UAE developers top in Forbes rankings

Emaar and Damac star among publicly listed while Qatari Diar leads among privately held

Dubai: UAE’s developers Emaar, Damac and Aldar were rated as the top public-listed developers and ahead of the competition from their Gulf counterparts in the rankings put out by Forbes.

“With the turmoil witnessed in the GCC, the UAE.’ s real estate market still is robust and has proven adaptive to change,” said Khuloud Al Omian, Editor-in-Chief at Forbes Middle East.

Emaar came out on top with both the largest asset base of $21.7 billion (Dh79.6 billion), as well as the highest revenues, at $3.7 billion. Emaar tied with Damac Properties for profit earnings of $1.2 billion.

Jabal Omar Development Co came out on top for highest market value at $14.1 billion.

Among the top privately held companies, the rankings were led by Qatari Diar and Dubai Properties, as well as other Dubai based entities in Wasl Asset Management Group (Wasl Properties), Nakheel and Arenco Real Estate.

This is the first time that Forbes, the business publication, has ranked the “Arab World’s Top 100 real estate companies”, apart from consultants and business leaders associated with the industry.

”The real estate market in the region is undergoing a transformation,” said Al Omian. “The market is now witnessing a shift from high-end luxury buyers to the middle-class segment of affordable consumers.”

Metrics

The top public real estate companies were determined using information from the respective companies’ annual reports and their base country’s stock market website. Position in the ranking was derived using metrics — market value; assets; profits and revenues.

The top private companies were determined using information from questionnaires provided to them, as well as their websites and research reports provided by real estate consultants. Position in the ranking was derived using estimated revenue; number of employees; and date of establishment.

Among the top five international consultants were JLL, CBRE, Cluttons, Knight Frank and Chestertons.

Factbox: Top 10 Public Real Estate Companies
1. Emaar Properties
2. DAMAC Properties
3. Aldar Properties
4. Barwa
5. Ezdan Holding
6. Jabal Omar Development Co
7. United Development Company
8. Talaat Moustafa Group Holding
9. Dar Alarkan Real Estate Development Company
10. Douja Promotion Addoha Group

Factbox: Top 5 Private Real Estate Companies
1. Qatari Diar
2. Dubai Properties
3. Wasl Asset Management Group (Wasl Properties)
4. Nakheel
5. Arenco Real Estate

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