Dubai Real Estate Market Report — May, 2023

Dubai Real Estate Market Report – May 2023

Dubai's residential market turned in its best May on record, as 11,656 transactions worth AED 33.71 billion traded across every property type at a median of AED 1,321/sqft. Setting aside plots and buildings, the apartment, villa and commercial segments combined for 11,359 deals — 80% more than in May 2022 — worth AED 28.81 billion, an 86% leap in value.

Volume and value alike hit records for the month, and the drive was widely shared: each of the three core segments logged its highest May transaction count in the ten-year series.

Headline figures

Year-on-year performance by category

Apartments powered the expansion. The segment booked 8,817 sales — 4,199 above a year earlier, a 91% rise and the highest May volume in the ten-year series — yielding AED 18.48 billion, itself 91% higher. Yet the story was almost wholly one of volume: the median apartment price softened to AED 1,445/sqft, down 10% year on year (though still 19% over its 2014 level), and the median ticket eased 11% to AED 1,175,000. Put simply, far more apartments changed hands, but the typical unit was smaller or cheaper than a year before.

Villas inverted that pricing picture. Volume grew 40% to 2,144 — 612 more than the prior May and, again, a monthly series high — while value rose more steeply, up 71% to AED 9.57 billion, evidence that villas were trading at richer prices. The median hit AED 1,112/sqft, up 18% year on year and 64% above 2014, the strongest May reading in the ten-year series, and the median ticket gained 29% to AED 2,588,500.

Commercial property grew quickest of all, albeit from a low base. Only 398 deals closed, but that was 241 up on a year earlier — a 154% surge and a record May count — and value rocketed 195% to AED 764.94 million. Pricing tightened too: the AED 979/sqft median rose 16% year on year, the highest May reading since 2016, even as it stays 7% under its 2014 level. The median commercial ticket climbed 31% to AED 1,024,365.

Every category, including plots and buildings

Plots were the month's quiet heavyweight, contributing 297 transactions worth AED 4.89 billion — more than the whole commercial segment — at a median of AED 415/sqft. On a median ticket of AED 5,769,594, land carried comfortably the biggest deal size of any category, a reminder that developer land buying sat behind a sizeable share of the headline value.

Primary versus resale

New and secondary sales stayed closely matched. Off-plan led with 6,134 deals, 54% of volume, and AED 15.41 billion, or 53% of value. Resale took the other 5,225 transactions — 46% of volume — but AED 13.41 billion, a marginally larger 47% of value, indicating that completed stock traded at slightly higher average prices than the primary market.

Where the activity was

Marsa Dubai (Dubai Marina) headed both league tables, pulling in AED 5.52 billion in value and 1,403 transactions. Palm Jumeirah (AED 2.47 billion), Downtown Dubai (AED 2.12 billion), Hadaeq Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid (AED 1.52 billion) and Business Bay (AED 1.45 billion) completed the value ranking, while on raw count Al Barsha South Fourth (1,230), Business Bay (739), Al Thanyah Fifth (593) and Downtown Dubai (547) followed Marsa Dubai.

Rental market

Leasing tightened right across the board. Landlords recorded 9,995 new apartment contracts (up 8.15%) at a median rent of AED 53,000, 15.22% above a year earlier, while the 12,209 renewals — up a striking 50.91% — reset to AED 48,000. Villas showed the sharpest rent inflation: new-lease medians rose 25% to AED 150,000, with rent per square foot up 31.82%. New commercial leases advanced 11.58% to a median AED 100,000.

Supply

Supply leaned heavily toward new launches: 8,265 units across 23 projects reached the market against 3,420 completions in 18 projects — a launch-to-delivery ratio of 2.4 and a net 4,845 more units launched than delivered, a pipeline expanding well ahead of current handovers.

Launched

• The Holland Gardens – Al Yelayiss 2 (Nshama), 219 units
• Alef Noon Residence – Al Barsha South Fourth (Al Bait Al Duwaliy), 113 units
• The Edge Tower B – Business Bay (Select Group), 1,030 units
• Ag 7even – Wadi Al Safa 5 (Ag Properties), 234 units
• Vista By Prestige One – Al Hebiah Fourth (Prestige One), 140 units
• Canal Crown 1 – Business Bay (Damac), 327 units
• Dg1 Living – Business Bay (Dar Global), 249 units
• Thyme – Al Wasl (Meraas), 148 units
• Elegance By Chaimaa Holding – Al Barsha South Fourth (Deva), 118 units
• Adhara Star – Al Barsha South 3 (Acube), 115 units
• Vue Du Lac – Al Thanyah Fifth (Silver Sky), 453 units
• Damac Bay 2 - Tower B – Marsa Dubai (Damac), 1,645 units
• Stonehenge Residences – Al Barsha South Fourth (Segrex), 156 units
• Biltmore Sufouh – Al Safouh First (G J Properties), 477 units
• Creek Waters 2 – Dubai Creek Harbour (Emaar), 455 units
• Mudon Al Ranim 6 – Al Hebiah Sixth (Dubai Properties), 242 units
• Bayview Tower 2 – Marsa Dubai (Emaar), 690 units
• Jasmine Lane – Me'Aisem First (Dune Developers), 138 units
• Bugatti Residences By Binghatti – Business Bay (Binghatti), 190 units
• Fairway Villas 2 – Dubai South (Emaar), 309 units
• Rukan Residence – Wadi Al Safa 7 (Continental Investments), 124 units
• Canal Crown 2 – Business Bay (Damac), 351 units
• The Highbury – Al Merkadh (Ellington), 342 units

Delivered

• Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum City , District One Phase Iii , Residences 21 – Al Merkadh (Meydan), 42 units
• Creek Beach - Vida Residences – Dubai Creek Harbour (Emaar), 233 units
• Azizi Riviera 5 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 221 units
• The Sterling West House – Business Bay (Beyond), 296 units
• Azizi Riviera 2 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 64 units
• Beach Isle Tower 2 – Marsa Dubai (Emaar), 411 units
• Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum City, District One Phase Iii, Residences 19 – Al Merkadh (Meydan), 42 units
• Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum City , District One Phase Iii , Residences 31 – Al Merkadh (Meydan), 42 units
• V2 – Al Warsan First (Tabeer), 273 units
• Sobha Hartland Waves – Al Merkadh (Sobha), 671 units
• Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum City , District One Phase Iii , Residences 18 – Al Merkadh (Meydan), 42 units
• Equiti Residence – Jabal Ali First (Bnh), 100 units
• Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum City , District One Phase Iii , Residences 17 – Al Merkadh (Meydan), 42 units
• Royal Park South 1 – Al Barsha South Fourth (Metrical), 35 units
• Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum City , District One Phase Iii , Residences 20 – Al Merkadh (Meydan), 42 units
• Azizi Riviera 14 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 230 units
• Oxford 212 – Al Barsha South Fourth (Iman Developers), 212 units
• Parkside 2 – Dubai South (Emaar), 422 units

Most expensive sales

Top apartment sales

1. AED 122,000,000 – Bulgari Residences 3, Jumeirah Bay Islands
2. AED 52,750,000 – Bulgari Residences 6, Jumeirah Bay Islands
3. AED 37,201,050 – Cavalli Couture - Tower 2, Al Wasl
4. AED 35,000,000 – Five At Palm Jumeirah Dubai, Palm Jumeirah
5. AED 31,880,000 – Bluewaters Residences 8, Marsa Dubai

Top villa sales

1. AED 135,000,000 – Jumeirah Bay Islands
2. AED 120,000,000 – Hadaeq Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid
3. AED 73,660,902 – World Islands
4. AED 52,000,000 – Emirates Living
5. AED 49,000,000 – Palm Jumeirah

Notes on methodology

Scope. The headline totals and category table take in every property category logged in the data, Plot and Building included. The primary/resale split, top-area rankings and year-on-year series span Apartment, Villa and Commercial only, so those numbers are intentionally smaller than the headline and shouldn't 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 are medians rather than averages. Year-on-year sets the period against the matching period a year before. All values are in AED; areas in square feet.