KHAIMAH - The UAE's mortgage market will leap from AED20 billion by the end of this year to AED64 billion over the next three years, and more than 60 percent of house financing will be Shariah- compliant, the International Ras-Al-Khaimah Family Office and Investment summit was told on Tuesday. Islamic Banking and finance specialist Dr. Sabahuddin Azmi told delegates that outstanding credit in the UAE housing market, which stood at AED17 billion at the end of 2006, will touch AED20 billion mark at the end of 2008 and is expected to rise sharply between now and 2011 as real estate growth exceeds an estimated AED419 billion during this period. Azmi, faculty at the Emirates Institute for Banking and Financial Studies in Sharjah, said Amlak Finance and Tamweel, both Shariaah-compliant, dominate the UAE housing finance market, holding 35 percent and 25 percent shares respectively. He was speaking on the final day of the two-day summit where an international panel of 13 financial experts have been debating the difference between western family wealth management methods and Islamic Shariah compliant principles. Sponsored by Ras Al-Khaimah Free Trade Zone Authority, the summit was held under the patronage of Sheikh Saoud Bin Saqr Al-Qassimi, crown prince and deputy ruler of Ras Al-Khaimah. The conference comes at a time when the GCC is experiencing its most dramatic growth since the petrodollar boom of the 1970s, and another of the speakers highlighted the soaring family and entrepreneurial wealth in the GCC. Lisa Gray, managing member of US-based family wealth consultants Graymatter Strategies LLC, told delegates the number of wealthy families in the GCC is growing exponentially. Addressing the problem of understanding GCC clients' customs and how best to meet their needs, Gray said that advisors who make assumptions about the needs of GCC families of wealth based on preconceived notions about GCC demographics will miss the mark. She said wealthy GCC families face particular challenges since much of their wealth is relatively new and there are new generations are coming up in a globalized world. Gray noted the GCC is made up of six countries with different economies and different cultures and emphasized that financial advisors need to take time to understand each country's characteristics and each family's dynamics. Part of the conference was dedicated to investment opportunities and regulations in RAK Free Trade Zone, which has enjoyed a major success story. __
