lehoff

Hi all,

coming out to Dubai next week and im turning my thoughts to possible locations to live. Ive done a bit of searching on this site and others and hung around reading the posts and its all been very informative.. thanks!

I came out in June and had a whirlwind tour and quite liked Arabian Ranches although it did feel a little far out, and i wasnt sure how much it had in the way of facilities. Given that I will be working in Ras Al Khor I have also been recommended Silicon Oasis and Al Badia but I havent seen these. Anyone live there? or anyone who could give me some pointers about them? All info much appreciated.

Im looking for a 3/4 bed villa for me, wife and two young children.

Thanks

hnd

AR isn't anything like as 'far out' as it used to be - Dubai has crept up through the desert to meet it. With improved road networks, not least the newish interchange, AR isn't far from anywhere anymore, especially with the addition of the bypass (E611) beyond the Ranches.

Facilities include Le Marche (junior supermarket version of Geant), Lloyds TSB, optician, pharmacy, pet shop, book shop, travel agent, mobile phone shop (also rents computers by the hour), A&E (liquor shop), manicure/pedicure shop, beauty salon/hairdresser, watch shop, Costa coffee, Pizza place, Haagen Daaz outlet, Burger King, Black Canyon (imo rubbish thai style fast food), Al Araab (Lebanese style restaurant/take away) Kodak photoshop, several ATMs. Also a Medical Centre and Mosque and school (although believe that the school is over-subscribed many times over - you'd have to check on that). In addition all 'villages' at the Ranches have their own community pool and some have other facilities, such as tennis courts, basketball hoops, childrens' play areas etc. Saheel, one of the first areas to be built also has some large park areas which also have children's playgrounds as has, I believe, Al Reem which was built around the same time as Saheel.

Five minutes' drive away at Motor City an enormous Spinneys which stocks Waitrose goods, another medical centre, many other coffee shops, pharmacies, restaurants/take aways, MotherCare, a few other clothing shops, beauty salon/hairdresser, bakery, pet shop.

Good luck with your house-hunting ...

lehoff

Cheers thats a very comprehensive answer. We did like AR for a number of the things you have described that we saw.

Millhouse

How old are the kids? Are you putting them in a school? Where is the school?

The nearest nursery (with spaces) to the AR is c.15mins on a nasty motorway.

Jumeriah is nice, and loads of school options around there too.

That said, I'm moving to the AR next week. I liked it, but the roads in and out are horrible (and might be a little scary to a new Dubai driver doing a school run).

MataHari

Al Badia is mostely apartments, don't think it will be easy to get a villa there as they don't come on the market often as far as I know. Location wise it would be very good for you, and it's right next to Festival City Mall.
Otherwise you could also look at Mirdif, loads of villas available there for sure.
Enough schools in that area as well, although for the lower years there might be waiting lists at some of them, I know for sure there are at Uptown primary.
Nad al Hamar is closest to Ras Al Khor, some availability there as well, but it's a very local area, not that much Western families, villas are quite big on big plots. Same for Al Warqa'a, although from there it's very easy to get to Mirdif and Mirdif City Centre Mall and Uptown. Again, big villas on big plots of land.
It really depends on your housing budget as well.

Ethos83

If you're working at Ras al Khor you have very easy access to almost anywhere in Dubai as it's right off Business Bay Crossing. 20 minutes from the Greens and Springs via Al Khail, 30 minutes from the Marina and that's the far south end of Dubai excepting Discovery Gardens. Jumeira and Umm Suqeim via the Nad al Sheba/Safa Park flyover to Business Bay would be within 15 minutes.

Best to visit Dubai and drive around the various communities. Mirdiff is cheap and lots of people like living there whilst others refuse to consider it. Jumeira is centrally located and right along the beaches but many of the villas are old and shabby for the prices they try to command.

What's your budget? Once we have an idea of what you can afford to spend on housing we can be more helpful.

lehoff

Thanks guys for the responses. I perhaps should have given more info originally.

Kids are not school age - one is 19 months and the other is due to be born in Dec so just interested in some nursery recommendations for the older one for a couple of days a week just to give my wife a break when she has a newborn on her hands. So if there is anything decent in the areas i have mentioned would be great rather than her having to drive for 30 mins somewhere.

I hear what you say about turning up and driving around, which i will do for sure, but as a newbie its good to get others experiences/ opinions on areas who have been there for some time.

Budget is probably around AED150k to AED 160k... from what i have seen that should just about do it, although im sure there is a bunch of other charges Ive not quite yet got my head around i.e. property tax, agents fees, DEWA... any others?