Lucy BarnardWith minimalist interiors of ice white leather and varnished wood, this six-bedroom villa in the Victory Heights complex in Dubai Sports City could easily be the abode of some professional sportsman.Certainly, located in the Morella neighbourhood in Victory Heights, the villa would be of interest to someone with a passion for sports, thanks to its views of the 18-hole golf course at the Els Club. Plus it has its own swimming pool and sun deck, and includes access to a communal gym and tennis courts.
And with a price tag of nearly Dh15 million for a total size of 14,789 square feet, only relatively successful sportsmen and women would be able to afford this type of property.So, what do you get for your money? Property agent Luxhabitat, which is marketing the villa, points to what it estimates to be nearly Dh3m worth of furniture – hand-picked from Europe, the United States and the UAE – which is included in the price. It adds that the villa has been extensively renovated and includes an extension.
Other fancy touches include a glossy island-style kitchen complete with Miele appliances, a swanky audio system which lets you play your music all around the villa through built in speakers and a huge walk in wardrobe in the master bedroom.According to Luxhabitat, the owner of the property, an American self-made entrepreneur in his early 30s, has already had success in renovating similar properties in Dubai and has never actually lived in the villa.
Luke Jones, a luxury sales specialist at Luxhabitat, says there have been several viewings with interested parties, including a number of “high profile Nigerians”.”The market is soft at the moment. Transaction volumes are down but deals are still happening, and buyers looking in that Dh10m to Dh15m price bracket are looking for something bespoke and certainly not a standard A1,” says Mr Jones. “People will pay for quality in Dubai because there is such a lack of it.”
Q&AWhat is Victory Heights?Victory Heights comprises 961 villas and town houses, ranging in size between 2,521 square feet and 6,661 sq ft. The housing complex is in Dubai Sports City which was first drawn during the last property boom with all the developments themed around sport. The joint venture initiative between Dubai Sports City and the Bahraini bank Arcapita, started selling off plan villas and flats in the project back in 2007.
Why would anyone want to live there?The development is one of only four golf course communities which currently exist in Dubai. The other three are Emirates Hills, Jumeirah Golf Estates and Arabian Ranches. So for people looking for this sort of lifestyle product the options are fairly limited. Morella, where this villa is located, is the newest neighbourhood at Victory heights and was completed around two years ago.
What has happened to Dubai Sports City?Dubai Sports City was one of the hardest hit by the emirate’s real estate crisis of late 2008 onwards. Although key developments such as Dubai International Cricket Stadium and the Els Golf Club have now been completed, many remain incomplete or have been shelved.How has it changed?After the heady days of 2007, the financial crisis of 2009 forced the Sports City developers to focus far more on the commercially successful sides of the development. This means that these days Sports City is far less to do with sports and hospitality, as was originally envisioned, and is now much more of a residential development.
lbarnard@thenational.ae
Source : thenational.ae
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