Dubai Real Estate Market Report — June, 2020

Dubai Real Estate Market Report – June 2020

June 2020 sat firmly within the acute phase of the UAE's COVID-19 movement restrictions, a period when in-person property activity was sharply limited. Against that setting the market posted 2,312 transactions worth AED 4.83 billion, at a median of AED 903/sqft. Narrowed to the Apartment, Villa and Commercial basis, 2,119 deals were done, down -17% year on year, while value fell more steeply to AED 3.42 billion, a -26% decline.

The gap between the falls in volume and value captures the period: buyers were thinner on the ground, and those who did transact leaned toward smaller, cheaper tickets as the lockdown held back the upper end of the market.

Headline figures

Year-on-year performance by category

Apartments led the decline. The segment recorded 1,636 sales, off -16% year on year, for AED 2.07 billion in value, a sharper -28%. The median slid to AED 1,059/sqft (-23% year on year and -13% versus the 2014 base), and the median ticket eased to AED 796,407, down -27%. This marked the lowest June apartment volume and the lowest June price per square foot in the seven-year series.

Villas proved more resilient on price even as volume fell. Sales totalled 429, likewise -16% year on year, worth AED 1.30 billion (-19%). Strikingly, while the median sat at AED 674/sqft — down just -5% year on year, though still -13% against 2014 — the median villa ticket in fact climbed to AED 1,875,000, up +9%. That is the standout exception in an otherwise falling month, reflecting a mix skewed toward larger, pricier homes. Even so, both villa volume and price per square foot set June lows for the series.

Commercial was the thinnest and worst-hit segment: only 54 deals (-28%) for AED 44.80 million, a -56% collapse in value. The median dropped to AED 564/sqft (-18% year on year, -44% against 2014) and the median ticket to AED 557,790 (-28%). As with the other two categories, it recorded the lowest June volume and lowest June price per square foot in the seven-year record.

Every category, including plots and buildings

Plots were the sole bright spot by value. Across all property types, 193 plot deals produced AED 1.41 billion — second by value behind apartments and ahead of villas — at a median of AED 420/sqft. With a median ticket of AED 3,461,888, plots posted the largest median ticket of any category this month, well ahead of villas and apartments.

Primary versus resale

The off-plan pipeline continued to dominate. Primary sales represented 70% of volume and 69% of value — 1,478 deals worth AED 2.36 billion — while resale made up the remaining 30% of volume and 31% of value, or 641 deals amounting to AED 1.06 billion. The near-matching split between the volume and value shares indicates neither channel was commanding a meaningful premium over the other.

Where the activity was

By value, Downtown Dubai led at AED 374.80 million, ahead of Al Merkadh (AED 348.20 million), Marsa Dubai (AED 324.74 million), Business Bay (AED 286.60 million) and Hadaeq Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid (AED 243.65 million). By volume, Business Bay headed the count with 190 transactions, ahead of Al Barsha South Fourth (173), Marsa Dubai (169), Hadaeq Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid (143) and Al Merkadh (132). Four districts — Al Merkadh, Marsa Dubai, Business Bay and Hadaeq Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid — feature on both the value and volume leaderboards, marking them as the month's deepest markets.

Rental market

Leasing ran counter to sales: contract counts climbed in every segment even as rents fell in every segment. New apartment contracts reached 7,842 (+12.33%) at a median rent of AED 44,000 (-16.98%), and renewals came to 6,889 (+39.09%) at AED 55,000 (-8.33%). New villa leases leapt to 1,579 (+59.98%) with median rent down to AED 105,000 (-20.45%), while new commercial contracts of 1,020 (+8.05%) carried a median of AED 60,000 (-21.39%). The message is consistent: tenants signed in greater numbers to secure markedly lower rents.

Supply

New supply effectively stopped: zero units were launched during the month, while 1,623 units were handed over across 6 projects — completions of work already in progress, with nothing fresh entering the pipeline as developers held back amid the restrictions.

Most expensive sales

Top apartment sales

1. AED 80,000,000 – Q - Zone (Qpoint - Phase 3) Mu007, Wadi Al Safa 2
2. AED 13,064,000 – Bluewaters Residences 4, Marsa Dubai
3. AED 12,008,888 – The Address Residence Fountain Views 3, Downtown Dubai
4. AED 6,704,857 – The Address Residence Fountain Views 1, Downtown Dubai
5. AED 6,401,280 – Le Pont - Building 2, Jumeirah First

Top villa sales

1. AED 60,000,000 – Al Merkadh
2. AED 32,856,200 – Emirates Living
3. AED 17,000,000 – Jumeirah Bay Islands
4. AED 15,900,000 – Palm Jumeirah
5. AED 11,927,888 – Hadaeq Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid

Notes on methodology

Scope. The headline totals and the category table take in every property category present in the data, Plot and Building included. The primary/resale split, the top-area rankings and the year-on-year series relate to Apartment, Villa and Commercial alone, so those numbers are intentionally smaller than the headline and should not be summed across sections.

Rounding. The headline totals are the definitive rounded figures. Category-level breakdowns are rounded on their own and may not add up precisely to the headline.

Definitions. Price figures represent medians rather than averages. Year-on-year sets the period against the same period twelve months before. All values are in AED; areas are in square feet.