Oman real estate: 78 per cent rise in value of traded contracts in 2015

Muscat: A growth of 78 per cent was recorded in the value of traded contracts in real estate sector during 2015 which stood at OMR5,217,755,000 in 2015 compared to OMR2,925,835,760 in 2014.
Abdullah bin Salim Al Mekhaini, Secretary of the Real Estate Registry at the Ministry of Housing said that real estate activity witnessed a remarkable increase in most of real estate transactions in 2015 compared to 2014. He added that collected fees during the year 2015 stood at OMR62,054,000 compared to OMR49,796,168 in 2014; a growth by 25 per cent.
He also pointed out that the number of title deeds during 2015 stood at 250,285 compared to 220,678 title deeds in 2014; a growth by 14 per cent. The number of registered land plots for the first time during 2015 stood at 56,529 compared to 51,253 in 2014; a growth by 10 per cent.
The total title deeds issued for the GCC nationals, as per the real estate possession regulations in the Sultanate, stood at 2,269 compared to 3,095 in 2014; a decline by 27 per cent.
The number of sale contracts that have been concluded over 2015 stood at 81,089 worth of OMR1,359,628,434 compared to 82,258 contracts in 2014 worth of OMR1,169,945,473; a decline by 1 per cent in the number of contracts. The collected fees from such sale contracts during 2015 stood at OMR39,875,445 compared to OMR31,901,177 in 2014; an increase in value and fees by 16 per cent and 25 per cent respectively.
Al Mekhaini added that 672 swap contracts worth of OMR13,767,919 were concluded in 2015 compared to 640 contracts worth of OMR4,328,724 in 2014; a growth by 5 per cent in the number of contracts and 281 per cent in the value. The collected fees from such contracts stood at OMR276,955 in 2015 compared to OMR82,784 in 2014; a growth by 235 per cent.
"22,603 mortgage contracts worth of OMR3,844,358,710 were concluded in 2015. The collected fees for such contracts stood at OMR11,209,310 in 2015. The number of mortgage contracts in 2014 stood at 19,255 worth of OMR1,751,561,562. The collected fees from mortgage contracts in 2014 stood at OMR8,528,371; a growth by 17.4 per cent in the number of mortgage contracts, as well as a growth in value and fees by 120 per cent and 31 per cent respectively," he concluded.