Dear ALL,

This is a very interesting and important question and therefore I would like to share my views with you on this topic. Also I would like to hear your views as well.

Firstly, I am from UK and now living in Dubai (2 Years). I study the property market as a hobby and I interact with Agents as well.

In my experience I have found that the "Cowboy" agents have similar behaviours. We all know about being pushy and in your face as a negative point but there are some advanced honesty / Good Agent tests:

1.) Ask the Agent which properties does he/she specialize in ?
Most of them tend to concentrate on a particular area / development and that's where they tend to make most of their commission - I am yet to know of any agent specializing in the whole Dubai market!?

2.) Then ask them which is the best property for you ?
If he has not even bothered to in-depth understand your needs and requirements then you can question his sincerity. Also if he is insisting that his speciality properties are for you without much justification then that's another point to note. Also if he cannot offer you similar developments or compare, then he is limited in knowledge and therefore a Risk for you!

3.) Ask them the Risks involved ?
No property development / developer is free from Risks. You have the right to know the level of Risks involved. A good agent will not only answer your question but also give an honest answer backed up by some facts (and not what the developer told him).

4.) Ask them facts and statistics about the Development / Developer.
It is your right to know if the Developer on average has a 6-month delay on his properties. Who will tell you this, I hear you ask, well a GOOD / HONEST agent will!

In addition here are some points in my opinion of a good / honest agent:

- He / she thoroughly investigates your need. This may mean most of the initial conversation should involve YOU speaking and the agent taking notes. Also in the solution they find you, they should make reference to your requirements as mentioned by you, to prove this is the best fit solution.

Professionally I am a consultant and I believe being a good Agent is being a true Consultant. The client has a problem / need that you must analyse and give best options available and make a full Pro's & Con's analysis on each option. Then in the Agent's professional opinion suggest the best option for you. The Agent may waste time on some window shoppers but they should spot them for a start and if not then eventually they will meet a real buyer who will compensate the time wasted on the window shoppers.

- He / She is willing to offer impartial advice even if that means that he/she has to use a fellow agent whose properties can satisfy your needs and thereby reducing the agent's own commission.

- He / She offers honest advice backed by facts (as mentioned above) such as be careful of such and such developer as according to XYZ magazine most of their properties have poor finishing.

- He / She should inform you of the risks as mentioned above.

- He / She should be polite, a good listener, professional (which means if he promised a call back at 3pm then he should call you at that time - If he cannot then he should spend a lot of time apologizing and explaining why he broke his WORD which is exactly what you rely upon for the rest of the deal!)

- He / She should be talking about after sales service without you prompting. This shows that the Agent is interested in a professional long-term relationship. After all this Agent is the reason you will release the cash and he / she is the bridge between you and the developer so after sales responsibility lies with the Agent.

- He / She should be willing to offer Progress Follow-ups on properties you buy off floor-plans. Many people complain that after paying the deposit etc. they are left in the Dark as the agent does not inform them if the development has been delayed etc.. Especially for clients abroad who cannot fly to Dubai frequently to get an update, they rely wholly upon the Agent. If the agent has an issue with the Developer and they are also kept in the dark, they should stop dealing with this developer based on lack of professionalism and trust. They should highlight this to future customers as well to warn them.

Anyway, I think this is enough for now - sorry about the long post !!!!

Thank you for listening. I would love to hear your opinions !

Property Guru

Hello PGuru,As someone who studies the market,I have an appartment ready in 2 months.Am I best to rent or should I sell cos by the end of the year there will be oversupply and the market will come down?

Hi,

Before one can answer this it all depends on:
- The Development name
- The Location / Area
- The Apartment characteristic (sea facing, corner, etc..)
- The original cost vs. expected price
- The situation / price / progress of neighbouring developments
- Is it near a Metro station - These properties will be the most sought after soon
- Your long-term plan. Was this an investment or a short project? If short project then it is good to sell and re-buy
- I do not think the market will not crash so soon as Major projects are still to complete (Palm Deira, World, Burj Dubai, Business Bay, etc..) so there's a lot to look out for still although many are nearly sold out (but there's the secondary market aswell). There is however chances of the Market slowing down as has been the case with some developments.

Without the required info as mentioned above I can tell you generally you are better off selling and making a good return provided at this critical stage provided it's not one of the properties which is sought after (such as near Metro, Business Bay, etc....) which requires further investigation as to future value.

I hope this helps. Sorry I could not say more with the info you gave.

P.S If you wish to buy again I could reccomend a few developments and even get you in touch with a few good agents. There are a few good opportunities for ready-made apartments with pretty much guaranteed good rental rates if you want to play it safe in the future.

Thanks,

This is all excellent advice, Property Guru. It should be required reading for anyone interested in buying property.

I would add Promptness and Attention to Detail. Nothing annoys me more than having to wait days and days for an answer to a question. I have always made a habit of not going to bed until all of my emails are answered. If I need to get an answer from a developer, I will at least tell the client this so they know that their inquiry hasn't simply been ignored.

So many people fail to do what they say they are going to do when they said they were going to do it too, which drives me mad. The phrase 'I forgot' should not be in an agent's vocabulary.

__________________
EGYPT REAL - Your One Stop Shop for Hurghada Property

Author of: Propertastic's Complete Guide to Hurghada Property and Egypt's Red Sea Riviera Real Estate

Hi ,just like to add few more points to the above


money supply (low cost of financing the property)


rent cap (restrictions on the property)

as this will lower future income therefore property value



geopolitical (something big happens and no one to rent to)



high inflation what ever you buy is better than cash in the bank



stock markets around the world are moving down and everyone investing in property and commodities at the moment cycle changes every 5-15 years

you need to know at what stage of the cycle we are right now