RAK seizes $800 mln failed realty project

The Ras Al Khaimah government said on Wednesday it has seized control of Khoie Properties, the failed developer behind an $800 million real estate project in the UAE emirate.Rakeen, owned by the emirate's sovereign wealth fund Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority (RAKIA), has taken over legal custodianship of Khoie and the La Hoya Bay project following a court order, RAKIA said.Khoie has become insolvent after defaulting on land payments and failing to deliver properties to buyers.Some 800 investors, half of them from the UK, have bought properties in La Hoya Bay, a Mediterranean-inspired waterfront residential and leisure complex launched before the UAE property market collapse."The RAK court's decision to appoint Rakeen as custodian of Khoie Properties is a significant step that promotes and protects the welfare of investors and property buyers in Ras Al Khaimah,” RAKIA CEO Khater Massaad said in a statement.“With so much at stake, we believe that keeping this project on track will further consolidate the reputation of Ras Al Khaimah and highlight the local government's proactive support to all investors."Projects worth billions of dollars in planned properties were launched across the UAE with different emirates trying to replicate Dubai’s real estate boom, but developers have seen their fortunes turning upside down in the global financial crisis.

Source: MB