International Property Show: about the region’s leading real estate event

Middle East’s biggest property exhibition:

It is undeniable how Dubai, the largest and most populous city in the UAE, has evolved over the last decade into a futuristic city and a global hub of business and tourism. The rapid growth it has sustained has earned it a prominent place under the spotlight of major international investors, something that can be clearly reflected in many aspects including its booming real estate market and the annual property shows it hosts, the most prominent of which is the International Property Show.

A three-day annual property sales platform, International Property Show has evolved over the years to become the biggest real estate exhibition in the Middle East region ever since the launching of its first edition. Needless to say, such a status has contributed to the exponential growth of the UAE economy.

History of International Property Show:

Like any other similar event, the growth of Dubai’s International Property Show has been reflected in its most obvious form in the numbers. To elaborate more, International Property Show 2015, which took place during the peak of the oil prices’ crisis that hit the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region hard, could attract 125 exhibitors from 117 countries, a number that has went up in the edition of 2017 to be 177 exhibitors from 141 countries.

Moreover, the participating exhibitors are not strictly real estate developers only; they also include real estate agents and brokers, investment by residency services.

On the other hand, the number of attendees of the 2015 edition had slightly exceeded 14,500 visitors and, three editions later, the number surged up to cross the 19,000 visitors mark. The event’s visitors usually comprise mainly real estate investors (42%), real estate agents and brokers (24%), financial institutions and investment banks (15%), and property developers (9%).

International Property Show 2018:

Under the sponsorship of UAE’s Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) and Dubai Real Estate Institute, the event’s latest edition was its most successful one so far. IPS 2018 was held from the 9th to the 11th of last April in Dubai World Trade Center, and it witnessed where exhibitors from 143 countries sold more than 1200 real estate units to the show’s attendees whose numbers passed the 20,000 visitors mark this year, 60% of which were real estate investors. The revenues generated from the sold units reached up to $1bn.

IPS 2018 witnessed the participation of some of the biggest names in the real estate market in UAE. It featured the contribution of Azizi Developments, Danube Properties, and MAG Lifestyle Developments contribution as strategic partners, and the leading developer Emaar Properties as the strategic founding partner.

International Property Show 2019:

Not much information have been revealed about the next year’s edition of the show except for its planned date; that is, from the 26th to the 28th of March. However, with the growth in the numbers of visitors and exhibitors that the show sustained through the years on one hand, and the increasing interest in the UAE real estate market specially with the approaching date of the anticipated Expo 2020 Dubai on the other, it is safe to predict that International Property Show 2019 is going to achieve an even more booming success,

Reasons behind the show’s success:

There are multiple reasons to which the success of International Property Show can be attributed, as the event organizers have been keen on integrating the features that are sought the most by both the visitors and the exhibitors in it to make it the best attraction of its kind in the region.

On one hand, in addition to the enablement of the on-site Business to Customers (B2C) sales, the show offers its visitors lucrative benefits. For example, the latest edition of the show witnessed the launch of its Mega Property Sale for the first time. The sale provided a platform for developers, banks, and brokers to showcase their properties and real estate products at discounted prices, exceptionally low down payment and no registration fees. In addition to that, the show visitors were offered free legal consultancy services.

The exhibitors’ feedback on the show was generally positive; they specially praised the quality of the visitors and the business conversations and discussions (93% agreement). As of 2017, around 89% of the exhibitors said they would be coming to participate in the future editions of International Property Show.

On the other hand, IPS has country pavilions for 5 of the most prominent real estate investment attractions; those are India, Europe, Egypt, Turkey, and Pakistan. Country pavilions offer the participating exhibitors an additional privilege due to their strategically chosen positions within the show.
It is worth mentioning here that the UAE expats from India, Pakistan and Egypt are among the top 10 most prominent real estate investors. The trio of these countries, along with UAE of course, constitute the top 4 visiting countries of the annual show.

Side Events and Attractions:

Beside the showcased new projects and real estate products that aim at meeting the needs of the visiting potential buyers and investors, International Property Show features multiple side events that are considered a major attraction for both the real estate agents and brokers and the developers, who, as we mentioned before, each constitute 24% and 9% of the show’s visitors respectively. Such events include:
– Workshops and conferences that aim at helping the real estate professionals develop their knowledge and skills, and stay up to date with the latest trends of the industry.
– Business Matchmaking Lounge: 2 B2B lounge that aims at stimulating and nurturing discussions over the future of the industry between its major names and encouraging the potential partnership opportunities between them.
Additionally, visitors can use IPS Mobile App which enables them to connect with their prospects.

Impact on the UAE economy:

Real estate, as an industry, contributes a major part of the GDP of Dubai (around 25%) and the UAE overall. With the increasing focus on real estate events, like International Property Show in Dubai and International Real Estate and Investment Show (IREIS) in Abu Dhabi, we are expecting to see an active roles for these events in nurturing the growth of the UAE property market in the near future.