My Dubai Rent takes you inside a reader's home to have a look at what they pay each month, see who they live with and ask what they like and don't like
There are not many Dubai residents who rent the same home for more than a few years.
Staying for a decade is almost unheard of, but that is how long Egyptian accountant Mostafa Elrefaey has lived with his family in their three-bedroom villa in Mirdif, close to the city’s airport.
His family live there because it is a short distance to his children’s school and only a 20-minute drive to his office.
Mr Elrefaey has also managed to see his rent reduced from an initial Dh150,000 per year in his time at the property.
How much rent do you pay each year?
We pay Dh85,000 per annum to live here. It is quite affordable for a three-bedroom villa in Dubai.
When we first moved here in 2012 we were paying much more, Dh65,000 in fact, so you can see how much rents have reduced in that time.
Before that we were living in Sharjah but we love it here it so much, it’s perfect for us.
What makes your home so special?
We have a great space here. To get a three-bedroom villa for this price is excellent. I have been here 10 years and have a great relationship with the landlord.
He has been good to us and we have been good to him, we have that kind of relationship.
It is only a 20-minute drive to my office in Business Bay and is close to our children’s school. To be honest, we are only really 20 minutes’ drive from a lot of places including Sharjah, so it’s a great location to access other locations from.
We are really close to Mirdif City Centre Mall too, so we have everything we need right here.
There were a few times when we considered leaving but it is not easy to find a place as good as this, so we are very happy to stay where we are.
Did you have much difficulty finding your home?
We looked at more than 25 properties before settling on this one. We were definitely thorough!
My wife and I spent a month and a half looking at different places as we wanted to move to a villa with a lot of space, so this place stood out for us.
We have a big family so we wanted a big space to live in.
What touches have you made to make it feel more like home?
Because I have a good relationship with the landlord, he was happy for me to paint the walls in different colours in the various rooms. Not all landlords will let you do that.
We also placed artificial grass outside in the garden as we spend a lot of time out there, especially when the weather is a little cooler.
Is there anything you would change about your home if you could?
I will be honest, I am pretty happy here and not keen to change much.
We do live very close to the airport though and when we first moved in, the noise from the planes would keep you awake at night.
After a few months you get used it though and we do not really notice them any more.
