VIP REAL, which owns several brands and is co-owned by Aleksandrs Cikunovs and Lara Batova, has a history spanning two decades. For many years, this company specialized in luxury real estate in Jurmala and the center of Riga. Cooperation with real estate buyers and sellers from Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Ukraine, Germany, Israel, Poland, China, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, the United Kingdom, and Russia has enabled the company to conduct over a thousand transactions. With this successful business, VIP REAL has earned a good reputation in Latvia. And since last year, its portfolio has been supplemented with foreign deals in Dubai (UAE), where Aleksandrs Cikunovs and Lara Batova have opened the joint venture AG VIP REAL Estate.

"The Dubai real estate market is an exciting challenge that allowed us to take our business to a new level and provided invaluable international experience. Today, our office in Dubai, located on the 39th floor of a skyscraper, employs five people. In just the first third of 2024, AG VIP REAL Estate has completed ten property sales transactions in Dubai worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, in some cases exceeding the million-dollar mark," shares Lara Batova with good news. She is in a great mood: "We have never regretted the decision to open a representative office in Dubai and work there for a moment. This city has always been and remains one of the most technologically advanced places in the world and continues to attract buyers from around the globe. Just in the first quarter of 2024 alone, the population of the Emirate of Dubai has officially increased by more than 25,000 people!"

During our time working in the UAE, we have managed to integrate into the local market. AG VIP REAL Estate has entered into cooperation agreements with several dozen leading property developers in this country. Some of them, such as Meeras, offer several complexes and hundreds of apartments for sale, while others, like Sobha Realty, offer several thousand properties. We are constantly expanding our partner base, visiting new projects weekly and signing cooperation agreements with their developers. However, we do this selectively! There are more than a hundred developers in Dubai, but in our opinion, not all of them will be highly liquid in the future. This is an important aspect for those who buy property not for personal living, when the decision can be made on the principle of "I like it, and that's it," but for investment and rental income purposes.

"In Dubai, we are actively developing two directions. The first is intermediary services, that is, we help our clients navigate the vast and diverse market of new projects and find real gems among them. The second area is resale. In the real estate sector, this term is used by investors to describe the process of buying, renovating, and selling property to make a profit. In this case, it is about housing either on the secondary market or in new buildings with very modest basic finishes. We modernize or completely renovate them, and after the work is completed, we put the apartments up for sale," joins the conversation Aleksandrs Cikunovs. "After a year and a half of diligent daily work in Dubai, we are convinced that projects in this market are very different from each other. If someone thinks that by purchasing any residential property in this UAE emirate, the value of your property will sharply increase, I will disappoint you — unfortunately, this is not the case. To make the right choice, you need to consult with professionals. It is crucial to clearly understand what is worth taking and what is better to refuse, even if the complex's advertisement promises a rapid cosmic price increase or a 15% annual return from renting out the property.

"In our practice, we have not yet encountered such profitability figures," honestly warns Lara Batova. "In reality, after paying taxes in Dubai, one can expect a 7-9% annual return. However, this is still significantly more than in Latvia, where a 3-4% annual return from elite property is considered a great success. At VIP REAL, we care about our reputation, so we are always honest and open with our clients. When choosing properties, we are guided by market realities, not fantasies, and we do not promise anyone castles in the air.

For information: in Dubai, property purchase by foreigners is not allowed everywhere but only in so-called freehold zones. By purchasing a property worth at least $250,000, a non-resident can obtain a visa valid for up to two years. If the budget exceeds $545,000, a so-called golden visa is issued, allowing one to stay in the UAE for ten years.

Brokerage practice in Dubai is licensed. To start working, we registered, passed an exam, and received a certificate. As brokers, we sign cooperation agreements with both the seller (contract A) and the buyer (contract B). Each party's commission is 2%, so the total amount does not exceed 4%. This is the standard for all market participants. In the UAE, everything happens officially and transparently. There are optimization opportunities, but they are rarely used. The purchase contract text (contract F) in Dubai is quite unified, allowing only minimal changes. Everything is signed electronically. It should be noted that in Dubai, unlike Latvia, it is partially allowed to use cash in real estate transactions. It is also possible to pay part of the commission to intermediaries, but not more than 50,000 AED (about 12,500 euros). All contracts in this country are registered in a special register. The state fee for registering a housing transaction in Dubai is 4%. Transactions are conducted quite quickly and largely depend only on how quickly the developer gives permission for the purchase. This usually takes from 3 to 10 days. The re-registration of property rights takes place within 30 minutes after signing at the notary's office.

"The prospects for the Dubai real estate market remain convincing and clear: this emirate has a long-term development program until 2040. We hope that thanks to our hard work, AG VIP REAL Estate's positions in this market will continue to strengthen: we have certain ambitions. And it is very important that now we can share our experience of moving to Dubai with foreign buyers, thereby facilitating their first steps in the UAE. However, while working there, we do not forget about our native Latvian market; it is still our base," Aleksandrs Cikunovs returns to the topic of his business's Latvian direction. "The main office of VIP REAL successfully operates and will continue to operate in Jurmala, at Jomas Street 85. During our absence, our reliable partner and very experienced specialist in the Latvian real estate market, Ilvars Viņķis, as well as CEO Julia Pedane, maintain the company's stable positions. Currently, more than 2000 properties from the primary and secondary markets of Jurmala, Riga, and its surroundings are presented on the website vipreal.lv. We believe that the negative processes observed in the Latvian real estate market over the past couple of years are disappearing, and a bit more optimism is beginning to appear in the market, which will be reflected in increased buyer activity," smiles Lara Batova. "Latvian colleagues jokingly ask when we will bring sheikhs as buyers," smiles Lara Batova. "We think it will take some more time. As we can see, attempts are already being made in Latvia to attract investors from the UAE, so we may be next. (Smiles.) Currently, we are using our professional Latvian business experience in Dubai and beginning to implement the technological knowledge we have gained in the UAE in Latvia to successfully develop both directions!