I live in Bahrain and have done for the last 4 years. Properties are shooting up all over the place now and there's all sorts of investment opportunities.
When we first thought about buying here a few years ago it was impossible to get a mortgage. I believe that the situation has changed for expats lately but prices are far too high now. Bahrain has big plans but it's infrastructure is dire and I don't see that it has any of the attractions of the eimrates. One of the problems that I've read about in the local newspaper is that expats have been promised residency - as in Dubai - after completion of purchase but it now transpires that purchasing is not enough. You need to have a very healthy bank account for one thing.
Rents here are very high (with no legislation to protect tenants) so there's money to be made but Bahrain isn't one of the richest Gulf countries and it's amenities are lacking in my opinion. Of course places like Riffa Views, if you could afford it, will be amazing when finished and there are a lot of resorts to choose from now. The properties themselves will I'm sure, be very well built, but Bahrain needs to sort itself out in terms of roads, electricity supply, etc and be more forward thinking. An example of the latter would be that while other Gulf countries are busy planting trees and making their countries as green as possible, Bahrain (once known as the land of a million trees) is hacking them down at an alarming rate.
Another negative point is that we are joined to the Saudi mainland by the Causeway. This in effect means that every weekend brings in huge numbers of cars and their occupants (mostly, young single men) and all the ensuing problems that brings.
Well that's just a few thoughts for you!!
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