Oman rental market pressured down by expat curbs

Dubai: Rents in Oman are expected to fall again in 2018, according to property experts, following the announcement of new visa rules that ban expat workers from specific professions, coupled with an oversupply of properties, national daily Times of Oman reported. “There is an effect due to the new expat laws. With fewer expats coming, there will be fewer people renting houses, so the market will go down this year. I think the only way is to allow more freedom for expats,”Ammar Al-Safar, rental in-charge at the Al Qandeel Real Estate told the paper. “Once they come in, they have to rent a house, buy a car, bring their family and send their children to school. All of this is a boost to the economy and without it, the real estate sector will go down,” Al-Safar added. International real estate companies reported that the market in Oman was struggling, with UK-based Cluttons showing that rents in the country hit an all-time low in 2017 — and prices are expected to fall further due to the new expat restriction laws. The Cluttons report shows that the market fell by 25 percent on average in 2017, but in some parts of the region around the capital, Muscat dropping more that 50 percent.