Dubai's housing competition could be a global winner

Residential villas on the waterfront of the Palm Jumeirah. Villa prices in Dubai rose 16 per cent in the first quarter of this year. Bloomberg

When a survey last month ranked the UAE as one of the top destinations for people to start a new life abroad, it was further proof that the country’s safety, work opportunities and advanced infrastructure remain a major draw.

Dubai, a commercial and tourism hub, is particularly attractive to many. The emirate’s Statistics Centre’s population counter has stated that its population passed the 3.5-million mark in April of last year, amid a post-pandemic rise in migration, and experts say that Dubai’s population is projected to nearly double in the next 20 years.

But with this flourishing community and a post-Covid economic recovery comes high demand for property. This week, The National reported data from real-estate portal Property Finder that said the average asking price for apartments in Dubai surged by 25 per cent annually, while villa prices rose 16 per cent in the first quarter of this year.

So, this week’s news that Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, has launched an international design competition for affordable homes is timely and points to how the emirate is taking the challenge seriously as it plans for the future.

The House of the Future competition is inviting designs for a “highly-affordable, expandable, innovative and aesthetically-pleasing house”, that families could mortgage for Dh1 million ($272,000). The competition will also award Dh200,000 to the best design for what it calls a “self-sustaining house” that can remain liveable, without water or electricity, for two consecutive weeks.

It is a forward-looking project that Sheikh Hamdan has said would "further raise Dubai’s status as a model for urban development". It also takes place during an international housing crisis. The UN has said the world needs to build 96,000 new affordable homes every day to house an estimated 3 billion people who will need access to adequate housing by 2030.

In addition, the International Monetary Fund has said that, in most countries, the cost of housing has grown faster than incomes and the World Bank has claimed the crisis could affect 1.6 billion people by 2025. Housing, or rather a lack of it, remains a hot political issue in many countries.

However, the House of the Future competition goes beyond meeting the local demand for housing. It is in lockstep with Dubai’s 2040 Urban Master Plan that calls for the development of a “20-minute city" — giving residents access to 80 per cent of their daily needs and destinations within 20 minutes on foot or by bicycle. This master plan also includes a holistic vision for high-yield urban agriculture and for 60 per cent of Dubai to eventually consist of nature reserves and natural areas.

The competition also has the potential to reach beyond the UAE. With its focus on affordability, aesthetics and sustainability, it can encourage designers and engineers to produce a template for housing that could become a model for other countries to emulate.

There has been rapid change in the UAE over the past several years. A number of measures, like foreign property ownership, a flexible visa system and the establishment of a legal framework specifically for non-Muslims has made the country not just an attractive prospect for a short-term stay but one in which people can put down roots. Having a plentiful supply of modern, green and affordable homes will go a long way to keeping the UAE at the top of table.