Oman ripe for investment

Catherine Deshayes

Eclipsed by its brighter and more daring Emirate neighbours, particularly Dubai whose higher-than-high skyrises have occupied most of the Middle East property investment limelight in recent years, the Sultanate of Oman has all but escaped investor attention.

However, Oman, perched at the southeastern end of the Arabian Peninsula and bathed by the Persian Gulf, has plenty to offer. It also enjoys the additional advantage of having escaped the excesses of property development, prevalent in Dubai. Considered by residents and tourists to be the ‘real' Arabia, Oman has taken the development20of its property market slowly but surely.

Conscious that its oil supplies will not be on tap forever, Oman is keen to diversify its economy into other resources and property investment is one of them. Oman is currently working hard to attract investor attention, but is also keen to learn from the errors accompanying over-development in places like Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Unlike these Emirates where numerous mega-projects are currently underway, Oman is home to just a handful of complexes. These include The Wave, Muscat Hills Club and the Norman Foster-signatured Blue City, and with them, Oman is aiming at the select end of the property investment market.

"Oman's property market is one of the youngest in the region," comments James Gonzalez, Market Analyst at Obelisk Investment Property, "so it's an emerging market, but targeted at the higher, luxury end". James points out that this together with limited and controlled development is likely to ensure that Oman property investment remains exclusive.

Like many of its Arabian counterparts, Oman imposes restrictions on foreign property ownership and foreigners are currently only permitted to own property within certain designated complexes. In spite of this limitation, however, property ownership comes with two big advantages - residence permits are available for the owner and their immediate family, and Oman is one of the world's tax-free havens meaning that residents pay no income or cap ital gains tax.

While Oman has not escaped the global credit crunch, the effects on the Sultanate have been felt far less than in many neighbouring countries. Omani banks are traditionally conservative when it comes to lending - a characteristic that has served them well in the current financial climate.

And the controlled development on a small scale within a country considerably larger than its UAE, Bahrain and Qatar neighbours has meant that Oman has largely avoided the effects of the global property slowdown.

Source: Obelisk International