One of the few places on earth where the property market shows no signs of slowing are in the immensely rich Middle East. The Middle East real estate industry is currently one of the hottest in the world. Huge international developers are pouring billions of dollars into places such as Dubai, Oman and other places in the United Arab Emirates. Despite most investors looking upon the Middle East as a volatile and unattractive sector in which to place their money, shrewd investors know that this is a highly lucrative market that is just now being tapped by the international community.

The reason for this huge push to turn the Middle East into a property market Mecca stems from the desire of the local governments to implement strategies of transitioning their oil based wealth to a more diversified and sustainable economy. Towards this end many of the sheikdoms that make up the countries in the Middle East have begun spending vast sums of money to boost their tourism infrastructure and investing large amounts in hotels, luxury villas and vacation communities.

Places such as Dubai are already being touted as the Manhattan of the Middle East. In fact, Dubai is growing so fast that its GDP was up 17% in 2005 and the HSBC Bank estimates that there are about $42.5 billion dollars worth of projects in construction currently.

The Middle East real estate industry has also attracted a lot of foreign investor interest. The Gran Hotel La Florida has just announced that it is targeting the area as an important business and leisure travel destination while the IFA Hotels and Resorts – the company responsible for the incredible Palm Jumeirah in Dubai are investing a further eight hundred millions dollars in the area. In fact, new condo developments and apartment high rises are springing up all over the Middle Eastern landscape. Many of these new developments are selling out within hours of being announced – depending, of course, on the area and the amenities being offered by the development.

Although property markets worldwide have experienced a slow down in late 2006, the Middle East real estate market is still going strong and the outlook for this sector remains positive in the mid to long term. There is just so much potential that barring any unforeseen change in the current property market variables, investors can expect to realize steady capital value gains over the next several years.

Read on and explore some of the most interesting facts on the regions of the Middle East and what influences their property markets.