this 180,000 Dh family villa is a short walk from Jumeirah beach

Harry Tregoning has lived in a four-bedroom villa in Jumeirah, near Sheikh Zayed Road, for more than 10 years.

The reason the 46-year-old Brit stayed there for so long is simple. He loves the property as well as the location.

He shares the Al Safa 2 house with his wife and two young children, aged 9 and 4.

Why did you move here?

We moved here because we wanted to live in this area. In fact, it turned out to be incredibly convenient for us.

Before living here, we were in The Springs but wanted to move to this part of town.

A lot of our friends lived here so it made sense that we would move as well, although I loved The Springs.

It’s right in the city center and there are schools and nurseries so close to us.

There is a metro station less than 600 meters away and we are right next to Sheikh Zayed Road on one side and the sea on the other.

Interestingly, we can hear the noise of people using their jet skis on the water, but the sound from the Sheikh Zayed Road is completely drowned out.

How much do you pay in rent?

We pay 180,500 Dh [$49,140] more than four checks. This is not the maximum we paid for the property.

Around 2014, we were paying about 230,000 Dh for the villa. We have always paid four cheques.

When we lived in The Greens, we were paying Dh100,000 a year in rent for a two bedroom villa.

What makes the place so special to you?

The area is simply fantastic. We are members of the sailing club, which is a very popular place in this region.

We also have plenty of hotels and restaurants here, so if you want to go out there are plenty of options nearby.

community in the Al Safa 2 neighborhood. Antonie Robertson/The National” src=”https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/pzMkQ6i8kMFbmmp5-OzXYh_xhpM=/1440×0/filters:format(jpg):quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/thenational/BD5MDA3EYNH7LBEOOEJY4KR2JU.jpg” width=”1440″ height=”0″ loading=”lazy”/>

There are also 11 families here who live in the same neighborhood – there is a strong sense of community and we share a gym and pool.

We’re not even two kilometers from the sea, so that’s a huge draw.

There is also a nice mix of expats living here in the community, there are people from so many different countries which really adds to the atmosphere of the neighborhood.

Is there anything you would like to change?

Like most people who have kids, when they get to our age, we want to put down roots and buy our own house.

Unfortunately, you cannot buy property here in Jumeirah unless you are from GCC.

That’s about the only downside for us if I’m being totally honest.

What have you done to bring your personal touch to your home?

My wife takes care of the decoration and the choice of furniture. One thing we did was install a new air conditioning unit on the roof.

This has reduced air conditioning costs by around 33%, which is a big help.

We have also just had the kitchen packaged, which makes it look a bit more modern.

Updated: July 24, 2022, 5:30 a.m.