KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) – In a city that has been through everything and is going backwards, a man named Omidullah wants to hit the jackpot.
A Kabul real estate agent is selling a nine-bedroom, nine-bathroom, white-and-gold villa in the Afghan capital. On the ceiling, glittering Arabic text tempts buyers and sellers with the word “mashallah” — “God willing.”
The villa is listed at $450,000, a staggering figure in a country where more than half the population depends on aid to survive, most Afghans do not have bank accounts, and mortgages are rare. However, donations are coming in.
“It's a myth that Afghans don't have money,” Omidullah said. “We have very big businessmen who have big businesses abroad. There are houses here worth millions of dollars.”
In Kabul, something is happening to fuel the real estate market. Silence, it seems, raises prices.
Many are returning home
People who have spent years living and working abroad are returning home, eager to take advantage of the country's improved security and stability after decades of war, destruction and decaying infrastructure. Including Afghans who fled the deportation campaigns in Iran and Pakistan and took their money with them.
Mortgages are rare because banks do not have deposits to facilitate lending. Afghans buy in cash or use the “geerawi option” — where someone gives a fixed sum to the landlord in return for living in their place and staying there until the landlord repays the money.
People were afraid to invest in Kabul before the Taliban took over, according to another real estate broker, Ghulam Mohammed Haqdoost. But the country's rulers have created better conditions for the property market in more ways than one.
The city has seen little violence since the Taliban rose to power and foreign forces withdrew, although armored vehicles, checkpoints and military elements remain commonplace.
The Taliban, who adhere to a complex government, have promised to stamp out corruption and control legal and commercial affairs. That means we will no longer have to deal with warlords or bribe local officials to buy land or for construction projects.
Haqdoost is happy with the way things are being done easily and quickly under the new management.
“The price of houses has increased by almost 40%,” he said. “In the last three years, we have sold nearly 400 properties. It wasn't like that before.”
For builders, times are good
Business is good for Haqdoost, who employs 200 people in administration, including women who deal exclusively with female customers, and 1,000 in the construction division of his company.
He said many customers came with their wives to watch. That's because women are leading the way when it comes to buying a home – even in a country that critics say oppresses and disempowers women. “The power and authority of the house is in the hands of women,” said Haqdoost, “They decide whether to buy the house or not.”
Omidullah and Haqdoost say their clients want a garden, a gym, a sauna, a swimming pool, a guest area and at least one kitchen. Hospitality is a big part of Afghan culture and this culture is built into homes. Afghans generally welcome and host visiting friends or family in their homes, rather than in hotels or restaurants.
Haqdoost's client base is mainly overseas, and its foreign interests influence its internal ones. They want new things like dining tables and beds. In Afghanistan, it is customary for people to sleep and eat on the floor. It is also the diaspora that is looking for purpose-built apartment blocks that offer amenities such as central heating, double-pane windows and lifts.
To make the city more attractive and livable, the municipal authorities are busy building and repairing roads, installing street lights, planting trees and removing garbage. It also develops programs to improve affordable housing and promote home ownership.
It is necessary. The population of Kabul was around 500,000 at the turn of the millennium. It is now over 5 million. Some neighborhoods are still congested and noisy as a result, despite the municipality's efforts to improve.
An oasis outside the Afghan capital?
Those who can't afford it head outside the city. There, on the edge of the Qargha Reservoir, sit some of Kabul's most elaborate and expensive homes.
The other is like a fancy mosque. One evokes the lair of a Bond villain with its rugged design and hilltop appearance. Locals say it belongs to a rich Turkish official who comes and goes. They did not mention his name.
This collection of well-designed gardens and ornamental terraces overlooks the lake, one of the most popular beauty spots in the capital. Ever since the Taliban came to power, it has mostly been a male-only area. The women stop for a break with their families, but they tend to miss it because Vice and Virtue Ministry officials are working at one of the checkpoints around the water.
Arash Asad is trying to sell his uncle's property, which occupies about 4,000 square meters (43,000 square feet) of land. It has unobstructed views across the lake and to the Paghman mountains at the foot of the Hindu Kush Himalaya. Asking price: $800,000.
There are outbuildings on one side and a central residential area with a blue roof. The scenery is mostly rows of flowers and cherry trees. There are cranes. Birds are included.
“Gardens are very important to the Afghan people,” Asad said. “Most of them come from the villages. When they move to the cities, they want to have that reminder of their past because we live with them.” Inside the glass-walled living room sits his uncle, staring out into the water.
Asad's family would prefer the property to be turned into a business rather than sold. But the real estate agent fields dozens of calls and messages within a 30-minute drive from central Kabul. Pictures of the place on social media have sparked a lot of interest.
“People think that this country has no jobs and no economy,” said Asad. Outside the car the sun is setting over the dam and the cars are full of men heading towards the lake. But Afghans have made their money, illegally or legally, over the years. You wouldn't believe it.”
