The region’s real estate market is still struggling to shake off the impact of the global financial crisis, which crippled the private sector in late 2008. The political upheaval in 2011 has further dampened enthusiasm for real estate, with many projects in affected countries either cancelled or put on hold. However, the fortunes of the eight listed real estate companies in the MEED 100 are mixed, with some climbing the ranks, others plummeting and still others remaining in the same spot.

With the population …expected to double by 2050, there will be major demand for new housing over the next decade

Qatar’s Ezdan Real Estate is the highest-placed real estate firm in the table. The company is set to benefit from the raft of residential projects planned in preparation for the football World Cup, which will be hosted by Qatar in 2022. During the bidding process, the firm signed an agreement with the Qatar Bid Committee 2022 to build 50,000 housing units for the event.

In 2011, Ezdan managed to increase its net profit to QR201.6m from QR172m in 2010. It is the third-highest placed Qatari firm in the MEED 100, with a market capitalisation of $13.8bn. The firm is also in the retail sector and construction of its Ezdan mall in Doha is expected to be completed by the end of 2012.

Barwa Real Estate is the other Qatari developer in the top 100, featuring at 72 with a market capitalisation of $3.1bn.

Dubai real estate market rallies

Despite a difficult past three years for Dubai’s real estate market, Emaar Properties is the second-highest placed real estate firm in the MEED table. As developers such as Nakheel struggle to restart stalled projects amid ongoing financial troubles, Emaar’s reputation for quality and its portfolio of completed projects has allowed it to rise five places to 39. It also successfully negotiated a refinancing in December 2011.

The developer is still keen to further expand its portfolio, and recently announced its plan to develop an opera house and cultural district next to its Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai.

With the population in the Middle East and North Africa expected to almost double to 650 million by 2050, there will be significant demand for new housing over the next decade.

The increasing demand for housing in Saudi Arabia is reflected in its three real estate companies making the top 100. The kingdom needs to build an estimated 1.65 million new homes by 2015. With King Abdullah pledging to build 500,000 new homes for Saudi citizens, it leaves more than 1 million units that will need to be provided by the private sector.

The largest Saudi real estate company is Jabal Omar Development Company, which jumped from 83 to 48 with a market capitalisation of $4.3bn.

The firm was set up in 2005 to develop a $5bn real estate scheme in Mecca. The project has suffered from slow progress, but 2012 has seen a renewed effort from the developer to push ahead. Jabal Omar recently started talks with banks about raising a SR5bn 15-year loan and in early March it received bids for the construction contract for the second phase of the scheme.

Dar al-Arkan Real Estate and Emaar, The Economic City are the other two Saudi real estate companies to make the MEED 100, featuring at 55 and 78 respectively.

Moroccan crisis

The fortunes of developers outside the GCC have been less positive. Casablanca-listed Douja Promotion Group Addoha tumbled 36 places and its market capitalisation has dropped 35.5 per cent since March 2011 as its high-end property business continues to be impacted by the ongoing debt crisis in Europe. Most of the firm’s second homes sales are targeted at the French, Belgian and Spanish markets, and transactions have greatly reduced since 2008 and over the course of 2011.

The firm’s net profits for the first half of 2011 came to MD481m ($57.5m), a 30 per cent fall compared with the same period in 2010.

The Moroccan real estate market has readjusted itself to the new economic realities and the social housing market is now seen by developers as a means of providing growth to set them on a more secure financial footing. The country’s Housing and Urban Planning Ministry puts the housing deficit for 2011 at about 608,000 units. The government is currently targeting 1.5 million housing units by 2015 and is aiming to build 300,000 units a year.

Addoha has signed agreements to become one of the primary developers of social housing in Morocco and this should provide a cushion against the falling sales of luxury villas and apartments.

Despite continuing to deliver new projects and increasing rental income, Solidere (Lebanese Company for Reconstruction & Development) has seen its share price come under intense pressure throughout the past year due to a combination of local political factors, regional unrest and concerns over the world economy weighing on investor sentiment on the Beirut stock exchange. The firm’s market capitalisation has dropped from $3bn in 2011 to $2.4bn this year.