# of real estate transactions 2006-2007

# of real estate transactions 2001-2006

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Le Commerce Magazine (in different interviews on the Real estate sector)

30% of our customers are Lebanese expatriates, 20% Locals and 50% Arabs, coming from Qatar, Bahrain and KSA.
We think the real estate value is still underestimated in Lebanon. Even in this period of crisis, starting with the events that took place in 2005, the sector is still standing. When Lebanon will have stability again, we are counting on a sector boom, starting 2008 and lasting for 5 to years. (Chahe YEREVANIAN, CEO SAYFCO HOLDING)

The market witnessed a period of prudence, but we were always convinced that it was temporary. A few weeks ago, the market started to anticipate a new increase in the real estate sector and a lot of customers were inquiring about it. People have the feeling that now is the right time to buy. (Antoine El Khoury)

Once the political and security situations in the country become calmer, the prices of the apartments will increase due to the late increases of lands and construction costs. Nevertheless, Beirut is still the cheapest capital in the region. (Hassan Kronfol, Owner/developer real estate).

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Daily Star Article on RE

According to Coldwell Banker-Lebanon, the value of property sales in 2007 reached $4.219 billion compared to $3.151 billion in 2006. "Last year was the best year in both property sales and transactions since 2001," Elie Harb, the general manager of Coldwell Banker told The Daily Star.
The Directorate of Real Estate at the Finance Ministry said that the number of property transactions in the country reached 154,158 in 2007, up by 21.4 percent relative to 2006.

Bank Audi, which published the Finance Ministry's report, said that the rise in real-estate activity could be attributed to several reasons such as the increase in population, higher demand by expatriate Lebanese, the relatively low taxes in Lebanon, the improvement made in terms of property transfer operations, and the facilitation of foreign ownership.

Another real-estate broker said Lebanese expatriates working in the Gulf still prefer to buy properties back home.
"The Lebanese work for many years in the Gulf region and other countries to make a decent living and the first thing he or she thinks about is buying a house or land in Beirut or other areas," the broker said.

The Finance Ministry's real-estate department said this half-year rise, in turn, mainly stems from an 82 percent surge in the third quarter of 2007 relative to the same quarter of 2006 that witnessed a freeze in real-estate operations during the 34-day war with Israel that summer, and to a smaller extent, from the 14 percent year-on-year increase in the fourth quarter of 2007, noting that in the last quarter of 2006, the number of property transactions more or less resumed its pre-war level.