UK-Oman JV $455m housing projects

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UK-Oman JV $455m housing projects

Oman-based Al Raid Group has entered into a joint venture agreement with British developer Consero London to develop up to $455 million of luxury residential property across Oman and the wider Middle East over the next 5 years, according to reports in the British and Gulf media.

The partnership will start with the establishment of a new 12-person office in Muscat, for Consero Design — the interior design and project management division of Consero London. Saraya, the architectural design and project management division of the Al Raid Group, will act as lead consultant to Consero Design.

The first project to be undertaken by the joint venture will be a residential development of 14 large contemporary villas, each around 5,000 sq ft in size, surrounded by large terraces and set in landscaped gardens. The project will begin this summer, prices likely to be up to £1m each. The new properties will be marketed under a new Saraya Consero brand name.

The joint venture will then focus on developing luxury apartments, penthouses and large villas in locations including Muscat, Shatti Al Qurum and Al Khuwair and some of the Sultanate’s tourism sites where foreign property ownership has been allowed since 2002. The partners’ aim is to look at real estate opportunities in the wider region after establishing a strong presence in Oman.

Robert Osborn, co-founding director of Consero London said: “Our companies have entered into this exciting joint venture following the success of an Oman based pilot project where Saraya and Consero London worked alongside each other.

This Oman pilot project created a luxurious 12,000 sq ft mansion which took three years to build and was completed in December 2014. This joint development demonstrated to the boards of both companies that we work well together and the fusion of our skill-sets creates a real estate product of exceptional quality. We have developed an excellent relationship with Saraya who are a leading specialist in high quality architectural design and project management in Oman.”

Source: Zawa

More Info: http://tinyurl.com/qhht2vc

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Will your partner be travelling with you?

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Moving with family raises many exciting opportunities, but also can create challenges. The HSBC Expat Explorer survey indicates that expat kids can take six months to settle in to their new country (see article). Getting young or even older children to prepare to move and leave their friends and family behind can be a challenge and should be thought through.

The options for education is another area that needs to be thought through.

Moving your child to a new country with a different education system can be a great opportunity to broaden their experience, but if they are close to key exams the timing can make this inadvisable. If you do take your family with you, it is important to decide between joining the local school system or choosing an international school.

Where will you be living?

Whether you will be living in a house or apartment, furnished or unfurnished, these decisions will affect what you need to take with you. The time you are planning to live overseas will also affect whether you should leave your property at home empty, rent it out or sell it. See the article Sell, Store or Ship.