tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6283845125208268798.post4527426176112058178..comments2024-03-27T11:21:40.742+04:00Comments on Muscat Confidential: Rent Control finally enshrined as a Royal DecreeUndercover Dragonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10577931944980469254noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6283845125208268798.post-73706406939364211482008-05-25T14:25:00.000+04:002008-05-25T14:25:00.000+04:00Leo,Hard to see how that would work, unless they c...Leo,<BR/>Hard to see how that would work, unless they capped rents at a maximum price per square meter perhaps. They could also get a bit tougher on the use of villas as places of business, increasingly common in Shatti and MQ.<BR/><BR/>Anon, yep. Its always the way with Gov controls, the market will seek to work around them. Another good one for the landlords would be to exclude maintenance payments from the rent. <BR/><BR/>But generally I'm sympathetic that at least something has been done, and that it seems more thought through this time.Undercover Dragonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10577931944980469254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6283845125208268798.post-41953186128490532752008-05-25T14:08:00.000+04:002008-05-25T14:08:00.000+04:00Now landlords will take part of the rent in cash a...Now landlords will take part of the rent in cash as "black" and official rent will be as per rental agreement. Nowadays there are people who will just grab any thing available.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6283845125208268798.post-10972020520896092402008-05-25T08:41:00.000+04:002008-05-25T08:41:00.000+04:00UD, If the contractors are driving up prices beyon...UD, <BR/>If the contractors are driving up prices beyond simple supply and demand (which I imagine they are for exactly your reasoning) then perhaps a more targeted effort would help. I.E., maybe some oversight to ensure that (a) landlords aren't gouging deep-pockets corporations (hardly a concern at first glance, but the secondary effects on overall rent prices warrant it) and (b) to ensure that deep-pockets can't use their deep pockets to pay well above market prices in order to muscle into housing in a tough market, thereby driving prices up.<BR/><BR/>I think that narrowly targeted measures are generally better to hit the culprit without causing greater distortions in the market.Leo Americanushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12281122142201387698noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6283845125208268798.post-19099740283580466382008-05-24T22:40:00.000+04:002008-05-24T22:40:00.000+04:00Leo, PerAbsolutely. Supply and demand are cruel ta...Leo, Per<BR/><BR/>Absolutely. Supply and demand are cruel task masters. However, some part of the problem may be the dominance of the margin. IE The rise in expats coming into company provided accommodation, and with the companies able to claim the rents as fully deductible costs (ike BP or BG), could drive up prices beyond simple supply and demand.<BR/><BR/>But I agree Per, the cost of new leases will have just gone through the roof, while existing leases will see a total drop in maintenance.<BR/><BR/>Luckily, I'm now in a rent controlled house, so for a while, I'm in much better shape...Undercover Dragonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10577931944980469254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6283845125208268798.post-57369851575915749122008-05-24T21:37:00.001+04:002008-05-24T21:37:00.001+04:00This comment has been removed by the author.Abdullah Al-Bahrani https://www.blogger.com/profile/01538837021738519512noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6283845125208268798.post-33299821626578843322008-05-24T21:37:00.000+04:002008-05-24T21:37:00.000+04:00Good analysis. Don’t forget the unintended consequ...Good analysis. Don’t forget the unintended consequence of rental housing disrepair. Landlord do not have an incentive of maintaining their property, regardless of their efforts the can not recoup the cost by increasing their rent. The biggest problem, as you have mentioned, is that if you’re a new renter in the market get ready to pay the discounted value of previously observed rental increases upfront. In another words, property owners will recoup the rental increases at lease signing.Abdullah Al-Bahrani https://www.blogger.com/profile/01538837021738519512noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6283845125208268798.post-39357179643379183132008-05-24T17:13:00.000+04:002008-05-24T17:13:00.000+04:00I'm not an economist, but from the bit of economic...I'm not an economist, but from the bit of economics I've had and read, I'd tend to think that the rise in rents is not solely ruthless opportunism, but a case of demand outstripping supply, in part. Why else would landlords be so eager to boot paying tenants, other than that there are others eager to pay much higher prices just to find a home? <BR/><BR/>Secondly, I imagine that rents cannot be returned to their previous levels just by magically opening up more units. In personally heard anecdotal evidence and press evidence (i.e. I don't have hard numbers), it seems that land, construction materials, and rental construction instruments (such as the jacks used to hold up concrete forms) have AT LEAST doubled over the past six months.<BR/><BR/>Demand is rising, the cost of new units is rising rapidly, so in my limited economic knowledge, I'd think that price controls will only limit supply, leading to (a) homelessnes and (b) informal economic (illegal) workarounds. Yes?Leo Americanushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12281122142201387698noreply@blogger.com