Barnaby Crompton left school at 17 to work in real estate in the UK and then in the UAE. Mr Crompton now mostly specialises in Emirates Hills, where he sold the exclusive Dubai district’s most expensive property for Dh210 million ($57.18 million) in 2022.
The Briton moved to the UAE in 2008 and launched Crompton Partners in 2012. Later, he created Crompton Saltini Real Estate with two Dubai businessman.
Mr Crompton deals with successful individuals, including political figures, Bollywood stars and tycoons, but experienced a blip when an agency he worked for failed amid the 2007-2008 global recession.
Now 41, he lives in Jumeirah Village Triangle with his wife and their children, aged 7 and 2.
Did wealth feature in your upbringing?
My parents have been wealthy and poor in my lifetime, and became wealthy again. They owned a furniture shop in England, where I was born, then moved to Portugal, where we lived in a caravan for six months on a beach.
By the time we left Portugal, my father owned a building company, mum and dad owned a commercial launderette and mum sold timeshares.
In nine years, they went from a caravan to having three houses on a hillside, building another one, and became very wealthy in Portuguese terms.
Then we moved to England and my parents separated. They have been through boom and bust. Maybe it’s in my DNA.
When did you learn to earn?
My mum bought a house in Oxford that went from three-up, two-down to being six bedrooms with an extension and conservatory. Part of how she made money was to run a B&B.
The first bed I made and breakfast I served, I was probably 12. We didn’t really get paid because that was part of the income for the house.
We also had a job sheet and at the end of the week, you got pocket money, £2.50 (Dh11). Mum needed help and what better way to motivate kids?
When I was 13, she said, “Get a job, do a paper round”. Ever since, I’ve known that to get money, you have to earn it.
Was cash important during your youth?
Money for me has been freedom, an opportunity to do what I want. It would be in one day, out the next day, but that day was the most liberating.
Then you realise you’re out of cash again and get back to work. My laissez-faire attitude towards money I earned in those days has probably given me more grounding as I get older.
How did you start in real estate?
I was diagnosed as dyslexic. My last day of school came around, I sat down with my mum, who said, “You’re living under my roof, you’re paying your way”.
At the time, she had a portfolio of 20 houses built up, while she was studying to be a midwife.
She said: “You don’t need qualifications to be an estate agent, just do that until you figure out what you want to do.”
Have you ever worried about paying bills?
My brother and I had this big house in London. I was struggling to pay my share of the mortgage.
I took a sabbatical from the estate agency to work in the catering industry … you live beyond your means when you’re twentysomething.
Property, unless you’re doing something stupid, is a very safe long-term bet
Barnaby Crompton
Then, about six months after having moved here, I was living in a shared flat and I wasn’t making any money.
I got here in September 2008, earned about Dh25,000 in the first three weeks. When the global financial crisis hit, the phone never rang, the market dropped 50 per cent.
What lesson emerged from that?
You have to have rainy day money.
That was probably the second time I realised that. At 28, you’re full of the hubris of life and money just gets spent. Life is about having a good time and then the world is telling you that you need to be in a position where, if you don’t earn for six months, you’re going to be all right.
It shapes the way you perceive your income, especially in our industry if you don’t sell anything.
Do you still have that caution?
Yes, with a fatter bank account. Things that you can buy are bigger, but the questions are just as hard. Do I really need another car? All of a sudden, it’s in reach, but it’s not going to change you for the better.
I’m a saver before I’m a spender, but that’s a relatively new function of my mindset.
When you have kids, you realise there’s a bigger picture, so you buy things that are going to give passive income and make you financially secure.
How do you grow wealth?
I’m buying gold. I’ve bought artwork from blue-chip artists … a good way to stave off inflation.
I have an offshore account that pays a fixed return, and real estate here and in the UK.
We bought here about eight years ago. We needed somewhere to live. One of the great things about my growing up was stability and I wanted that for my kids.
Best investments?
It’s always been property. From a short-term perspective, an apartment on the Palm I bought a year and a half ago.
Long-term … the house my mum helped me buy when I was 18, for £132,000. I paid it off three months ago, it’s now worth about £600,000.
Property, unless you’re doing something stupid, is a very safe long-term bet.
I’ve also got a set of basketball cards somewhere that I’ve a sneaking suspicion might be worth a fortune. Some are really old.
Do some property deals surprise you?
No. I would have been [surprised] when I was younger. I’ve sold to all walks of life, predominantly leaders in their industries.
It boggles your mind sometimes how people have made their money.
Any cherished purchases?
My wife’s wedding ring. She brings out the best in me.
Does money mean happiness?
Money used to make me happy. When I was younger, it bought designer clothes, nights out with friends, all the trappings of youth that make you a happy young man.
Now, you become astutely aware money buys you not happiness, but options. The opportunity to set your kids up in life, choose different holidays, drive different cars.
I’m a believer in enjoying life, revel in the moment, have a good work-life balance. Life is made up of a series of memories that doesn’t slip through your fingers like money.
So are you wiser?
You spend less on frivolous nonsense, understand what’s important and want for less as you get older.
When you’re 28, you’re invincible and don’t need to think about your future.
I’m now 41 and thinking about what I want to do when I retire, where to live.
What do you enjoy spending on?
Really nice dinners with friends. And art. These pieces conjure emotions, remind you of the business you’ve done to be able to buy them.
I did buy a Banksy from someone who was supposedly an art adviser — my first proper foray into blue-chip art — probably for about 30 per cent more than it was worth.
I need to leave it in storage for about 10 years to get my money back. It’s a learning curve.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Know your camel milk:
Flavour: Similar to goat’s milk, although less pungent. Vaguely sweet with a subtle, salty aftertaste.
Texture: Smooth and creamy, with a slightly thinner consistency than cow’s milk.
Use it: In your morning coffee, to add flavour to homemade ice cream and milk-heavy desserts, smoothies, spiced camel-milk hot chocolate.
Goes well with: chocolate and caramel, saffron, cardamom and cloves. Also works well with honey and dates.
The%20specs
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ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
if you go
The flights
Fly direct to Kutaisi with Flydubai from Dh925 return, including taxes. The flight takes 3.5 hours. From there, Svaneti is a four-hour drive. The driving time from Tbilisi is eight hours.
The trip
The cost of the Svaneti trip is US$2,000 (Dh7,345) for 10 days, including food, guiding, accommodation and transfers from and to Tbilisi or Kutaisi. This summer the TCT is also offering a 5-day hike in Armenia for $1,200 (Dh4,407) per person. For further information, visit www.transcaucasiantrail.org/en/hike/
Roll of honour 2019-2020
Dubai Rugby Sevens
Winners: Dubai Hurricanes
Runners up: Bahrain
West Asia Premiership
Winners: Bahrain
Runners up: UAE Premiership
UAE Premiership
}Winners: Dubai Exiles
Runners up: Dubai Hurricanes
UAE Division One
Winners: Abu Dhabi Saracens
Runners up: Dubai Hurricanes II
UAE Division Two
Winners: Barrelhouse
Runners up: RAK Rugby
Name: Brendalle Belaza
From: Crossing Rubber, Philippines
Arrived in the UAE: 2007
Favourite place in Abu Dhabi: NYUAD campus
Favourite photography style: Street photography
Favourite book: Harry Potter
The biog
Name: Mohammed Imtiaz
From: Gujranwala, Pakistan
Arrived in the UAE: 1976
Favourite clothes to make: Suit
Cost of a hand-made suit: From Dh550
The specs: 2017 GMC Sierra 1500 Denali
Price, base / as tested Dh207,846 / Dh220,000
Engine 6.2L V8
Transmission Eight-speed automatic
Power 420hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque 624Nm @ 4,100rpm
Fuel economy, combined 13.5L / 100km
The specs
Engine: 5.2-litre V10
Power: 640hp at 8,000rpm
Torque: 565Nm at 6,500rpm
Transmission: 7-speed dual-clutch auto
Price: From Dh1 million
On sale: Q3 or Q4 2022
The%20specs
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MATCH INFO
Barcelona 4 (Messi 23' pen, 45 1', 48', Busquets 85')
Celta Vigo 1 (Olaza 42')
Roll of honour 2019-2020
Dubai Rugby Sevens
Winners: Dubai Hurricanes
Runners up: Bahrain
West Asia Premiership
Winners: Bahrain
Runners up: UAE Premiership
UAE Premiership
Winners: Dubai Exiles
Runners up: Dubai Hurricanes
UAE Division One
Winners: Abu Dhabi Saracens
Runners up: Dubai Hurricanes II
UAE Division Two
Winners: Barrelhouse
Runners up: RAK Rugby
RESULT
Chelsea 2
Willian 13'
Ross Barkley 64'
Liverpool 0
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
About Krews
Founder: Ahmed Al Qubaisi
Based: Abu Dhabi
Founded: January 2019
Number of employees: 10
Sector: Technology/Social media
Funding to date: Estimated $300,000 from Hub71 in-kind support
Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
What is a Ponzi scheme?
A fraudulent investment operation where the scammer provides fake reports and generates returns for old investors through money paid by new investors, rather than through ligitimate business activities.
AGL AWARDS
Golden Ball - best Emirati player: Khalfan Mubarak (Al Jazira)
Golden Ball - best foreign player: Igor Coronado (Sharjah)
Golden Glove - best goalkeeper: Adel Al Hosani (Sharjah)
Best Coach - the leader: Abdulaziz Al Anbari (Sharjah)
Fans' Player of the Year: Driss Fetouhi (Dibba)
Golden Boy - best young player: Ali Saleh (Al Wasl)
Best Fans of the Year: Sharjah
Goal of the Year: Michael Ortega (Baniyas)
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster who has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others.
Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.
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Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
What are the GCSE grade equivalents?
- Grade 9 = above an A*
- Grade 8 = between grades A* and A
- Grade 7 = grade A
- Grade 6 = just above a grade B
- Grade 5 = between grades B and C
- Grade 4 = grade C
- Grade 3 = between grades D and E
- Grade 2 = between grades E and F
- Grade 1 = between grades F and G
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Company profile
Name: Thndr
Started: October 2020
Founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: pre-seed of $800,000
Funding stage: series A; $20 million
Investors: Tiger Global, Beco Capital, Prosus Ventures, Y Combinator, Global Ventures, Abdul Latif Jameel, Endure Capital, 4DX Ventures, Plus VC, Rabacap and MSA Capital
Tuesday's fixtures
Kyrgyzstan v Qatar, 5.45pm
Need to know
When: October 17 until November 10
Cost: Entry is free but some events require prior registration
Where: Various locations including National Theatre (Abu Dhabi), Abu Dhabi Cultural Center, Zayed University Promenade, Beach Rotana (Abu Dhabi), Vox Cinemas at Yas Mall, Sharjah Youth Center
What: The Korea Festival will feature art exhibitions, a B-boy dance show, a mini K-pop concert, traditional dance and music performances, food tastings, a beauty seminar, and more.
For more information: www.koreafestivaluae.com
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