LJ Hooker has opened to its first office in the United Arab Emirates, in Dubai.
The office is owned by existing LJ Hooker franchisor Michael Rossiter and Australian expat Breff Gorman.
Rossiter is already a partner in seven LJ Hooker franchises in Queensland and Gorman has been working in the Dubai property industry for almost a decade.
LJ Hooker CEO Georg Chmiel said it has been a long standing goal of the agency to operate in the UAE,
“Opening in the UAE was a strategic and logical decision. The Dubai property market is picking up and the continent is fast returning to be the world’s economic powerhouse. A lot of business flows also from Dubai-based developers building in Indonesia and India, where we already have 37 offices. From Dubai we will be able to better serve these clients.
“In the next six months we expect another LJ Hooker office will open in Dubai followed by Abu Dhabi. We anticipate in total there is scope in the Middle East for upwards of 30 offices,” he added.
Gorman said Forbes recently ranked Dubai the world’s second hottest property market in 2012, based on the average house price growth, second only to Hong Kong.
“The average house price in Dubai rose by 19% last year, and the first three months of this year have already seen a massive rise in home-buying interest among end-user expatriates as well as investors which could see Dubai rise to the top of the global ladder.
“The residential vacancy rate is at 0% and consequentially rental returns are exceptional with yields of around 12%. Construction is at the level of the peak of the market in 2008 and demand is high. Two of the UAE’s largest developers recently launched projects and both sold out in an hour,” Gorman said.
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