Scared property investors fail to be seduced by Cityscape expo

Property investors are becoming afraid of putting their money into bricks and mortar and adopting a wait and see approach, it is claimed.

At the end of Cityscape Dubai, the world's largest business to business real estate expo, organisers said attendance was higher than last year but the number of deals was down.

The show was incredibly popular, shown by the battle for car parking space, but the mood was one of cautious optimism.

Many attendees showed enthusiasim for the projects unveiled during the show but they were also worried by the continued global finance crisis which cast a spell of gloom.

It was hoped that Cityscape would boost investor confidence but Rohan Marwaha, managing director of Cityscape, said it was a bit subdued.

'People are thinking more and where and what they invest in. There was much more interest this year compared to last year but potential investors are not rushing to buy,' he said.

Even the presence of celebrities like Michael Schumacher and Boris Becker backing major projects in the Middle East has not been enough to tempt nervous property investors.

Some developers admitted sales were not as high as last year. 'Yes, sales are a little bid down,' said Abdul Rahim, sales executive at RAK properties. He put it down to lack of confidence among investors.

'People trusted the market last year but this year they were afraid of buying. The number of visitors may be higher this year but nobody buys,' said Mansoureh Ghezipour, property consultant, Best Homes Emirates Real Estate.

Sikander Aziz, sales executive of Bonyan International Investments Group, agreed that the interest from visitors was higher, but the actual buying was low. When asked the possible reason behind the lack of initiative to purchase, Aziz said; 'Global liquidity conditions'.