Uae Property Guide, Part 5 Of 8 - Fujairah Property

Fujairah is a sovereign state or emirate of theallowed one development, the 43 story Al Jabar
United Arab Emirates (the UAE); it has the secondtower to be available for foreign freehold
smallest population of any of the seven emiratesownership. This tower, which is being developed
- approximately 130,000 inhabitants. Fujairah is theby Al Jabel Contracting, will house showrooms,
only emirate with a seaport outside of the Persiancommercial shops and 270 residential apartments.
Gulf; this port on the Arabian Sea is seen as aThe more traditional UAE custom of allowing
great strategic strong point for this emirate in theforeigners to hold property under a 99-year lease
event of any naval or military action that mayis still the main option open to expats who wish to
close the Straits of Hormuz at the mouth of theinvest in the Fujairah residential property market.
Persian Gulf.Industrial development is booming in Fujairah, with
The geography of Fujairah is not what you wouldthe Fujairah Free Zone operating in a similar
expect of one of the emirates of the UAE; it ismanner to free zones in the other emirates of
rugged and mountainous with beautiful unspoiltthe UAE, which allows the opportunity of fully
beaches and numerous islands off the coast withforeign owned businesses. Recently a major
coral reefs that attract divers from all over theannouncement was made concerning the building
world. This mountainous emirate has higher rainfallof an oil pipeline from Abu Dhabi and a liquefied
and lower average temperatures than the othernatural gas storage hub on the coast of Fujairah.
emirates that are primarily desert, which makes itThe building of this strategic natural resources hub
a prime tourist destination for both UAE nationalsand storage centre on the Arabian Sea coast will
and overseas tourists.require over two square kilometres of land to be
Until 2002 freehold ownership of property in thereclaimed from the Arabian Sea.
UAE was limited to UAE and GCC (GulfThe government's main development focus, other
Cooperation Council) citizens; at this time thethan industrial development, is tourism. Plans are
emirate of Dubai was the first of the emirates ofcurrently underway to triple the present 1500
the UAE to allow freehold property ownership toproperties available to tourists by 2012. Some of
foreigners. Unlike several of the other emiratesthese new properties will be in the recently
that followed Dubai's lead and opened certainannounced Al Fujairah Paradise resort; this resort
areas up to freehold foreign ownership, Fujairahwill house hotels and an estimated 1000 five star
has taken a more conservative approach and hasvillas. The resort is scheduled to be completed in
concentrated on tourism and industrialthe next two years. Several other tourist resorts
development.and hotels are rumoured to be in the planning
Fujairah is in the process of considering a lawstages for this emirate, as national and
(similar to that of Dubai's) to allow foreign freeholdinternational tourism is projected to continue its
ownership of residential property. At the momentstrong growth in this unique, unspoilt emirate.
however the government of Fujairah has only