As-salaamu 'alaykum - From a call centre to property sales across Dubai and Doha
As-salaamu 'alaykum. Wasim Ahmed, 39, lost his father when he was a teenager and had to take the first job he could find - working at a call centre. Over two decades later, the young man who became his family’s main provider is closing major property deals in international cities.
Wasim, an Indian from Chennai, worked in UAE property sales for nine years before relocating to Doha two years ago. He now heads the Doha branch of a real estate firm and handles sales and leasing across Dubai, the UK, Qatar and India.
“You don’t need formal experience to start as a real estate agent. You need passion for the business,” he says. “Knowledge is wealth and your network is your net worth. Real estate can help you reach your aims quickly, but be ready to work hard and make personal sacrifices.”
He lives on Pearl Island in Doha with his wife and their eight-year-old son.
Although he completed high school, Wasim couldn’t finish a commerce degree because of family finances. He holds two diplomas, in aviation and hospitality and hotel management, from Edexcel in the UK.
His first job was at a Vodafone call centre in India in 2003–2004 on a monthly wage of 4,000 rupees when he was 17. In the UAE his first role was as a relationship manager for a developer in 2016 on a basic salary and commissions. Early on, developers paid salaries but commissions were low; by selling a lot of properties he managed to earn substantial commissions.
He moved roles several times, progressing from senior sales manager positions to team leader and then sales director, managing teams of 50–60 people. At peak he earned between Dh70,000 and Dh100,000 a month including commissions. He later moved to Qatar as country head and associate director of sales with the same company. His current monthly salary is 50,000 Qatari riyals and on average he earns a similar amount in commissions.
Wasim says he began saving seriously about five to six years ago and now has significant savings across bank accounts and different asset classes. He believes in two main investment types: property and gold. He bought a townhouse in The Valley in Dubai 2.5 years ago and owns a second property in Goa - a beach-facing home his wife dreamed of, with plans to retire there.
He’s also considering short-term rental investment in Tbilisi, Georgia, which he thinks can yield high returns in a few years.
Wasim came to Dubai with considerable debt, including family liabilities. He cleared roughly seven million rupees of debt in about six years and says he has no liabilities now. He keeps a credit card mainly for travel perks like airport lounges.
Monthly expenses in Qatar are around 25,000 riyals; the rest goes to savings and investments. He pays rent on the beach property and covers school fees, groceries and family entertainment. He and his family aim to buy some gold each month.
He says his savings could cover his family for about a year if needed. They prioritise holidays and travel at least twice a year; recently they visited Masai Mara in Kenya.
Wasim describes himself as positive and focused on opportunities rather than negativity. He and friends save to support families in Gaza, noting that adopting a family can be done with a relatively small monthly amount.
His long-term aim is financial freedom: to be able to pause work at 55–60 and live off income from multiple sources. In the short term he’s saving for his son’s higher education and expects to reach that goal within a year. He expects passive income to grow from his rental properties in the next six months.
May Allah bless his efforts and provide barakah in his wealth and family.
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