Former Al Barari CEO sets up new venture

The former chief executive of Dubai’s Al Barari property development has struck out on his own to launch a competing development company.

Mohammed bin Zaal, whose father Zaal Mohammed Zaal is the founder and chairman of the 18-million-square foot Al Barari green villa community, has said that his new venture, Koa, will develop residential, commercial and retail spaces “that are regionally unmatched” in terms of their approach to design.

“I’m incredibly excited by what Koa means for real estate in the region,” said Mr bin Zaal.

“I feel that it is the next step in the evolution of property development in Dubai. It’s about the real estate industry catching up with the demands of a new generation of residents, and the long-term vision of the region.”

He has said that his first project will be a building known as “Canvas” containing 70 apartments and co-working spaces that will be built near Mohammed bin Rashid Gardens, off Emirates Road.

It will also house a “gourmet market”, day care facilities, a fitness studio, pool and landscaped areas using indigenous plants.

Sales of studios, one, two and three-bedroom apartments at Canvas are due to get under way in November, and the project has a scheduled completion date of the end of next year.

According to property portal Bayut.com, average rents across Dubai in August fell by 5 per cent month-on-month, and average yields stood at 5.6 per cent. The average rent for a studio dropped by Dh3,000 to Dh54,000, but rents for one-bedroom apartments increased slightly by 1 per cent to Dh93,000. Rents for two-bed apartments dropped by 2 per cent to Dh142,000, and rents for three-bed units fell by 4 per cent to Dh197,000.