Blog
Let's Talk about Money...
« Transforming property is neither a fast nor cheap thing to do, ...
But it is a very rewarding operation if done properly, not only in happiness / improved living standards, but also financially! »
Stefano - Atelier 24 Founder.
March 2023
How Much?
You can read in the FAQs section the process we follow to build a quotation, which is basically an iterative approached based on plans and requirements.
Specifically, we do not provide rough estimate or ‘guestimate’ which inevitably are inaccurate:
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either grossly inflated to cover risks,
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or omitting key parts leaving you with plenty nasty surprises further down the line.
It is a business model we don’t support, simply because it would be totally misleading and un-helpful to our customers.
Instead please get in touch and we can assess your requirement, and start the process so that we can built a relevant estimate and refine it jointly to help you build an accurate overall budget picture.
What is important, as with most thing, is to understand is what you get for your money.
Is it worth it?
What's the Return?
Generally speaking, and this is true for pretty much any expenses, the key decision factors when we buy something are based around simple questions such as:
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What we get for the money?
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satisfaction / comfort
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tangible improvement / additional space
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Will we be able to get some (or more) of that money back?
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is it an investment or an expense?
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consider the re-sell value vs the full cost of the project
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The first question generally helps us to define if we want to proceed.
The second questions is to help us work-out the financial part of it.
Transforming property is neither a fast nor cheap thing to do, but it is a very rewarding operation if done properly – not only in terms of satisfaction / happiness / improved living standards, but also financially rewarding.
The consensus from financial experts is that the maximum increase in value generated solely by a full renovation / transformation can be be up to 40% of the property value (we are obviously not talking about dressing-up such as changing wallpaper and putting new cushions / curtains!).
We have seen many property doubling in value (100% gain) based on successful transformation and favourable market.
« Keep your options open ...
...even if you don't consider selling in the future, who knows what may happen : no-one predicted the 2020 pandemic! »
Some good Pointers ...
...and Examples.
In our experience, in order to maximise the increased value you generally need to invest around 20% of the property value. Your design choices, selection of materials and other factor can of course increase this number.
This percentage of investment will augment the cheaper the property is, and reduce the more expensive it is.
Indeed not everything is proportionate to the cost of the property and generally in % of the value of the property people end-up spending more for cheaper property, simply because there are some fixed cost centres (e.g. kitchen) which are still required even for a 1 bedroom apartment.
If you are looking at the return in terms of future re-sell value then you also need to focus on location, location, location!
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Simply because there is only so much value that can be added based on the location of the property.
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You can easily spend few million dirhams transforming a villa on the palm and still get good profit re-selling. But if you spend the same amount even in popular Arabian Ranches or Meadows then you are unlikely to get your return.
Then again, the return is often more intangible, and instead of looking at the resell value or ROI we see many customer focusing on achieving the dream living / working space they imagine.
This satisfaction and practical gain will also save you money in the medium/long term but they are also harder to quantify.
Here are some examples of smart investment from some of our customers:
JVT Villa
JBR Apartment
JVT Townhouse
Palm Jumeirah Villa
