Renovation in La Mer / Jumeirah

Look, I've done a dozen renovations in La Mer, and the difference between these apartments and a standard Jumeirah villa is night and day. It's that salt air — it's brutal. We're talking marine-grade materials or you're wasting your money. I had a job in La Mer South where the client wanted standard MDF cabinets for the kitchen, and I told them straight up: "Don't do it, you'll be replacing everything in two years." The salt eats through cheap hinges, paint peels off within months, and even stainless steel can pit if it's not the right grade. We're adding 20-30% to standard costs just for materials that'll hold up — that's an extra AED 8,000 on a AED 40,000 kitchen fit-out. Then there's the flood risk. Some of those Sur La Mer townhouses sit below road level — we had 47mm of rain in one day last January, and three units had water seeping through the patio doors. You don't get that in a standard villa on higher ground. The buildings are newer — most were finished between 2017 and 2021 — so the concrete shells are solid, but the plumbing layouts are tight. Can't just bash through walls without checking Meraas' as-built drawings first. It's a premium area, so you're dealing with strict tower access rules — no deliveries before 8 AM, and you're parking in the RTA lot across the street, not on-site. That's just how it works here.

We've been doing renovations in La Mer since the first batch of Sur La Mer townhouses came online in 2018, and I can tell you right off the bat—pricing here isn't like a standard Jumeirah villa. Because of the direct salt-air exposure from that beach, you're looking at a 20–30% premium on materials alone. A full bathroom strip-out and redo in La Mer South runs you about AED 38,000 to AED 52,000, depending on whether you're using marine-grade stainless and anti-corrosion fixtures. For a complete kitchen fit-out in a Sur La Mer townhouse, expect AED 45,000 to AED 70,000—that's with custom joinery that won't warp after two summers. Timing is tight too: DEWA approvals and Meraas's building management can add a week to your schedule, so a full apartment renovation takes 6 to 8 weeks, not the 4 to 5 you'd hope for. One honest limitation—those below-road townhouses in La Mer North flood if we get a heavy downpour, so you'll need to budget an extra AED 3,500 for a proper floor drain system before we start tiling. Don't skip that step or you'll be calling us back for water damage.