Secret Of Sobha SeaHaven: Ultra-Luxury Living in Dubai

Hi, I'm GG Benitez, a certified International property specialist connecting the incredible opportunities of the Dubai real estate market with investors in Canada and the United States. Today we're going to be talking to Cassia representing Sobha, one of the top developers in all of Dubai, and we're going to be discussing one of my favorite off-plan projects in all of Dubai. This is Season 2 of the Dubai Connect podcast. Hi Cassia, hi GG. You know, ever since I met you, Seaport Haven always had my eye because of the most beautiful location. With that, may you please share with us what Seaport Haven is all about? Seaport Haven by Sobha is located on Dubai Marina Harbor, which is an artificial island in between Blue Waters with Dubai with Dubai where and Palm Jumeirah. This is in between, absolutely new Marina, absolutely new development, new developing area, almost developed, yes, with connection to all Dubai Marina, which is fully established area with cafes, restaurants, night life, Metro, and all roads like all access to all freeways and highways. It's all there, yes. But this is a completely new area with direct access from the main highway, which is Shay Road. So you don't have to go through the old area with the tram with the metro and stuff like that. Our project is made out of three towers located right on there: Tower A, Tower B, Tower C. They're all high-rise. The biggest and the highest is 67 floors. It's going to be ultra-luxury quality, which is Sobha already famous for in its quality, but this is going to be ultra-luxury, which when I say ultra-luxury, what I mean: let's say instead of Siemens kitchen appliances, each apartment comes with Miele kitchen appliances. It comes fully automated smart home with fully automated restrooms with Japanese equipment for the restrooms, with the built-in closets with the leather finishing and rich veneer finishing. So it's like it's another level, obviously it's one level up or two levels up. We will showcase during this interview for people that are watching the sneak peek that I got when we went into the show apartment. I didn't want to leave. The magic mirror, yes, the magic mirror, which is convertible to a TV. I mean, all of it. It was incredible, it was mind-blowing. It was like only celebrity status, but you have it here. So the visuals of it even saying it doesn't do as much as when you see it with your own eyes and feel it, right? Yes, it's definitely upper-level luxury, yes. So again, it's all panoramic windows instead of standard 3 meters. It's 2.8 up to 3 meters floor to ceiling. It's 3.6 meters floor to ceiling. Each tower comes with its own infinity swimming pool overlooking towards the sea, overlooking Palm Jumeirah on the Gulf, which is incredible in Dubai, overlooking all this location. With the health club, sauna, jacuzzi, hamam, with indoor cinema, outdoor cinema, outdoor yoga zone, with valet parking, with concierge and receiving desk, with two first floors of commercial spaces, which means again pharmacies, cafes, and stuff like that are going to be there. And configuration in this project: one, two, and three bedroom. One bedroom, we have the standard one and one plus study, which is a little bit bigger around 1,100 square feet. And the starting price is 1.1 million with the payment plan. The delivery of this project is going to be end of 2026, beginning of 2027. Also in this project, we have penthouses. Let me explain the difference between normal apartment and penthouse. For the normal apartment, you have eight apartments per floor, which can be a couple of one bedrooms, two bedrooms, and three bedrooms. And for penthouses, you have only three apartments per floor. You have separate elevator for these apartments. They all overlook the sea, the Palm Jumeirah, and Dubai Blue Water, yes. So it's three bedroom, four bedroom, and five bedroom. And we have two six-bedroom apartments, which is 20,000 square feet. Oh, my gosh, yes. Massive, massive, massive ones. For penthouses, the starting price for three bedroom is 20 million Dirhams, which you can convert after dividing by two. And for these six-bedroom apartments, which is only two, just two, it's 130 and 135 million Dirhams. Talk about luxury, yes. But it's 20,000 square feet, yes. So it's beachfront property. You have 360 degree views everywhere. Beach like all around. You want beach club? You go here. You want just the public beach? You go here. And if you want just a quieter marina lifestyle where the right, where the yachts are and yacht club, you have downstairs, which is like absolutely millionaire lifestyle. What I was going to say: it's like you can have. If you want just that casual beach life, you can have it. But if you want that upper scale strolling the yacht marina life, I mean yes, is there you have access. The building located at the bottom of the building, right at the bottom, it's big yacht club and yacht parking, yes. So you have it there. One thing I want to clarify: I know that you have units with both views front and back views. But an investor will ask: if it's not a sea-facing view, then I'm not going to be able to secure short-term rental returns. No, of course it's not like that. If we're talking about one-bedroom apartment, they all, all, all facing the backside, okay, which is the famous Dubai Marina skyline, which is Dubai Marina Canal, the canal where yachts start before it goes to the sea. So it's still like part of the sea with the yachts going on here and there and stuff like that. So basically what you're saying to me is whether it's the front side or the backside, it's a view, it is a view, and it is like famous Dubai view. So when you Google Dubai, what you'll see first is Dubai Marina, Dubai Marina, Dubai Marina, can. So this is what you're going to see and Palm, so it's both, both sides have view, yes. So also, let's say three bedrooms are on the corners. So you will have both views here and there. Let's say also about these penthouses, four bedrooms are on the corners because there's three apartments per floor. So four bedrooms on the corners also, you're going to have both views. But if you're talking about one bedroom, they all overlook. But there is still water. There is still Dubai Marina, Dubai Marina skyline. It's still a developed view. It's nothing going to build something unexpected because it's already a built area, an established area. So you can see you're going to have much. And there's not that much property or land left. So there is no land at all, yes. This is one of the last opportunities to be able to have in this area, in this incredible area, that's the iconic area. Like you said: when you think Dubai, this is this is what shows up. And to reiterate: both those views always show up when someone Googles Dubai. You have that beautiful iconic area. It's usually a night time with the marina with the yachts and the lights and the high-rises by the canal, or like you said, the Palm view. Seaport Haven. How close are you to some of the top destinations in Dubai, such as Downtown Dubai and Burj Khalifa? So Dubai Marina is more like a tourist destination, which is obviously if we consider Burj Khalifa as downtown, it is not there. It is like 20 minutes, 20 minutes from downtown. Let's say 25 minutes from the airport, from the XB airport. But as you know, there is new Al Maktoum airport in the process of launching or building. It's built actually, but they still, and that is to be the largest airport in the world, yes. So they still haven't used it as much as they're planning to. So it's also like 20 minutes, maybe 15, 15 to 20 minutes. But it's 5 minutes to Palm Jumeirah. You drive on the marina with easy access, very easy access to the famous Dubai Marina. And 10 minutes by walking, by walk to Blue Waters. Blue Waters, yes. So this is like completely different from downtown. But this is the most significant location in Dubai. Do you feel that? And this is beachfront. Do you feel that Seaport Haven is more geared towards short-term rentals versus long-term? It can work both ways because there's still a lot of fans of that area, a lot of families, even a lot of people who live here for a long, like long, long time. They still prefer that area. They don't want anything else but that area. And again because it's beachfront, one of it can be because it's beachfront. Like can be so many reasons because a lot of companies, a lot of companies, a lot. It's a developed area. So it can be you can be linked to something else. But the main points is beachfront. It's a developed area. It's a tourist area. And you can actually have a walk again at night and stuff like that. It's not like you know in downtown, but you actually, it's funny that you bring that up because out of all the nighttime, that entire area is my favorite area. Yes, that's my favorite area to walk at night. I don't actually. Is there really any other area at night time in Dubai right now? No, you can walk obviously on the kite beach, but it's just the beaches. It's like more sporty, you know, like sport people over there. You can walk again in Business Bay Canal, but there is a lot like bicycles they do, yes. And a lot of families obviously because they don't have in Business Bay and downtown, you don't have anywhere else to walk but there. Like there is nothing. There is nothing like there. Beach Walk. It is Beach Walk. It's a promenade. It's a lot of restaurants. It's, I, so it's a lot of activities. Events. Dr. Show. It's a lot of activities over there every evening, yes. It's happening then. You have all the little cafes and the coffee shops that are set up right on the water, right on the beach overlooking Blue Waters. And it's a different lifestyle. It's a different lifestyle. It is lifestyle, yes. It's my favorite, yes. Really. And Seaport Haven is one of my favorite projects in all of Dubai because of the location and because when I think of Dubai, that's what I think right. I think of the water, the sea, the palm, the marina, the mall, the shopping, the restaurants. And it's all right there. And then with Sobha's Seaport Haven, it's one of the top-notch most beautiful quality projects in all of Dubai. So Cassia, are you comfortable sharing with us some figures as far as what you project capital appreciation? If someone were to purchase a property today in Seaport Haven, what do you project the capital appreciation, the long-term rental, and the short-term rental returns to be? Okay, so for long-term, I already explained that there's still high demand for the long-term. And for short-term, it's obviously a tourist zone, it's the biggest in the Cruise Terminal. If a ship came today, it's going to stay like three, four days where all these people will go. There is not a single hotel in the whole island. Why would I think to go to get somewhere else to a hotel if I can get, let's say, Airbnb or booking.com right here in Seaport Haven, right here on island? I like this area for example, yes. So for the short-term, it's going to be 25% rental return from the amount of the apartment. And for the long-term, again, it's 7, 8, up to 11, 12% return. Incredible, yes. For capital appreciation, it's 10%, again 10 to 15% per year from the total cost of the apartment. Again, if apartment costs 1 million, by 2027 it's going to cost 1.3 million, okay. And when is the handover? Handover is end of 2026, beginning 2027, okay. Cassia, if somebody were to invest in Seaport Haven today and then they decided that they just wanted to cash out on the capital appreciation, at what point could they resell before completion? After 40%, after they paid 40%, yes. So they will get non-objection letter from the developer and then they can resell it. Incredible. And the demand obviously, yes, because of the rarity of that location and that spot and the brand recognition of Sobha is significantly high. I actually always have investors asking me exactly about that location, so yes, yes. Because there is like there is not much, right? Yes. There are no, no many units available in the market. I love it. So Cassia, thank you for sharing the information about Sobha's Seaport Haven. It is truly a jewel and a rare opportunity in Dubai. With the information that you've provided, I am excited to share that with my American and Canadian investors. And with that, please make sure to like, subscribe, follow, and stay tuned for the next episode of the Dubai Connect podcast. This is Season 2 of the Dubai Connect podcast.