Zen Residences is a five-building freehold complex by Zen Development and Investment, set within Muscat Bay — Oman’s only fully integrated resort village, developed by Eagle Hills in partnership with OMRAN at Bandar Jissah, Qantab, roughly 25 minutes from central Muscat. Priced from USD 150,800, Zen Residences offers studios through three-bedroom apartments and lofts on full freehold title, open to buyers of any nationality with no local sponsor or company structure required.
Zen Residences comprises five low-rise buildings wrapped around a private cove on the Gulf of Oman, offering studios, one- to three-bedroom apartments and lofts ranging from roughly 646 to 1,884 square feet, each designed to make the most of the cove’s sheltered outlook. Every residence includes a private terrace, and apartments and lofts feature dedicated laundry rooms — a practical specification detail that sets Zen apart from many resort-style developments prioritising lifestyle amenities over day-to-day livability. Construction is scheduled for completion by the end of 2026.
As one of several residential releases within the wider Muscat Bay masterplan, Zen Residences sits alongside villas, apartments and hospitality product developed under the Eagle Hills and OMRAN partnership, giving owners access to a resort-scale amenity base without the single-developer, single-building limitations of a standalone project.
Muscat Bay — formerly known as Saraya Bandar Jissah — occupies a dramatic cove setting at Qantab, framed by the Hajar Mountains and the Gulf of Oman, roughly 25 minutes from central Muscat and Muscat International Airport. Unlike Al Mouj’s flatter, more urban waterfront setting, Muscat Bay’s geography is defined by cliffs, coves and a naturally sheltered bay, giving it one of the most visually distinctive settings of any Oman freehold destination. The development operates under the elite Jumeirah hospitality brand, positioning it at the premium end of Oman’s resort-residential market.
Zen Residences spans studios through three-bedroom apartments plus loft configurations, sized from approximately 646 to 1,884 square feet (roughly 60 to 175 square metres). Every unit includes a private terrace and dedicated laundry room, with the broader Muscat Bay masterplan also offering one- and two-bedroom apartments, four-bedroom villas, three-bedroom twin villas, three-bedroom duplexes from the Zaha collection, three- to four-bedroom coastal lagoon villas and five-bedroom Grand Hilltop villas for buyers seeking larger-format product within the same resort village.
Zen Residences is sold on a 10% down payment, 70% during construction, 20% on handover structure — a three-phase plan that spreads the largest share of payment across the construction period while still requiring a meaningful balance at completion. Muscat Bay has also introduced an alternative five-year, interest-free payment option on select residences, covering 40% of the home’s cost up front with the remaining 60% spread over five years post-handover with no interest charged — buyers should confirm which structure applies to their specific unit at reservation, since terms can vary by building and release phase.
As Oman’s only fully integrated resort village, Muscat Bay offers an amenity base built around its Jumeirah hospitality positioning: a private beach and cove, resort-standard pools, spa and wellness facilities, and a range of dining and retail options woven through the masterplan. Zen Residences owners draw on this full amenity ecosystem in addition to their own building’s private terraces and laundry-equipped units, giving the development a genuinely resort-integrated lifestyle proposition rather than a standalone apartment complex bolted onto shared facilities.
Muscat Bay is a designated Integrated Tourism Complex, meaning Zen Residences is sold on full freehold title to buyers of any nationality, with no requirement for an Omani sponsor or local company. Oman’s residency framework offers two main routes tied to qualifying real estate investment: an Investor Residency Card for smaller qualifying purchases, and the 10-year Golden Residency for purchases above OMR 250,000, which extends to a spouse and dependent children. Muscat Bay’s own qualifying investment threshold for its residency programme is set at OMR 250,000, positioning larger Zen Residences units and the wider villa collection as the more direct route to that tier, while smaller studio and one-bedroom units serve buyers prioritising entry price and rental yield over residency-route qualification.
Muscat Bay’s combination of a genuinely distinctive cove setting, Jumeirah-level hospitality branding and Eagle Hills’ international development track record gives Zen Residences a premium positioning distinct from Al Mouj’s more mainstream marina-city model. For buyers, that translates into a smaller, more exclusive resident population and a lower-density feel than Al Mouj, at a price point that — for Zen’s studio and one-bedroom units specifically — remains accessible relative to Muscat Bay’s larger villa product. The scheduled end-2026 completion also gives buyers a relatively near-term handover compared with many of Oman’s other current off-plan releases, reducing the multi-year holding period before a unit can be occupied or let.
The studio and one-bedroom configurations at Zen Residences suit investors prioritising the lowest entry price and straightforward short-let management, given their smaller footprint and simpler turnover between guests. The two- and three-bedroom apartments, and the loft configurations at the upper end of the size range, suit small families or buyers wanting a more substantial base for personal use alongside occasional letting. Across all configurations, the inclusion of a private terrace and dedicated laundry room keeps the specification consistent, meaning the choice between unit types is primarily a function of budget and intended use rather than a trade-off in build quality or finish.
Within Muscat Bay itself, Zen Residences occupies the more accessible end of the masterplan’s offering, positioned below the villa collections — the Zaha duplexes, coastal lagoon villas and Grand Hilltop villas — in both price and unit size. Buyers prioritising the lowest entry point into Muscat Bay’s freehold market and residency framework will find Zen Residences the more natural fit; buyers with a larger budget seeking a private villa with direct lagoon or hilltop positioning should look toward the masterplan’s villa collections instead. Both share the same underlying freehold ITC status and access to Muscat Bay’s resort infrastructure.
Compared with Al Mouj, Muscat’s largest and most established freehold district, Muscat Bay offers a smaller, more exclusive resort-village setting at a generally higher average price point, reflecting its Jumeirah-branded hospitality positioning and dramatic cove topography. Against the newer Sultan Haitham City masterplan, Muscat Bay offers far more developed resort and hospitality infrastructure today, at the cost of higher entry pricing. Buyers should weigh Al Mouj’s rental and resale liquidity, Muscat Bay’s exclusivity and hospitality branding, and Sultan Haitham City’s lower entry price against their own priorities before choosing between Muscat’s competing ITCs.
At USD 150,800 for roughly 60 square metres of entry-level studio space, Zen Residences prices at a meaningful premium to Al Mouj’s mainstream apartment stock and to newer, lower-cost masterplans such as Sultan Haitham City, reflecting Muscat Bay’s exclusive positioning and Jumeirah-branded hospitality infrastructure. Buyers should weigh that premium against the district’s smaller resident population, more contained resort setting and correspondingly lower current resale liquidity than Al Mouj’s two-decade-old market.
Muscat Bay is a younger freehold destination than Al Mouj, meaning its secondary resale market remains comparatively thin, with fewer historical transactions to reference when underwriting pricing. As Zen Residences and the wider masterplan’s earlier phases move through handover and their first owners begin to resell, Muscat Bay’s own comparable sales history will build — but buyers today should treat resale liquidity as a longer-term consideration rather than an immediate feature, in contrast to Al Mouj’s much deeper existing secondary market.
Muscat Bay is developed through a partnership between Eagle Hills — an Abu Dhabi-based private real-estate investment and development firm founded in 2014, active across the GCC, Middle East, North Africa and the Balkans — and OMRAN Group, the Sultanate’s government tourism investment authority. Zen Residences itself is delivered by Zen Development and Investment as one of the masterplan’s residential building partners, operating within the wider Muscat Bay framework and its Jumeirah hospitality positioning.
Purchasing follows Oman’s standard freehold ITC process: a reservation agreement and down payment secure the unit and pricing, followed by the full Sale and Purchase Agreement setting out the chosen payment structure (10/70/20 or the alternative five-year post-handover plan), specification and handover date. Instalments follow through to the end-2026 handover target, after which buyers are invited to a snagging inspection before final acceptance and title registration with Oman’s Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning. Buyers pursuing the Investor Residency Card or Golden Residency typically begin that process once title registration is complete.
Ahead of final acceptance, Zen Residences buyers are invited to a snagging inspection where any finishing defects — from paintwork and tiling to fixtures and fittings — are logged and corrected by the developer before handover is formally completed. Given the end-2026 target, buyers should build a realistic window into their own plans for this inspection stage, particularly non-resident owners who may need to coordinate a visit to Oman or appoint a local representative to attend on their behalf.
Buyers at Zen Residences can choose between the developer’s own instalment structure and a mortgage from a bank operating in Oman that offers financing to non-resident freehold buyers within designated ITCs. Given the relatively near-term end-2026 handover, the construction-linked 70% instalment phase compresses into a shorter window than at slower-delivery projects, so buyers should plan cashflow accordingly rather than assuming the full multi-year runway typical of newer off-plan releases elsewhere in Oman.
Given Zen Residences’ dedicated laundry rooms and private terraces, units are well suited to both short-let and longer-term furnished rental. Owners not resident in Oman typically engage a local property management company to handle furnishing, listing, guest turnover and maintenance; Muscat Bay’s resort-village positioning and Jumeirah-brand hospitality infrastructure generally support strong presentation standards for furnished units competing in the district’s short-let market.
As with other Muscat Bay buildings, Zen Residences will operate under an owners’ association responsible for building and shared-facility upkeep, funded through an annual service charge set out in the Sale and Purchase Agreement. Given Muscat Bay’s premium hospitality positioning and resort-standard shared facilities, buyers should expect service charges toward the higher end of Oman’s freehold market and should confirm the current rate directly before signing.
Off-plan sales within Oman’s designated ITCs, including Muscat Bay, operate under a regulated escrow framework: buyer instalments for a project under construction are held in a dedicated project escrow account, with funds released against verified construction milestones rather than paid directly to the developer up front. This structure is designed to protect buyer capital through the construction period. Buyers should confirm the specific escrow arrangement named in their Sale and Purchase Agreement and can request construction progress updates from UInvest at any stage ahead of the end-2026 handover, giving buyers ongoing visibility into exactly how their instalments are being deployed rather than a single opaque lump-sum payment handed to the developer up front.
Muscat Bay’s cove setting gives it a genuinely different daily rhythm from Al Mouj or central Muscat — a smaller, more contained community wrapped around a private bay, with the Hajar Mountains rising directly behind it. For owners, that means quieter streets and a more intimate resident population than Al Mouj’s larger waterfront city, alongside access to Jumeirah-standard hospitality without the scale of a major urban district. Buyers considering Muscat Bay as a full-time residence should weigh this smaller, more contained setting against Al Mouj’s deeper base of schools, healthcare and everyday retail infrastructure, which remains more developed given Al Mouj’s longer operating history.
Given Zen Residences’ relatively near-term end-2026 handover target, construction progress moves through its milestones faster than at longer-timeline Oman off-plan releases. UInvest maintains contact with the Muscat Bay sales and project teams and can provide buyers with current progress updates, photography and any specification changes ahead of each instalment due date under the payment plan, helping off-plan buyers track delivery through to handover.
Zen Residences is priced in US Dollars, though Omani Rial pricing is available on request. The Omani Rial has been pegged to the US Dollar at a fixed rate since 1986, removing currency risk for buyers converting from USD, AED or other Dollar-pegged Gulf currencies over the life of the payment plan.
Beyond Zen Residences, Muscat Bay’s masterplan includes a range of larger villa product for buyers with bigger budgets: four-bedroom villas, three-bedroom twin villas, three-bedroom duplexes from the Zaha collection, three- to four-bedroom coastal lagoon villas with direct water frontage, and five-bedroom Grand Hilltop villas positioned for elevated bay views. These larger formats sit well above Zen Residences’ price point and target a different buyer profile — typically end users seeking a substantial primary or holiday residence rather than the entry-level or rental-focused buyer Zen Residences is positioned toward. Understanding this internal range helps buyers place Zen Residences accurately within Muscat Bay’s overall offering rather than treating the masterplan as a single homogeneous price point.
Muscat Bay sits at Qantab, reached from central Muscat via a coastal route that passes through Old Muscat and Sidab before arriving at the bay itself — a drive of approximately 25 minutes that takes in some of the capital’s most scenic coastal terrain. From Muscat International Airport, the journey typically takes 30 to 40 minutes depending on traffic, making Muscat Bay a straightforward transfer for international buyers and their guests without requiring a domestic connecting flight, unlike Oman’s more remote resort destinations such as Hawana Salalah.
For Muscat-based buyers, Muscat Bay’s 25-minute drive from the city centre positions Zen Residences as a credible weekend or second-home option in addition to a primary residence or pure investment, in a way more remote destinations such as Jebel Sifah or Hawana Salalah cannot match for residents already living in the capital. This dual appeal — a genuine resort escape close enough for a Friday-afternoon arrival, yet still within Oman’s freehold investment and residency framework — is one of the features that distinguishes Muscat Bay from destinations positioned purely as holiday markets for international buyers.
Zen Residences suits buyers drawn to Muscat Bay’s exclusive, resort-village setting who want a lower entry point than the masterplan’s villa collections — particularly buyers prioritising a relatively near-term end-2026 handover over the longer multi-year timelines common elsewhere in Oman’s current off-plan market. It also suits investors targeting Muscat Bay’s premium short-let and holiday-rental demand, given the district’s Jumeirah-branded hospitality infrastructure. Buyers whose primary goal is the lowest possible entry price into Oman’s freehold market, or who want Al Mouj’s deeper rental and resale liquidity, may find better-suited alternatives elsewhere in Muscat’s ITC landscape.
Oman now designates a growing number of Integrated Tourism Complexes where foreign freehold ownership is permitted, and Muscat alone hosts several distinct districts: Al Mouj, the capital’s original and most established freehold marina city; Muscat Bay, the exclusive Jumeirah-branded resort village home to Zen Residences; Sultan Haitham City, the newest and lowest-priced masterplan on the capital’s northern edge; and Shatti Al Qurum’s small cluster of branded hotel-residence towers. Each destination offers a distinct combination of maturity, price point and lifestyle positioning, and buyers are increasingly comparing across all four before committing to a specific Muscat freehold purchase rather than treating any single district as the default choice.
Muscat Bay’s Jumeirah hospitality positioning places Zen Residences within a small but growing category of Oman freehold product anchored to an international hospitality or design brand, alongside developments such as The Residences at Mandarin Oriental in Shatti Al Qurum and Vistal by Victoria Swarovski at Al Mouj. This category typically commands a pricing premium over unbranded stock in the same broad location, reflecting the service standard and brand recognition the hospitality or design partner brings — a dynamic still relatively early in its development within the Omani market compared with more mature branded-residence markets such as Dubai.
Yes. Muscat Bay is a designated Integrated Tourism Complex, so Zen Residences is sold on full freehold title to buyers of any nationality, with no local partner or sponsor required.
The standard structure is 10% down payment, 70% during construction and 20% on handover; an alternative five-year interest-free post-handover plan is available on select residences. Buyers should confirm which applies to their unit at reservation.
Construction is scheduled for completion by the end of 2026.
Muscat Bay’s qualifying investment threshold for its residency programme is OMR 250,000; smaller Zen Residences units may not individually clear this threshold, while larger units and the wider villa collection are more likely to qualify. Buyers should confirm current thresholds with UInvest.
Units range from approximately 646 to 1,884 square feet across studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments and lofts, each with a private terrace and dedicated laundry room.
Approximately 25 minutes by car.
Oman levies no capital gains tax and no recurring annual property tax on freehold residential real estate, and places no restriction on repatriating rental income or sale proceeds abroad.
Muscat Bay is developed by Eagle Hills in partnership with OMRAN Group, operating under the Jumeirah hospitality brand; Zen Residences is delivered by Zen Development and Investment as one of the masterplan’s residential buildings.
Yes — the dedicated laundry rooms, private terraces and Muscat Bay’s resort-hospitality infrastructure support strong presentation for short-let and holiday-rental listings.
Muscat Bay offers a smaller, more exclusive cove setting with Jumeirah-level hospitality branding, generally at a higher average price point than Al Mouj, which offers deeper rental and resale liquidity given its two-decade market history.
Many international buyers complete the reservation and SPA signing remotely through a power of attorney arrangement coordinated with UInvest, though an in-person or video walkthrough visit ahead of final payment is recommended.
Yes — the wider masterplan includes four-bedroom villas, twin villas, Zaha collection duplexes, coastal lagoon villas and Grand Hilltop villas for buyers seeking larger-format product beyond Zen Residences’ apartment and loft offering.
Muscat Bay’s programme is anchored at OMR 250,000; smaller Zen Residences units may need to be combined with additional investment to reach this threshold, while larger units and villas are more likely to qualify individually.
Yes — every apartment and loft unit includes a dedicated laundry room, a specification detail not universal across comparable Oman freehold apartment developments.
As one of a smaller number of hospitality-branded resort villages in Oman’s freehold market, Muscat Bay’s long-term value proposition rests heavily on the continued strength of its Jumeirah partnership and Eagle Hills’ delivery track record across its wider GCC and international portfolio. Buyers evaluating a multi-year hold at Zen Residences should weigh this brand-dependent value driver against Al Mouj’s more diversified, multi-developer market, where no single brand or partnership carries the same weight in underpinning district-wide value.
As Muscat Bay’s residential, hospitality and amenity infrastructure continues to build out under the Eagle Hills and OMRAN partnership, the district is positioning itself as Oman’s premium answer to the branded resort-residential model more commonly associated with destinations elsewhere in the Gulf. For early buyers at Zen Residences, that trajectory suggests a masterplan still in relatively early stages of its long-term build-out, with further amenity and hospitality additions likely as adjacent phases of the Muscat Bay masterplan are delivered in the years following Zen’s own end-2026 handover.
Zen Residences combines Muscat Bay’s genuinely distinctive cove setting and Jumeirah-branded hospitality positioning with a relatively accessible entry price and near-term end-2026 handover — a combination that sets it apart from both Al Mouj’s larger, more established market and Oman’s newer, longer-timeline masterplan releases. Read our full guide to the best areas to invest in Oman for a wider comparison, browse all freehold properties in Oman, and contact UInvest for current unit availability, up-to-date payment terms and a personalised comparison against Al Mouj and Sultan Haitham City before you reserve at Zen Residences, Muscat Bay.
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