discuss Beyond Dubai: Reem Island, Abu Dhabi. Don't Miss Out!

[$$Domainer]

I am going to tell you about a gigantic project going on in Abu Dhabi called Reem Island. This project is so huge 3 of the largest developers in the UAE(Tamouh, Sorouh, and Reem Investments) are building it. It is even bigger than The Pearl Qatar project that appeared in this forum last June.

- Reem Island is a combined residential, commercial and business project being built on a natural island off the coast of Abu Dhabi City and will be directly connected to Abu Dhabi City by a number of bridges. The location of Reem Island is only 20 minutes from Abu Dhabi International Airport.

- Reem Island will accomodate and estimated 280,000 residents. Some estimates go as high as 350,000!!

- Reem Island will contain Numerous hotels, resorts, beaches, spas, shopping malls, restaurants, medical clinics, many, many businesses, a 27 hole golf course, etc., etc.

- Just one of the business projects on Reem Island is Addax Port. By itself Addax is a massive port project which will contain 5 huge towers: an office tower and 4 other residential towers. And this is just one "small" part of Reem Island.

- Of course there will be tons of luxury condos and homes and villas, etc. to accomodate the huge number of residents of Reem Island.

- Reem Island will eventually be the "center" of Abu Dhabi which is the Richest of all the Emirates. Even richer than Dubai.

- Do a google search to get lots more info on Reem Island and here are a few sites to get you started: ReemIsland.com, AddaxPort.com, ReemInvestments.com. There are many more.

- There are still many good names left. I picked up:

ReemIslandProperties.com

ReemProperties.com

...but there are still many more left. As a domainer if you miss out on Reem Island you will never forgive yourself. Good luck and I hope this post was of help to you.

 

[gazzip]

Nice one Smith, there's some right funky looking buidings there. :o

thanks :tu:


.

 

[Smith]

Thats all Jumeirah Garden City

 

[pokainc]

I was sending some emails to some companies regarding my website and trying to promote some of the domains through this channel.

Someone got back to me saying they wanted to sell me their domain name/ developed site. I was not interested and responded accordingly.

They replied with arrogance and saying nobody needs brokers and people in Dubai don't buy from you and so-on...

I told the person that I've already sold domains in the past and some were to people in Dubai.

The answer I got back was that it is illegal in the UAE for someone to sell domains just for the purpose of making money and that the person had sent my website to the UAE Government (guessing by email) notifying them that supposedly what I'm doing is illegal and he tried to threaten me by saying the consequences are high and blablalbalba...


I don't live in the UAE, therefore I am not under the jurisdiction of the UAE. But is there any truth to what this arrogant idiot was saying? Can the UAE Government for example, based on the fact that I'm selling Dubai/UAE names for profit block my site from being viewed by people in the UAE or take any action against me? I don't think so, but wanted to know your opinions

 

[AbdulBasit.com]

I have lived in Dubai for 10 years. He is just playing with you and can't do anything. There is no such law in UAE that you can't sell Dubai/UAE names for profit.

There are tons of blocked sites in UAE but only those which are related to porn/warez/cracks/serials, etc. They never block any other website even gambling/casino websites are not blocked in UAE.

 

[pokainc]

thanks abdul,
I was only very vaguely concerned, cuz I had heard that banks for some reason can't charge interest on loans for profit because it's against religion or something. Therefore I thought maybe it was a similar thing maybe.

 

[pokainc]

I've noticed that most of the emails I sent to email addresses finishing in .AE are not going through. I'm getting a message of "unable to deliver message".

I've used gmail and hotmail.

Has anybody had the same experience or knows email companies that I could use which would deliver the messages?


Thanks

 

[gilescoley]

I've noticed that most of the emails I sent to email addresses finishing in .AE are not going through. I'm getting a message of "unable to deliver message".

I've used gmail and hotmail.

Has anybody had the same experience or knows email companies that I could use which would deliver the messages?

Pokainc, I get a few .ae addresses that bounce back but some that go through so its very hit and miss?? Not sure why??

 

[Smith]

I had heard that banks for some reason can't charge interest on loans for profit because it's against religion or something.

They can, but there are also options for Muslims, it's called "Islamic Banking", from what I can tell it's basically the exact same, just worded differently. Growing very fast, worth researching.

I've noticed that most of the emails I sent to email addresses finishing in .AE are not going through. I'm getting a message of "unable to deliver message".

It's because the internet here is crap, and the .ae registrar has no idea what it's doing, for example it took me 2 months to change the dns on a .ae name recently, I had to go into the office twice, and phone, and email.

 

[AbdulBasit.com]

No Smith. You are completely wrong. The bank which are Islamic Banks are not just worded differently. They are not charging any kind of interest. You must research it first before you say "just worded differently".

For example you take loan from Dubai Islamic Bank, they will charge you FIX amount. Let's say you take 10,000 USD worth car and you will need to actually pay them 12,000 USD in total investments which is just a fix amount (That $2,000 you can call it their profit but fix amount). If you fails to pay, they will give you warnings, if you still fail to pay, they will grab your property or whatever you have given them as security against the loan but they won't charge you INTEREST.

I have lived in UAE for 10 long years and now back to Pakistan and still have accounts in DIB (Dubai Islamic Bank in UAE) as well as in Pakistan (my home country).

No offense mate. I have just tried to explain it.

 

[tetrapak]

Sounds like .hu, I hated it so much that after my first registration I gave up the whole extension.

 

[maxeaus]

I was sending some emails to some companies regarding my website and trying to promote some of the domains through this channel.

Someone got back to me saying they wanted to sell me their domain name/ developed site. I was not interested and responded accordingly.

They replied with arrogance and saying nobody needs brokers and people in Dubai don't buy from you and so-on...

I told the person that I've already sold domains in the past and some were to people in Dubai.

The answer I got back was that it is illegal in the UAE for someone to sell domains just for the purpose of making money and that the person had sent my website to the UAE Government (guessing by email) notifying them that supposedly what I'm doing is illegal and he tried to threaten me by saying the consequences are high and blablalbalba...


I don't live in the UAE, therefore I am not under the jurisdiction of the UAE. But is there any truth to what this arrogant idiot was saying? Can the UAE Government for example, based on the fact that I'm selling Dubai/UAE names for profit block my site from being viewed by people in the UAE or take any action against me? I don't think so, but wanted to know your opinions

Complete garbage! The guy is trying to bully you, give him a BIN...... double it to punish his ignorance.

No Smith. You are completely wrong. The bank which are Islamic Banks are not just worded differently. They are not charging any kind of interest. You must research it first before you say "just worded differently".

For example you take loan from Dubai Islamic Bank, they will charge you FIX amount. Let's say you take 10,000 USD worth car and you will need to actually pay them 12,000 USD in total investments which is just a fix amount (That $2,000 you can call it their profit but fix amount). If you fails to pay, they will give you warnings, if you still fail to pay, they will grab your property or whatever you have given them as security against the loan but they won't charge you INTEREST.

I have lived in UAE for 10 long years and now back to Pakistan and still have accounts in DIB (Dubai Islamic Bank in UAE) as well as in Pakistan (my home country).


No offense mate. I have just tried to explain it.

Yes correct, its a profit sharing arrangement, the bank lends money to you on the premise you are investing together, when you repay the amount it is yours.

 

[Smith]

For example you take loan from Dubai Islamic Bank, they will charge you FIX amount. Let's say you take 10,000 USD worth car and you will need to actually pay them 12,000 USD in total investments which is just a fix amount (That $2,000 you can call it their profit but fix amount). If you fails to pay, they will give you warnings, if you still fail to pay, they will grab your property or whatever you have given them as security against the loan but they won't charge you INTEREST.

See this is what is confusing, because honestly I see no difference, it's just a fixed rate loan. but rather than calling it "interest" they call it "profit".

Is it just that with a non-Islamic loan there are penalties that would be a % based dollar amount? And with an Islamic loan just warnings no penalties?

Ultimately if one fails to make car payments under either scheme they will take the car or securities.

 

[AbdulBasit.com]

Let me explain in detail and hopefully everything will be clear at your end

First of all we should know what exactly is Islamic Banking?

It is a banking system which provides banking services and products in line with the rules and principles of Shari’a and is conducted under direct supervision and audit of Shari’a scholars.

Now comes the difference between Interest / Riba?

Interest / Riba is rent of money or the time value of money. It is the additional amount charged by a creditor in lieu of the time that he gives to the borrower for repayment or delay in payment.

Following are the most commonly used modes of Islamic banking and finance:

* MURABAHA: It is a sale contract in which an individual/entity sells an asset at cost plus an agreed profit. The sale price could be paid on spot or deferred.
* IJARA: It is a leasing contract in which the owner of an asset or its usufruct sells the usufruct of the underlying asset to the lessee for an agreed rental.
* MUDHARABA is a form of partnership where one party provides the funds while the other provides management services against a pre-agreed share in the profit of the investment. However, if there is any loss, it is borne solely by the capital provider.
* MUSHARAKA is a partnership with all the parties contributing to the capital of the Musharaka on the basis of profit and loss sharing. The profit shall be shared as per the agreement but the loss will be borne pro rata.
* SALAM: It is a kind of sale in which payment is made on spot while the delivery of the goods is deferred.
* ISTISNA’: It refers to a sale in which the buyer orders the would-be manufacturer to produce and deliver a fully described commodity from raw materials of its own. It is basically an order to manufacture.

Is it permissible for an Islamic bank to impose penalty for late payment?

If Islamic banks do not impose any penalties on late payment the customers shall not pay in time and thus the Islamic banks will not be able to run their business efficiently and give a good return to the investors. Therefore, the Islamic banks have decided to take from each client an irrevocable undertaking that in case of late payment he shall be charged a penalty which shall be donated to a charity supervised by the Shari’a Board of the bank independently from the bank. The Islamic banks do not use these donations for their own benefit, but incorporate such provisions in their contracts to check potential default.

How do Islamic banks make profit?

The Islamic banks invest/utilize the funds received from the Account Holders/customers under Islamic modes of financing such as Ijara, Murabaha, Salam, Istisna and investment contracts such as Mudaraba, Musharaka, Wakala etc. to generate profit.

Do Islamic banks have credit cards?

Yes, Islamic banks offer interest free credit card facility for which the client pays a monthly fee irrespective of the way he uses the card during the period. The fee is in lieu of some real services that a credit card holder becomes entitled to. The fee neither increases nor decreases on the basis of the use, frequency of usage or non-use of the card by the customer.

Is there any difference between Interest and Usury?

No, both have the same meaning. Qur’an, Sunnah and Fiqh do not differentiate between the two. Islam terms what is known as interest or usury as Riba and therefore prohibits it.

How Islamic banking is different from conventional banking?

Islamic banking offers Riba free banking in line with Islamic Sharia rules. It neither gives nor takes loans on interest. It operates as a trading company which buys, sells and enters into different modes and contracts of investment such as Mudaraba, Musharaka etc.

What is the term used for profit in Islamic banking?

It’s called Ribh in Arabic and is translated as profit in English.

Does Islamic bank offer loans?

Islamic banks do not offer loans; they offer financing through Sharia compliant modes of investment and transactions.

These were the questions and answers I have given in detail which I feel were related to our discussion.

 

[nicedomains]

abdulbasituae - Very informative, Repped+

 

[Smith]

yep, I've read islamic bank FAQ's before, I still don't see any real difference other then superficial wording and a few processes.

 

[AbdulBasit.com]

@nicedomains
Thanks I hope many will understand well who were having doubts about what is actual Islamic Banking.

@Smith
Wow! Even this much explanation wasn't enough!

 

[Jingles]

For those of you who are actively searching for possible endusers for your names through email, do you find the businesses receptive to such solicitations? I have a small package of 4 .ae domains I'd like to try and sell, but for some reason I'm scared to even try and attempt to contact some larger companies in the UAE. I think it's because I used to work for Middle Eastern doctors and some of them could be VERY strict..and, well...VERY mean

I keep my emails very professional, but I'm afraid I'll somehow offend them and come across as a pathetic, shady American. I know I'm probably being silly, but my past personal experiences have left a big impact on me.

 

[gilescoley]

Hi all

I have been contacting some of the large real estates and property developers over in the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi and Oman and I found most of them to be pretty civil and very friendly considering they have just received an email from a complete stranger trying to sell them a domain. I am surprised because I am sure these guys gets lots of email from us regardig these names, I thought they would be sick of it and just reply with a "NO"

Some of them have actually said "Thanks but they werent interested at the moment but they will keep my email address and contact me should they require any in the future. I have also had a couple of them suggest other companies/developers that may be interested.


Some come across a little rude, and by rude I mean their emails just say "Sorry we're not interested" but this is probably just the way I interpret the email. The could have been really busy, but hey, at least they replied, which is more than some do.

Personally I have found some of the CEO's and big executives to be very helpful and friendly, considering the positions they are in. I have been in contact with one Arabic gentleman who is a very, very powerful man over there and is on the "2008's 100 most powerful arabs" list (worth $45 billion) He was very nice and we exchanged a few emails discussing the names I had and the projects his comapany were involved in, I found this a real eye-opener and considering the way I approached him (email) I thought he was very civil and professional too.

He said he would consider a couple of the names in the near future, but at the moment he would nt be buying them at the price I wanted. Im sure if I dropped my price, he would have snapped them up, he's probably just play hardball with me.


From my experience, I found the best way to deal with these guys is not to be to formal in your email
s, make them a little friendlier and treat them more like a mate , obviously still having a professional and business tone to the email

Just my 2 cents worth from my experiences lately

Good luck everyone

 

[nicedomains]

For those of you who are actively searching for possible endusers for your names through email, do you find the businesses receptive to such solicitations? I have a small package of 4 .ae domains I'd like to try and sell, but for some reason I'm scared to even try and attempt to contact some larger companies in the UAE. I think it's because I used to work for Middle Eastern doctors and some of them could be VERY strict..and, well...VERY mean

I keep my emails very professional, but I'm afraid I'll somehow offend them and come across as a pathetic, shady American. I know I'm probably being silly, but my past personal experiences have left a big impact on me.

Don't be scared as long as you have generic domain names. Gilescoley has some great info in the above post that should help you. Seems like gilescoley really has been hitting the hammer and going for the big end user sales we all envisioned when we were buying these types of names. Good job giles, show us the way!

 

[Jingles]

Thank you so much for a fantastic post, Gilescoley! +Rep for you I really know it's all just silliness on my part, and I can't let a few bad past experiences get me down or stop me from possible future negotiations, so I'm going to bite the bullet and start sending out some emails

nicedomains - yes, I've been very careful in selecting names that are generic and relevant to UAE business and lifestyle and made sure to stay away from names that would be offensive to their culture.

 

[Smith]

@Smith
Wow! Even this much explanation wasn't enough!

like I said, I've read bank faq's before, your cut/paste job didn't win me over sorry

 

[AbdulBasit.com]

I am not here to convince you to follow what I have mentioned. I have said all this because you were wrong with the statement "just worded differently"

I must suggest you to research yourself before telling others

 

[gilescoley]

Don't be scared as long as you have generic domain names. Gilescoley has some great info in the above post that should help you. Seems like gilescoley really has been hitting the hammer and going for the big end user sales we all envisioned when we were buying these types of names. Good job giles, show us the way!

Thanks NiceDomains, I certainly am giving it a go and I am pretty optimistic with the replies I have been getting. A few of the names I am approaching them with are on megaprojects that are not completed and will be ongoing for a fe wyears yet, so they are in no hurry to buy the names either. I am willing to be patient and approach them again in the future. Its all about their state of mind and what the progress is of their projects. If a project is 5 years away from completion, the foremost thing in their mind is getting the project closer to completion and not buying a domain name to market the area. Once they are closer to completion and the buyers/real estates etc start circling, this will become a more important thought in their minds.

I think patience is the key, I had to turn down a $2,500 offer the other day because I think the name will be worth more closer to the project completion. We all have to think like that IMO

Thank you so much for a fantastic post, Gilescoley! +Rep for you I really know it's all just silliness on my part, and I can't let a few bad past experiences get me down or stop me from possible future negotiations, so I'm going to bite the bullet and start sending out some emails

You're welcome Amy, I wouldn't worry about past experiences, I know its easier said than done sometimes, but remember these are business people and if they are rude/mean etc you can stop communications immediately as you are only emailing them. Just remember, these are total strangers to you and you will never have to meet them or deal with them in person. Its just business and if they reply in an unprofessional manner, just reply as you always would and thank them for their time and wish them good luck. I have had some pretty blunt replies and I make sure I always keep my professionalism and wish them good luck with their projects in the future. You never know, they may come back to you in the future so the important thing is not burn any bridges with these people.

Good luck Amy and remember, this is just business, at least you dont have to go and knock on their doors and have meetings with them to sell your product.

 

[Jingles]

Thanks, Giles. Good luck to you too!

 

[gilescoley]

some nice Dubai pics and info here

http://www.edibek.com/2007/03/13/dubai/