Dubai-based home maintenance company Hitches & Glitches, part of the Farnek Group, said it has opened a new office in Abu Dhabi, to serve the increasing numbers of landlords and tenants in the UAE capital.

According to real estate firm Asteco, 4,000 apartments and 1,500 villas were added to the market in 2014, taking the total amount of residential housing stock in Abu Dhabi to in excess of 238,000.

Last year, an additional 2,000 units were added and this year Asteco expects another 3,000 apartments and up to 1,000 villas will be handed over.

Commenting on the growth potential, Lukas Eigenmann, the operations director, Hitches & Glitches, said: "According to real estate reports at Cityscape, the average annual yield for investors across the city in Q1 this year was still a respectable six per cent, even though the overall residential market was relatively flat."

"With more accommodation supply due and once combined with the economic slowdown, especially in the oil and gas sector, the residential rental market is going to become even more competitive," he noted.

"Landlords of aging and or poorly maintained properties will be at a distinct disadvantage, particularly as supply begins to outstrip demand and potential tenants focus on quality buildings, with a clear value proposition. This scenario is already playing out with the older buildings on Abu Dhabi Island," observed Eigenmann.       

Already one of the largest residential property maintenance businesses in the UAE, the new Hitches & Glitches (H&G) office is conveniently located close to the main residential areas of Khalifa City A & B, Abu Dhabi Island and Reem Island, which will enable the company to provide timely and convenient response to the owners and tenants of residential properties located in and around these highly populated areas.

H&G said its reputation has been built on reliability, quality workmanship and value-for-money and today, it operates over 100 vehicles, employs more than 300 highly trained professionals and is part of the multi-award winning Farnek Group which employs a skilled workforce of 2,500 employees and serves over 10,000 customers.

“In addition to the market conditions in Abu Dhabi, we have been able to measure potential demand in Abu Dhabi through the number of hits on our interactive website, which enables landlords to make generic enquiries or to request instant support services 24/7,” remarked Saeed Abu Saleh, the director of operations at Hitches & Glitches in Abu Dhabi.

“Currently we maintain over 400 residential units in Abu Dhabi, but we expect that number to increase substantially, once our office there is fully operational. Initially we will station 18 engineers in the capital, but we will always have additional support available from some of our 300 technicians based in Dubai, if required in the short term,” he noted.
    
Eigenmann said technology was driving the industry and to stay abreast of the rapid technological changes, H&G shares a state-of-the-art training facility in Dubai with Farnek.

"Here technicians are not only briefed about the latest techniques, codes of practice and international standards, but also they get to learn about the latest smart home technology and products, which can control and monitor, temperature, lighting, security cameras, air quality and so on," explained the official.  

“With the popularity of smartphones and tablets which can be configured to control a whole host of devices, offering 360-degree solutions for home owners who like to be in control of their properties at all times - especially remotely, we believe that this is a game-changer, that will undoubtedly dominate facilities management in general moving forward,” he added.-TradeArabia News Service