UAE mortgages soared in January over 50% cap

UAE mortgage brokers saw the value of home loan applications soar by over 100 percent last month, compared to January 2012, as residents scrambled to finalise deals following a 50 percent lending cap announced by the UAE Central Bank.
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The cap, announced in late December, would have seen mortgages for non-UAE nationals limited to 50 percent of home value for the first purchase and 60 percent for a second property. The move led to a surge in demand for home loans in the emirate's property market, although the central bank later said such a policy would not be introduced in the immediate future.
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“We have seen a huge rise in the number of mortgage buyers since the news came out that there will be a mortgage cap soon, the feeling is that buyers want to get in now before the cap does take effect,” Priyesh Patel, head of the sales and brokerage division at Dubai real estate firm Aston Pearl Real Estate, told Arabian Business.
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Read more: http://www.arabianbusiness.com/uae-mortgages-soared-in-january-over-50-cap-488250.html