Market Highlights

• 2023 is on track to be the busiest year for the residential sector in Dubai. A total of 57,700 units have been transacted across the city during the first half of the year, a growth of 12% compared to H2 2022 and 44% versus H1 2022.
• Higher lending rates are yet to significantly dent demand sentiment; however, take-up of off-plan properties has witnessed a slight uptick as close to 53% of the units sold in H1 were off-plan. 
• The increase in off-plan transactions indicates buyer preference to delay committing to the high lending rates. It is also reflective of an increase in new project launches that have jumped to 27,900 units during H1 2023, compared to 24,900 units in all of 2022. 
• There is a clear delineation emerging between the upcoming and established micro-markets of the city. This is further evident when considering the price movements across the various residential micro-markets over the last few quarters. The double-digit price growth that was witnessed across nearly all the micro-markets throughout most of 2022 has started to taper in locations with significant handovers and planned supply. 
• Villas and townhouses remained the most sought-after development type. The strong demand for both end-use and investment has pushed demand higher than availability across established locations. 
• Rents across more established locations near employment hubs, retail, and support infrastructure have seen double-digit price growth compared to H2 2022. However, they have remained flat or recorded a marginal movement in prices across secondary/emerging locations.
• Villa developments remain the favourite asset type for ready property investment. A total of 69% of the 5,250 villa transactions in Q2 2023 were observed for ready properties.