7 Best Places to Live in Dubai as an Expat
If you are relocating to Dubai, or looking for a new place in the city to call home, there are several considerations when choosing an area. You might be limited by aspects – such as where you work, the location of your child’s school, and the average price of accommodation.
Here, we take a quick look at the 7 top spots to lay your hat in Dubai, along with some useful area facts to help you decide.
Arabian Ranches
Imagine a quiet suburb on the outskirts of the maddening city. Streets are lined with trees and manicured gardens stand in front of well-maintained, lone-standing villas.
You see a group of children kicking a ball around in the street, while others are riding their bikes around the neighborhood.
Welcome to Arabian Ranches. This is a very popular residential area with a majority Western expat community. There are excellent schools in the immediate area, as well as clinic and hospital facilities and a compact shopping complex, which includes a selection of cute cafes and restaurants.
Due to its popularity, it can come as no surprise that accommodation here commands a hefty price tag. The residences are mostly independent villas, ranging in size from 2 to 5 bedrooms, while a few villas are so large and well-designed that they look more like mansions.
If you are looking to buy in this area, you can expect to pay a fairly large price. Renting is likely to set you back at least 160,000dhs and upwards of 400,000dhs per year. Due to its location on the outskirts of the city, it is also essential to have a car.
Mirdif
Not far behind the airport lies is spread out community known as Mirdif. With convenient connections to the original areas of Dubai, the airport, as well as the highways connecting the other Emirates, this is another popular residential base for expats.
Many years ago, the prices in Mirdif were much more affordable than elsewhere in the city, and this attracted a myriad of different nationalities to form the expat community.
Accommodation in Mirdif is a selection of apartments and villas, and prices vary greatly. Some buildings have aged quite quickly, and due to the large amount of renters, many homes have been somewhat neglected, so be sure to check it out thoroughly before you commit to buying or renting.
Although Mirdif is under the flight path, noise is rarely a problem. Traffic at rush hour can make getting to Mirdif a bit frustrating, but the traffic just passes by so there’s nothing in and around the residences. The Mirdif City Centre shopping mall is one of the best and quietest malls in the city.
Jumeirah Beach Residence (JBR)
The long line of high-rise buildings with beach views in Marina is known as JBR. There are only apartments in this residential area, although they vary in size from one bedroom to up to 5 bedrooms in a duplex apartment, with sweeping ocean vistas.
All residences have balconies and underground allocated parking bays.
If you’re buying, then the bottom of the price range starts at around AED1.3m for a 1 bedroom and AED2.5m for a 3 bedroom. Based on the views and exact location, you can pay an extortionate AED7m for a 1 bedroom apartment.
Homeowners also have to pay a yearly management and maintenance fee, which varies year on year.
Nearby facilities are excellent, with a host of excellent restaurants, cafes, boutique shops, and even a cinema along the beachfront promenade known as The Walk. Due to the popular beach and the prime location, weekend and evening traffic can be infuriating, although there are usually police trying to maintain the flow.
Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT)
For a slightly more affordable area than the previously mentioned JBR, JLT offers the same selection of apartment accommodations. Although not sea-facing, many apartments still have pretty views looking out over the man-made lakes and green spaces winding their way around the base of the towers.
Add to that an increasing number of restaurants and cafes, and you have a winning location for your new home.
Silicon Oasis
Pave the way for the up-and-coming residential area of Dubai. Constantly increasing in size, Silicon Oasis is popular because of its affordable accommodations.
A selection of villas and apartments are scattered just past a major intersection, down the road from the airport. Don’t let that put you off – the accommodation is almost all set back from the roads so traffic noise is not an issue.
Add to that the ease and speed of having the major road network just nearby, and you’ll soon come to appreciate the location.
Since the area is still undergoing rapid expansion, development is constant and nobody has really gotten round to landscaping just yet. There are no green spaces, lush parks, or trees in the area, so bear that in mind if outdoor space and scenery are important to you.
Downtown
It is advertised as being “The Centre of Now,” and it certainly seems to be. Imagine living next to (or in) the world’s tallest building. The Burj Khalifa is visible from every part of Dubai on a clear day, and that it the very heart of Downtown. There are plenty of villas and apartments, with some new developments in progress, but be prepared to pay for them.
There is no arguing that the central location, the proximity to the world’s largest mall (the Dubai Mall), and the magical musical fountains are major attractions in the area. But there are drawbacks: for example, the traffic on evenings and weekends is the stuff of nightmares.
Emirates Hills
If you think of your home and you see suburbia, then look no further than the Emirates Hills. With a collection of residential areas known as the Springs and the Meadows, leafy streets lead off to spacious villas and children play ball in the road.
The neighbours are all friends. The women go to gym classes together and the men go play golf.
Within close proximity to some of the best schools in Dubai, as well as large areas with lakes and parks, a small “town centre” area with a supermarket, cafes, and restaurants, it’s hardly surprising that so many families are based here.
Prices vary greatly based on the exact location and size of home you’re looking for.