FRIDAY 3 JUNE 2016 Local Mahboula: The mad area Story and photos by Athoob Al-Shuaibi s part of our occasional series explor- ing the various areas of Kuwait, AKuwait Times recently visited Mahboula to discover its main features. A decade ago, this area was largely uninhabit- ed, with a few old buildings and unsafe streets. Today, it is preparing to welcome thousands of new residents. But who will live in an area called Mahboula (mad woman)?! Mahboula is located between Fintas and Abu Halifa in Al-Ahmadi governorate between the coastal road and Highway 30 (Fahaheel Expressway). In recent years, it has witnessed a huge regeneration in the real estate market. There are now tens of high-rise buildings and residential tower blocks in the final stages of completion, in addition to newly paved streets. Rents range between KD 170 dinars and KD 450, depending on number of rooms and the floor, which are high, considering the aver- age room size is between 3 to 4 sqm, tiny bathrooms and the long distance from Kuwait City. “We have to understand first why the real estate market has its eye on this area. One of the reasons for the growing num- ber of investment towers in Mahboula is high real estate prices in areas such as Salmiya, Hawally governorate, Shaab Bahri and the surrounding areas,” real estate writer and researcher Sulaiman Al-Dulaijan told Kuwait Times. “Prices per square meter rose in those areas from 2010 to 2013 by 50 to 100 percent,” he added. But, who’s going to occupy these thou- sands of new apartments? And what is the secret behind this construction boom? Continued on Page 6.