Dubai Property Market sets new benchmarks with over 50,000 sales transactions

DUBAI: The real estate market in Dubai continues to grow at an exponential rate, driven by increasing demand as an investment destination, relaxing land ownership regulations, the increasing inflow of expats to the Emirate and convenient payment plans offered by developers.

Breaking records in standard Dubai style, sales of real estate in the third quarter of 2024 achieved an unmatched milestone, with a total value of almost AED 141.9 billion ($38.7 billion). This surpasses the previous record of AED 124.07 billion ($33.8 billion) set in the second quarter of this year, a 14.4 percent QoQ increase, making this the largest quarterly sales amount ever attained. This strong performance record is a 30.1 percent value increase YoY, with first-sale properties taking the helm.

The sustained demand for real estate in Dubai, especially from domestic and international investors, is demonstrated by this upsurge in activity which has been a consistent trend in the post-pandemic market. 50,423 sales transactions in the third quarter represented a 16.6 percent increase QoQ and a 37.9 percent YoY increase in volume of sales.

The apartment segment continued to lead the way, with 77 percent of all transactions in Q3 recording an impressive 39,054 sales transactions valued at around AED 70.5 billion ($19.2 billion). This number is a staggering 43.9 percent increase in volume compared to the same quarter in the previous year. Villa sales took the second spot with a substantial contribution of 8,156 units, sold for over AED 39.2 billion ($10.7 billion), demonstrating an increase of 16.6 percent YoY and 18.4 percent over the Q2.

Sales of land plots surged, AED 29.9 billion ($8.1 billion) recorded from 2,102 transactions, indicating a 45.9 percent YoY increase in volume and a 42.3 percent increase from the previous quarter. A 12.1 percent rise in volume over Q3 2023 was recorded in the commercial real estate sector, which also did strongly, recording 1,112 sales valued at almost AED 2.3 billion ($626 million).

Palm Jumeirah continues to hold its position in the luxury property market, with an apartment in the neighbourhood selling for an astounding AED 275 million ($75 million) in Q3, making it the most expensive single property sold.

Jumeirah Village Circle continued to top the list of the top five performing locations in Dubai in Q3 2024.

1. JVC: 4,467 transactions valued at roughly AED 5.33 billion ($1.45 billion)
2. Dubai South: 2,910 transactions valued at AED 8.25 billion ($2.25 billion)
3. Wadi Al Safa 5 (AED 5.3 billion, $1.44 billion)
4. Business Bay (AED 7.22 billion, $1.96 billion)
5. Dubai Hills Estate (AED 7.38 billion, $2.01 billion)

Overall, the larger portion of transactions, 31 percent, were houses priced between AED 1-2 million ($272,000 and $544,000). Twenty-nine percent of properties were below AED 1 million ($272,000), while 18 percent were between AED 2-3 million ($544,000 and $816,000). The trajectory for higher-valued properties continued, with 14 percent of all sales were for residences valued between AED 3-5 million ($816,000 and $1.36 million), and 8 percent were for properties priced beyond AED 5 million ($1.36 million).

In light of the staggering growth in Dubai’s real estate market, the 21^st edition of IPS Congress, the leading international property sales event in the middle east, ramps up to bring together major stakeholders in this booming industry, from April 14 to 16, 2025. With an expected attendance of over 16,000 visitors and more than 150 exhibitors from over 45 countries, this event aims to strengthen Dubai’s global leadership in this industry by fostering collaboration with the private sector and international firms aligning with Dubai’s Real Estate Strategy 2033.

Key themes of IPS Congress 2025 will include IPS Real Estate: Highlighting the latest trends across the real estate sector; IPS Future Cities: Focusing on the development of sustainable urban environments; IPS Proptech Startups: Exploring technological innovations in the real estate space; IPS Design: Celebrating creativity in architectural aesthetics, and IPS Service: Elevating property management and hospitality standards.