As retirement destinations go, Bahrain has many advantages: Year-round sunshine, convivial social environment, world-class health facilities, a largely tax-free economic approach, ready accessibility to the rest of the world.
The kingdom also has some picture-perfect gated communities and apartment blocks with all mod-cons for a good life. For property developers, the whole package represents a good opportunity to get excellent returns on investment.
For those who raise the spectre of the kingdom being over-run by retirees who will overwhelm the healthcare system, there is a strong legal framework in place. To retire in Bahrain and own a retirement home here, the law states that you should have adequate income to support yourself and dependents, proper health insurance and should have worked continuously for at least 15 years in Bahrain or the GCC – and, I presume, in parts of the world that would give you access to a good retirement fund.
Interestingly, a retiree who meets all these requirements can either own property with a value of not less than BD50,000 or rent a home. That builds in more flexibility into the system and I know of many friends who downsized from their working-life mansions to service apartments and continue to make Bahrain their retirement base.
In a tight economic scenario, it is surprising then to see this niche market ignored – the retirees I know are all either former Bahrain residents or (rarely) people who stumbled on our slice of paradise on their own. And now, there are rumblings in Bahrain’s legislative circles, that allowing expats to purchase property will deny Bahrainis the right to good homes because it pushes up real estate prices.
There is chest-thumping talk that expat home-owners and investors should be restricted to designated touristic and investment areas of the kingdom – which is not a new idea. I had always understood that expat property ownership in Bahrain is restricted to certain ‘freehold’ areas such as Juffair, Amwaj, Riffa Views, Reef Properties, Busaiteen, Abraj Al Lulu, Seef, Al Areen etc.
In fact, the list of stalled real estate projects actually affects expat investors much more than potential Bahraini home-owners: Marina West, Sunset Hills, Juffair Tower (now resolved) and Amwaj Gateway are examples. This has spurred the government to tighten property development rules and even set up the Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments Ministry’s Stalled Property Committee for the Settlement of Real Estate Projects. The recent failed effort to auction the ‘jewel in the crown’ Amwaj Gateway which has been standing incomplete since 2009, is a telling comment on the lack of appetite and funds in the market for property development.
Against such a backdrop, to paint a picture of expat investors as land-grabbers who are depriving Bahrainis of their homes is mischievous and runs counter to the spirit of harmony and inclusiveness that has always marked relations between Bahrainis and other nationalities. The legislators of the kingdom must certainly safeguard the interests of their countrymen but do so without resorting to jingoism. The Housing Ministry is playing a very active role in enabling Bahrainis to build or acquire homes for living in as opposed to renting out. Sure, there is a very long waiting list – but that has nothing to do with expats buying property.
How about making available better home loans for Bahrainis from private banks? Perhaps giving property developers incentives to build homes in areas open only for Bahraini home-buyers instead of building shopping malls? Legislators seeking to resolve the housing issue should look for solutions – not soft-target victims.