Can Longevity Become the New ROI in Dubai Real Estate?

SPEAKER_1 (0:00)

This is the Morning Drive, October the 1st. That's where we are now, and it marks Longevity Day. And Dubai is putting healthy aging and quality of life firmly on the agenda. The Emirates' new Longevity Strategy is expected to contribute more than 35 billion dirhams to the economy over the next decade. And at the same time, Dubai's property market is seeing buyers think beyond price and rental returns.

Knight Frank, in a recent survey, found that 83% of surveyed global high-net-worth individuals are interested in buying land in Dubai to build their own home. So there's a correlation, I guess, is quality of life becoming the new ROI in UAE real estate. Igor Karpikov is Chief Commercial Officer at R.Evolution. He's an expert in Longevity Living.

So I'm hoping we can explore what this could mean for the future of Dubai property. Igor, good to meet you.

Igor Karpikov (1:02)

Good morning.

SPEAKER_1 (1:03)

Good to have you with me today. You have noted that global luxury buyers of real estate care less about basic square footage, more about health. Okay. So what was the moment that you noticed buyers were prioritizing biology over space?

Tell me about that.

Igor Karpikov (1:26)

Yeah, I will explain, and I would like to start with a scientific approach.

SPEAKER_1 (1:32)

Right.

Igor Karpikov (1:34)

Can you guess, maybe, do you know how much, how there are factors of the longevity?

SPEAKER_1 (1:44)

Okay.

Igor Karpikov (1:44)

And what is the percentage of the longevity depends on our DNA? Do you have any clue on it?

SPEAKER_1 (1:51)

I have absolutely no idea. I'll be completely honest with you, because you're going to fire questions at me. I can tell. No, I wouldn't know. I wouldn't know where to start.

Igor Karpikov (1:58)

So imagine only 25% of longevity depends on DNA, depends on our genetics.

SPEAKER_1 (2:07)

Okay.

Igor Karpikov (2:07)

And the rest 75% depends on our lifestyle and environment.

SPEAKER_1 (2:13)

Okay. So environmental factors, the things we do, the things we put in our bodies.

Igor Karpikov (2:19)

Exactly. And besides, it's our homes. Because in home, we spend 10 to 12 hours. So is it our environment? Can home influence us?

It can. That's why home is a part of longevity. It's one of the factors that influence our longevity.

SPEAKER_1 (2:42)

Okay. And when did this dawn on you? When did you have this realization?

Igor Karpikov (2:48)

I would say that the research on longevity factors was finalized in the end of last century. But the real estate developers started to dive into this topic from 2010 to 2015

The same time, those times, Global Wellness Institute was established. And this institute in the United States of America started to analyze the wellness industry. And part of the wellness industry is now wellness real estate market.

SPEAKER_1 (3:33)

Okay, so this is a conversation that we're starting to sort of hear more and more of in Dubai now. I think it's fair to say people have started to really talk about this. It's a conversation people are having. So, what does longevity living really mean?

Igor Karpikov (3:51)

Longevity living, as far as we are now in the field of real estate, is not only about amount of amenities of you have in your project.

It's more about the ecosystem that you are bringing to your residence. And this ecosystem consists of architecture and design, technologies you use, materials you use, services you provide, amenities, facilities. So, it's a combination of different factors. And if you have this ecosystem, you can really state that you are focused on longevity and well-being of your residence.

SPEAKER_1 (4:39)

So, you're probably better known for AWA, which is the global kind of longevity brand. Is that right? Is that a good way to describe it to you? We're known for that. And R.Evolution is through which you're scaling AWA, I guess.

That's according to the internet, at least. Anyway, I looked you up. What are you building into your developments that sounds maybe a little bit futuristic at the moment? Because this is new for most of us, but it's going to be expected in three years or five years or ten years, will become completely normal.

Igor Karpikov (5:15)

It's going to be a long story, and I would like to be transparent here. So let's go one by one. So I represent European Developer I.Evolution with 27 years of experience. And AWA, our brand, our projects focused on longevity, was established here in Dubai three years ago.

And in order to, as far as we are discussing, how can you reach these words of longevity and well-being in your projects, we need to go one by one. First of all, ecosystem consists of, as I previously mentioned, let me describe more, architecture and design. Architecture and design was behind it. It's not only the beauty and the aesthetics. It's biophilia, biophilic design, and neuroarchitecture. Biophilic design is actually bringing nature closer to human, bringing natural materials, using natural materials like stones.