an international investor, the safest thing or the easiest thing that you can do is just use Dubai Rest app. It's an official governmental app from the DLD that shows you everything. Everything related to in terms of transactions, what's happening in the market, how far the construction is. Yeah, this is just one point. Like something called MH project status. If you bought something online and someone tells you oh the project is done and then you go to Project Status MRD, the project is 37 percent and there is a real picture, verified picture from the survey team of the land department. So that's why some developers like are willing to build faster because they have to get the money out of the investor or by completing certain stages. So they're very motivated. Exactly. The payment plan is linked with the construction update. So me, as a developer, in order to take that 5 percent or 10 percent, I have to reach that percentage of construction. To show it to the DLD and then get it back. And then after the completion, we retain 5 percent of the construction okay, for the warranty things. Explain that a little bit please. Yeah, exactly. So when you buy something, as when you buy something from a developer, the structure of the building has 10 years warranty. This is something like a standard. Everything inside for the first year is included in the warranty. That's why this 5 percent comes from. For those, if you have a little like a crack or whatever anything in the apartment or the villa, it will be covered in the warranty. For the electronic thing it's 2 years. It's not just like you buy and okay, who's going to fix this? There is something also called Property Management to do everything outside your apartment. The lighting, the corridor, the cleaning, the security and everything. So there is a proper rules. There is everything transparent. It's not just like you buy from a developer. You're actually buying from a verified developer because we are not allowed to promote anything if we don't have the permission from Dubai Land Department. So you see, before you are looking for your safety, we have to look for our safety and our name with the land department because if anything goes wrong, it's going to harm your brand exactly. I love that you explained that so well. One of our biggest points is you don't even have to get on the plane because we handle this all for you. Transactions can be done online. The Rest app is incredible opportunity. The project management we have found that as an association so we can help with that turn key of a project manager. Your customer service is incredible so foreigners can feel comfortable in the safety of investing and capitalizing on the investment opportunities here. Even one of the things that might be very interesting for your viewers that they might see this now from us: you actually can resell the property when it's still under construction. That's one of the biggest differences. In the United States you cannot do that. And I believe in Canada you cannot either. But here in Dubai, yeah. Explain that. You just have to hold on to it for a certain period of time or have paid a certain amount, but it is yours. So it's as liquid as that. As you can imagine, where you could flip it exactly. So each developer has their own rules, and it's almost the same. So after a certain percentage, when you pay for your property, let's say 35 or 40 percent, you are actually able to sell the property to the next buyer. By just taking the NOC from the developer. The developer has certain fees to give this NOC. And really, the fees are much, much less. So the rules are here very simple. The whole thing is like we want you to make money. That's why that's the thing. It's all lined up to make it work. It's all lined up for foreigners to make it very easy. By the way, Ahmed, how many properties you sold online? Just out of curiosity, to be very honest with you, 85 percent of my sales are online. Yeah, you never get to see these people. Yeah. Incredible. And it's not like because they also have evidence. You show them everything. The project is registered. This is the registration number. The portals where you can track the property in the price per square foot. It is a very transparent real estate market here in Dubai. Very transparent. We've discussed why Dubai. Now let's discuss how. Tell us what the process is. Okay. To purchase a property with Ellington. Okay, it's quite easy. First of all, there is a concept of EOI in Dubai, that where you express your interest with the certain procedure. Because the demand, as we mentioned, is very high. The building has 200 units, but we have 600 people waiting to be one of the owners. More like 6,000 agents exactly. So very simple. Usually we find a date for a pre-launch date, basically, where you submit your passport copy along with a form, which is the buyer information form, and a minimum amount of 25,000 Dirhams, which is also 100 percent refundable in case if you are not happy with the official prices or if you didn't get the unit basically, because not always your money can get you a unit. Sometimes you have to be lucky to get a unit. It's like a lottery to be honest. Exactly. So very simple. Passport copy, information, and a minimum of 25,000 Dirhams. Submit your name. Your name will be in the list. On the official launch, you come, you choose your unit. If you're happy, you proceed. Receipt. Then you pay. After a week time, you pay your down payment and DLD get your registration. So it's first come, first served. So the sooner you fill out your EOI, the better chances you have of being on the top list. Exactly. And one of the things in EOI that you always get the base price. And that's why smart investors always. That's a good key factor by the way. Explain that. Expand on that. Okay, because always the developers, basically on the pre-launch, they set the base price. Okay. Starting, that's the base. After a certain time, okay, the price starts to increase. Let's say like after a few months or some of the for a few weeks, they start to increase the prices. So who comes on the day one actually might save 3 to 6 percent on the price. Because let's say if the project reached 50 percent, the price is not going to be the same as day one. Got it. You got the point. So that's why you're saving already, minimum 4 percent by booking it through the EOI. Yeah, very simple. The expression of interest. Very simple. And of course, use our services to do that so we can work with you. We have one team at the end. Absolutely. And a pleasure to have you on to so eloquently share your experiences. I love that you have seen Dubai before it is what it is today and that you have this beautiful vision of what it's going to be like. We said with the D33 and the plan and the master plan. I look forward to doing a lot more with you. It was a really pleasure and very lovely talking to both of you. I hope we're going to see a lot of American investors come through you. That's my goal. Once we share this information, I cannot understand why somebody wouldn't. It's just a matter of them understanding. That's what our job is. So yes, first American investor that will come through you, okay? You're going to have an amazing dinner. Okay. Let's do it, me. Oh my God. I love that. With a nice view. Okay. I'm holding you to that. Agree. Should I put the good one or something? Yeah, yes, exactly. All right. Thank you guys so much. Thank you so much. It was a pleasure having you here with us. Please subscribe again.