BOOM FOR THE KURDS

Kurdistan Real Estate Market Makes Comeback


Posted on 14 May 2013. Tags: Erbil, Kurdistan, property, real estate



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By [i]Abdel Hamid Zebari for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.[/i]

The economy of the Kurdistan region of Iraq fluctuates according to
the state of relations between Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional
Government.

A key indicator of the region’s economy, real estate, has been
sluggish but has seen a dramatic improvement in just the last few weeks
since KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani negotiated an agreement with
Baghdad in late April to end the boycott of the Iraqi government and
Council of Representatives by Iraqi Kurdish ministers and members of
parliament and cool tensions in Kirkuk and disputed areas.

The mostly stable and now improved security situation has allowed
economic progress and prosperity in the Iraqi Kurdistan region. Until
recently, the economy and real estate market had been in a funk. Many
Iraqi families have moved away from central and southern regions of the
country, in addition to Iraqis living in Syria who left following the
political crisis and armed operations between the state and the
opposition in order to settle down in Kurdish regions. The last dispute
between Baghdad and Erbil, however, has shaken their trust in their
safety.

Nariman Sadeq, owner of a real estate agency in Erbil, explained to
Al-Monitor, “Lately, citizens have lost their trust in the market, and
consequently real estate prices have dramatically dropped.”

Added Sadeq, “The prices of real estate in some regions of Iraqi
Kurdistan have dropped by 30-40%, as the buying and selling process came
to a halt a month ago.”