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THE first excited home-buyers are just a few months away from moving into their new homes on the prestigious Riffa Views development.
They will soon be unpacking their bags and starting to live 'the Bahrain dream' in the kingdom's first luxury residential development.
Delighted Hugh O'Shea, sales and marketing director, said: "The first delivery of villas from the contractor to Riffa Views will take place in June and we expect our homeowners to start moving in later this summer."
Riffa Views is a joint venture between Arcapita and the Bahrain International Golf Course Company (BIGCC) and the project is due for overall completion by mid-2009.
The aim behind the 1,000-villa development is to create a "luxurious community lifestyle" for residents.
Riffa Views features a wide range of world-class facilities that the developers believe come together to provide an unmatched lifestyle.
As the "ultimate destination" for leisure and relaxation, the project incorporates an 18-hole signature championship golf course designed by celebrated international golf professional, Colin Montgomerie, a golf academy and short course, a country club, a tennis facility in association with tennis great Boris Becker, a high-end retail centre, and an international school which opens in September.
Each signature estate has its own unique architectural style and landscape, and all three have proved desirable to a wide variety of investors.
The Lagoons Estate is set in a tropical, cooling backdrop of azure waters incorporating tumbling rock falls and lakes that meander through the villas' contemporary design.
The Oasis Estate takes its inspiration from Bahrain's natural environment combined with the calming cool of shaded, green areas. Meanwhile, The Park Estate has a pleasing Mediterranean architectural-style with the landscape forming shady tree-lined avenues with communal gardens and surroundings of flowering plants.
Mr O'Shea revealed to GulfWeekly that 86 per cent of the residences in the Oasis Estate, 97 per cent in the Lagoons Estate, and 68 per cent in the Park Estate have already been sold. "There are a few remaining options and this is the right time to make a wise decision to invest," he added.
The Riffa Views community will be multi-cultural and truly reflect the cosmopolitan, friendly 21st Century Bahrain.
Mr O'Shea said: "Riffa Views is now a global brand and it mirrors the same quality and prestige of any other international development."
There are plenty of smiles on the faces of those who bought off-plan at the start of the development and believed in the venture. Mr O'Shea said: "To date, people have seen a huge appreciation in the value of their property. In various segments of the project some of our early buyers have already seen over 40 per cent increase on their investment and there are expectations of this increasing to 100 per cent by the project completion which is due in mid 2009."
Sport lovers across the island will be just as happy too when The Royal Golf Club officially opens at Riffa Views in November with a "very high profile" event.
As recently reported in Gulf Weekly, Colin Montgomerie, together with Riffa Views' management, carried out an on-site course inspection. During this technical visit the popular Scot ensured that the specifications of his design were being followed; ultimately guaranteeing a place for the course on the world's golfing map.
Mr O'Shea added: "We are rapidly achieving our ambition to create something remarkable as everything we do defines quality and commitment to deliver, so much so that our property values continue to grow far in excess of the property prices."
Richard Browning, CEO of Riffa Views, believes that the development of a strong brand and production of a high quality product by a team of locally-driven contractors committed to delivery have been the main reasons for the high demand for property.
Mr Browning is also conscious that the project is not yet complete and remains dedicated to the delivery of a complete lifestyle. "It's not all about sales," he added.
