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Todays signs of panic and collapse

Todays signs of panic and collapse

Old Feb 14th 2009, 7:45 am
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Default Todays signs of panic and collapse

As the title says, here are todays signs of ostrich syndrome, panic, downturn and downright stupidity

http://www.arabianbusiness.com/54664...-uae-nationals

"Arbitrary mass layoffs of UAE nationals by private sector companies breach the law and the country's traditions, according to Dubai police chief Lt Gen Dhahi Khalfan Tamim"

"Dubai Police will boycott local and non-local companies that use the current economic crisis as a pretext to carry out mass layoffs of UAE nationals at short notice without giving them enough time to look for new jobs"

nb Saudi just issued a similar decree mand Al Futaim are being sued over doing just this by a group of 20 locals



http://www.arabianbusiness.com/54663...n-to-retailers

"Shop owners say rents in The Dubai Mall are coming down, in a sign that the city’s struggling retailers are getting some relief from landlords.

Several stores in Dubai’s largest mall have had their rents reduced by around 15 percent, but retailers complain that sales in Emaar’s flagship shopping centre continue to be slow"

http://zawya.com/Story.cfm/sidZAWYA2...20Dubai%20Mall

"Mr Yousif Al Ali, General Manager, The Dubai Mall, said: "In just three months of opening, The Dubai Mall has become one of the most-visited retail and entertainment destinations in the region, with a steady foot-fall. The variety of retail outlets in the mall is a strong draw for our visitors, and we are committed to bringing in new shopping experiences to the region. This is reflected in the mix of brands, several of them opening their flagship stores in the mall."
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Old Feb 14th 2009, 7:52 am
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Default Re: Todays signs of panic and collapse

Four more held in corruption probe
http://zawya.com/story.cfm/sidZAWYA2...e%20In%20Dubai

"12 February 2009
Four executives have been taken into custody in Dubai in two separate cases of alleged corruption. Dubai police told 7DAYS yesterday that the CEO of brokerage and developer Hamp-stead and Mayfair was in custody on suspicion of fraud. Meanwhile, three executives involved in Dubai Waterfront are being held in a second case.


Hampstead and Mayfair was a reseller of properties and was also developing Hampstead Residences and Boutique Residences in Jumeirah Village.

The company is currently not operating as the CEO was the sole shareholder and the firm no longer has enough funds to continue, according to a former employee. The employee also told 7DAYS that the firm only started building the two Jumeirah Village projects when the initial developer absconded without refunding them for buying the properties.


The firm had already resold some units, so the CEO decided to set up a development arm to build the projects. The CEO raised dhs30 million from investors by promising them 30 per cent returns in six months, and raised dhs40 million from sales of units, the employee said. "There's probably dhs70 to 80 million that's been taken and only dhs4.5 million left in the escrow accounts," he said. He added that efforts were being made to discover what happened to the funds and help to return investors' money.


"We all feel a bit of responsibility to these guys," he said. In the second case, Dubai public prosecution records show that three Waterfront executives are being held "as part of an investigation into bribery allegations", the UK's Financial Times reported."
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Old Feb 14th 2009, 7:53 am
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Default Re: Todays signs of panic and collapse

'I'm the victim', says property tycoon
http://zawya.com/story.cfm/sidZAWYA2...%20Allegations

worth posting the whole thing as i suspect there are many many more cases similar to this one

"DUBAI - Kabir Mulchandani, an Indian property tycoon detained by police in Dubai, says people who are accusing him of fraud are trying to get out of investments that turned sour because of the property downturn.

The chairman of Dynasty Al Zarooni Real Estate
is being held because more than 25 investors, with claims worth Dh280 million (US$76.2m), have accused him of fraudulently selling them property and running an illegal investment scheme, a lawyer for the investors said. Mr Mulchandani, 36, denies the accusations and says he is being targeted by a group of investors who are unable to meet their obligations as the property market deteriorates.


"I am the victim here," he said. "After Lehman Brothers went bust the world changed... The system is being misused by certain individuals who are just wanting money and wanting to get out of commitments they have made that they are not able to fulfil because the market has turned."

Mr Mulchandani said his case was likely to be a predecessor to a rash of similar cases caused by the decline in the property market. Dubai property prices have fallen by about 25 per cent since hitting a peak last year.


"It is going to turn into a bloodbath of attacks by investors who just want to get out of obligations," he said. "Do you think I would be sitting here had the market been OK?"

Dynasty Al Zarooni Real Estate a joint venture between Mr Mulchandani and Hilal al Zarooni, an Emirati businessman, is one of the highest profile property companies to come under scrutiny by the authorities since the property market began to fall late last year. The company was the top newspaper advertising buyer in the Emirates last year, spending $14.6m and topping the likes of NakheelNakheelNakheel and Emaar PropertiesEmaar Properties, according to figures from the Pan Arab Research Centre. Its advertising spending ranked 10th across the Middle East.


The company, founded in 2005, is a property resale and marketing operation. It has bought entire buildings off-plan from developers with a bulk discount and re-sold floors and units to investors at a premium. Then, as a service to these core investors, it would market the buildings prominently around the country to facilitate their resale to retail buyers. Usually, Dynasty Al Zarooni Real Estate would play a middleman role for the first payments and then contracts would be issued between the buyer and the developer, cutting the company out of the deal.


It sold 29 buildings in this way last year, according to executives. The business was profitable, with Mr Mulchandani planning a foray into New York City property before his arrest.

He lives in the Emirates Hills development in Dubai.

A group of investors, however, allege Mr Mulchandani built his company by misleading investors, according to Salem al Shaali, a lawyer representing several investors.


One of the allegations is that Dynasty Al Zarooni Real Estate displayed one building and sold another.

Investors said they were shown buildings that were several storeys high, and told that they were the Ebony and Ivory towers. They bought dozens of units, and in some cases several floors, of the buildings. The buildings were also misrepresented in advertising, the investors say.

One advertisement in a daily newspaper on July 23 last year showed 24 photographs of "round the work" progress on the Ebony and Ivory projects. A caption for the photographs reads: "Shot at location on 10th June 2008. Ebony & Ivory - Jumeirah Lakes TowersJumeirah Lakes Towers."


In fact, the images showed other buildings in the Jumeirah Business Centre complex that were further advanced in construction. Work on the Ebony and Ivory towers plots still has advanced only to shoring and piling. A contractor has yet to be chosen for the Dh2 billion project.

Al Fajer PropertiesAl Fajer Properties, the developer of Ebony and Ivory towers, said a construction contract would soon be signed for the towers, which it said were to be finished between next year and 2012. An Al Fajer spokesman declined to comment on the issue.


Mr Mulchandani said the advertisements were meant to show the larger Jumeirah Business Centre complex and depict Al Fajer as a hard-working developer.

"I don't believe it is misrepresentative in any way," he said.

He said the company had sold the entire building in April and that the investors involved in claims against him had signed contracts that detailed which plot of land the buildings were to be built on.


Claims have emerged involving other projects that were bought and resold by Dynasty Al Zarooni Real Estate , including the Sheffield Classique and Al Qoraishi Tower, according to Mr al Shaali.

Imran Karim, the son of an investor taking action against Mr Mulchandani, said his father, Abid Karim, was sold units in the Classique and Al Qoraishi Tower under the impression that Dynasty ZarooniDynasty ZarooniDynasty Al Zarooni Real Estate was the developer.

Mr Mulchandani said he never represented himself as a developer.


Officials from Sheffield Real EstateSheffield Real Estate and Baiti Properties Development, the developer behind the Al Qoraishi Tower, declined to comment.

Another allegation against Mr Mulchandani is that he created an illegal "investment club" where 12 investors were invited to pay Dh300,000 a month for 12 months for a guaranteed return of up to Dh1m a month. After six months, they expected to redeem their investments, but Mr Mulchandani did not pay, investors said.


One such investor, Mohammed Arif, who also invested with Dynasty Al Zarooni Real Estate in several properties, said he had Dh25m with Mr Mulchandani and projects sold by Mr Mulchandani.

"I invested a lot of money with him," he said. "I fear the money is gone."

Mr Mulchandani said the Dh300,000 was actually a membership fee for 12 investors who bought from him in bulk. The fee would give the members the first right of refusal to buy up to 5 per cent of buildings that Al Zarooni Real Estate acquired, as well as use of the Dynasty Al Zarooni Real Estate offices for resales. The fee also contributed to advertising, he added.


Marwan bin Ghalita, the chief executive of the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA), declined to comment on the accusations against Al Zarooni Real Estate . In November, RERA stated that there were no complaints against Dynasty Al Zarooni Real Estate , after allegations in two Indian publications that the company had sold projects while representing to investors that they were buying another project.

Officials from the Dubai Public Prosecution declined to give details on the cases, but confirmed staff members were investigating the claims."

Last edited by shiva; Feb 14th 2009 at 8:00 am.
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Old Feb 14th 2009, 8:06 am
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Default Re: Todays signs of panic and collapse

There is no need for all of this articles. Any one smart enough can go to Dubai now, like madinat jumairah on a friday or any other clubs like parasti, chi, double decker, new asia, alpha and can see in there own eyes.
DUBAI IS A GOHST CITY
Dubai is having a foursome now. Properties, Stocks and the finanical crisis are gang raping it.
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Old Feb 14th 2009, 8:27 am
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Default Re: Todays signs of panic and collapse

Let remember that the majority of its wealth was based on Real estate, fuelled by tourism.

Tourism seems to be dead.
I flew to the UK the other week and the flight cost me 600dhs.
Not only that, the plane was empty and i had my choice of row upon row of seats, so i pushed all the arm rests up and layed flat across four seats..bargain

I have flown out recently from both terminal 1 and 3...both are empty.

Eithad are currently emailing me offering "buy one flight..get one free"



I still think this place is going to get much worse before it stabilised
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Old Feb 14th 2009, 8:32 am
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Default Re: Todays signs of panic and collapse

Originally Posted by Jammy_Dodgers
Let remember that the majority of its wealth was based on Real estate, fuelled by tourism.

Tourism seems to be dead.
I flew to the UK the other week and the flight cost me 600dhs.
Not only that, the plane was empty and i had my choice of row upon row of seats, so i pushed all the arm rests up and layed flat across four seats..bargain

I have flown out recently from both terminal 1 and 3...both are empty.

Eithad are currently emailing me offering "buy one flight..get one free"



I still think this place is going to get much worse before it stabilised
etihad get one free is only for bus or first
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Old Feb 14th 2009, 9:13 am
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Default Re: Todays signs of panic and collapse

Originally Posted by busybee2
etihad get one free is only for bus or first
Business and First very affordable now........... go for it.
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Old Feb 14th 2009, 9:31 am
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Default Re: Todays signs of panic and collapse

All these ridiculous stories make me realise why I will never take this sh*thole country seriously.
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Old Feb 14th 2009, 9:33 am
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Default Re: Todays signs of panic and collapse

Originally Posted by Jammy_Dodgers
I still think this place is going to get much worse before it stabilised
how, or what, is going to stabilize the UAE? if, as you've pointed out, it's based on tourism and real estate, surely those two sectors (perhaps more so in the ME) are going to be the last to recover globally, and as the UAE is trying to court the rest of the world to invest, rather than locals, perhaps the UAE maybe the last to pick up after everyone else?

(bigger they are, the harder they fall?)
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Old Feb 14th 2009, 9:49 am
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Default Re: Todays signs of panic and collapse

Originally Posted by still.unsure
how, or what, is going to stabilize the UAE? if, as you've pointed out, it's based on tourism and real estate, surely those two sectors (perhaps more so in the ME) are going to be the last to recover globally, and as the UAE is trying to court the rest of the world to invest, rather than locals, perhaps the UAE maybe the last to pick up after everyone else?

(bigger they are, the harder they fall?)
I agree,
Im currently in two minds as to ride it out here, or just leave.
The way i see it, this will not be a great business environment for a few years
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Old Feb 14th 2009, 9:57 am
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Default Re: Todays signs of panic and collapse

I'm thinking ahead to the time the economy doesn't simply slow down - it implodes..........

Everything grinds to a halt and all expats leave, simply because there is no work for them to do.............

............. and then the Emiratis take over, and have to do the work themselves..... all of it.

Emirati roadsweepers, Emirati toilet cleaners............

............... and, er, Emirati construction workers earning USD 10 per day........
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Old Feb 14th 2009, 9:58 am
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Default Re: Todays signs of panic and collapse

Who did you fly to UK with for AED600 jammy? Return? Taxes included?

ta
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Old Feb 14th 2009, 10:37 am
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Default Re: Todays signs of panic and collapse

Originally Posted by The Dean
I'm thinking ahead to the time the economy doesn't simply slow down - it implodes..........

Everything grinds to a halt and all expats leave, simply because there is no work for them to do.............

............. and then the Emiratis take over, and have to do the work themselves..... all of it.

Emirati roadsweepers, Emirati toilet cleaners............

............... and, er, Emirati construction workers earning USD 10 per day........
now there's an apocalyptic (spelling?) thought...

is there any chance of some long-term, sustainable economic development coming out of the freezones?
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Old Feb 14th 2009, 2:15 pm
  #14  
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Default Re: Todays signs of panic and collapse

Mitten's school are asking for 3500 dhs now to secure her place in September!! yeah right!! and they claim there is a waiting list!! no chance!
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Old Feb 14th 2009, 2:44 pm
  #15  
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Default Re: Todays signs of panic and collapse

Shops on the Plaza level of The Walk in JBR are actually closing down and/or emptying their stock. Not surprising at all, given the poor design and their stupid idea that "soft openings" actually work. Still, there are some high-street names that have pulled out.
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