Dubai Real Estate Market Report — September, 2023

Dubai Real Estate Market Report – September 2023

Dubai's residential and commercial sales market stayed red-hot through September 2023. Some 13,643 transactions changed hands for AED 37.91 billion, both an all-property record for the month, at a median of AED 1,431 per square foot. Setting aside plots and buildings, the Apartment, Villa and Commercial core alone made up 13,280 deals, up 57% on September 2022, and AED 31.91 billion in value, up 68%.

The month was as notable for breadth as for scale: apartments, villas and commercial units each logged their strongest September volumes in the 10-year series, and the off-plan pipeline kept feeding demand.

Headline figures

Year-on-year performance by category

Apartments drove the expansion. The segment recorded 10,458 transactions, up 62% year on year and roughly 4,000 deals above the prior September, on value of AED 19.68 billion (+63%). That was the highest September apartment volume in the 10-year series, alongside the highest September price per square foot at AED 1,541/sqft. Pricing itself, however, barely budged: psf inched up just 2% year on year (and stands 29% above the 2014 base), while the median ticket held flat at AED 1,221,450. In short, the apartment story was volume, not price inflation.

Villas told the opposite story. Volume rose a more measured 38% to 2,439 deals (677 above last September), but value surged 79% to AED 11.58 billion on genuine price gains. Villa psf jumped 31% year on year to AED 1,208/sqft — now 90% above the 2014 base — and the median villa ticket climbed 44% to AED 3,058,800. As with apartments, villas set both their highest September volume and their highest September psf in the series.

Commercial was small but firm. The category logged 383 transactions, up 60% and 143 above the prior September, for AED 651.61 million (+67%). Its 383-deal tally was the highest September commercial count in the 10-year series, and psf of AED 1,100/sqft (+16%) likewise set a September high. Ranked by value across all property types, the order ran Apartment, Villa, Plot, Commercial then Building — plots at AED 5.95 billion outranked commercial, while the two Building deals carried the largest median ticket of any category at AED 22,750,000.

Every category, including plots and buildings

Plots were a quiet heavyweight: a mere 361 transactions generated AED 5.95 billion, placing them third by value ahead of commercial, at a median plot ticket of AED 5,000,000 and AED 529/sqft. Just two Building deals completed, for AED 45.50 million.

Primary versus resale

The off-plan market led the month decisively. Primary sales made up 68% of volume and 69% of value — 9,025 deals worth AED 21.93 billion — while resale took the remaining 4,255 transactions (32% of volume) and AED 9.98 billion (31% of value). Primary activity therefore punched slightly above its transaction share on value, a sign that developer launches skewed toward higher-value stock.

Where the activity was

Al Merkadh headed the value table at AED 3.02 billion, ahead of Marsa Dubai (AED 2.76 billion), Business Bay (AED 2.75 billion), Palm Jumeirah (AED 2.64 billion) and Al Hebiah Fifth (AED 1.76 billion). By volume the front-runner was Al Barsha South Fourth with 1,668 deals, narrowly ahead of Al Merkadh (1,659), then Business Bay (1,038), Al Barsha South 3 (793) and Marsa Dubai (699). Three areas — Al Merkadh, Marsa Dubai and Business Bay — feature on both the value and volume leaderboards, marking them as the month's deepest markets.

Rental market

The rental market moved uniformly: across every segment — apartment, villa and commercial, new and renewal alike — contract counts fell year on year while rents rose. New apartment leases dropped 24.37% to 11,590 even as the median new apartment rent climbed 20% to AED 60,000; renewals eased 10.60% to 12,721 with median rent up 7.66% to AED 50,600. New villa leases fell 17.80% to 1,482 as the median new villa rent jumped 21.43% to AED 170,000, and new commercial leases slipped 23.75% to 1,650 with rent up 23.96% to AED 104,228. Fewer contracts at higher prices points to a tightening, landlord-favouring rental market.

Supply

Supply leaned toward new starts: 6,714 units were launched across 28 projects against 4,288 units delivered across 15 projects, a launch-to-delivery ratio of 1.6 and a net of 2,426 more units launched than delivered — replenishing the off-plan pipeline that fuelled the month's primary sales.

Launched

• Volta Tower – Downtown Dubai (Damac), 417 units
• Azizi Riviera 65 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 171 units
• Avenue Residence 5 – Jabal Ali First (Al Jaziri Brothers), 87 units
• Vincitore Dolce Vita – Al Barsha South 3 (Vincitore), 715 units
• Volga Tower – Al Barsha South Fifth (Tiger), 389 units
• The Valley - Nima – Al Yufrah 1 (Emaar), 520 units
• California By Sd – Jabal Ali First (Samana), 178 units
• Rove Home Residences By Irth – Downtown Dubai (Irth), 349 units
• Royal Regency – Business Bay (Al Seeb), 165 units
• Flamingo Lux Residence – Nad Al Sheba First (Eminent), 53 units
• Samana Golf Views – Al Hebiah Fourth (Samana), 243 units
• Clearpoint Building -3 – Madinat Dubai Almelaheyah (Emaar), 478 units
• Symphony On The Park – Al Yelayiss 2 (Nshama), 202 units
• The Waterside Villas By Ellington – Wadi Al Safa 3 (Ellington), 17 units
• 555 Park Views – Al Barsha South Fifth (Serene Developments), 71 units
• La Residenza – Al Barsha South Fourth (Dalands Development), 55 units
• Serene Gardens By Prescott – Jabal Ali First (Prescott), 184 units
• Oxford Gardens – Warsan Fourth (Iman Developers), 347 units
• South Bay 3 Premium – Dubai South (Dubai South), 213 units
• Marquis Elegance – Al Barsha South 3 (Marquis Point), 139 units
• Club Drive-Tower B – Hadaeq Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid (Emaar), 529 units
• Casa Canal – Al Wasl (Ahs Canal), 68 units
• Baccarat Residence T2 – Downtown Dubai (Shamal Holding), 98 units
• Rise Residences – Al Barsha South Fourth (S And S), 174 units
• Legacy By Sunrise – Al Barsha South 3 (Sunrise Transcon), 132 units
• Stonehenge Residences 2 – Al Barsha South Fourth (Segrex), 156 units
• Elara 3 – Um Suqaim Third (Meraas), 236 units
• Nautica One – Madinat Dubai Almelaheyah (Select Group), 328 units

Delivered

• Azizi Riviera 16 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 264 units
• Azizi Riviera 33 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 207 units
• Azizi Riviera 31 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 135 units
• Welcome Residency – Al Barsha South 3 (Al Seeb), 94 units
• Azizi Riviera 27 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 236 units
• The Pulse Villas – Dubai South (Dubai South), 274 units
• The V Tower – Wadi Al Safa 5 (Tiger), 370 units
• Azizi Riviera 35 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 253 units
• Forte T2 – Downtown Dubai (Emaar), 1,116 units
• Azizi Riviera 30 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 137 units
• Azizi Riviera 29 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 178 units
• La Vie – Marsa Dubai (Meraas), 277 units
• Azizi Riviera 28 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 245 units
• Azizi Riviera 34 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 254 units
• Azizi Riviera 32 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 248 units

Most expensive sales

Top apartment sales

1. AED 286,000,000 – Jumeirah Marsa Al Arab, Um Suqaim Third
2. AED 105,000,000 – Serenia Living - Tower 1, Palm Jumeirah
3. AED 64,541,888 – Bayview Tower 2, Marsa Dubai
4. AED 60,833,000 – Cavalli Couture - Tower 2, Al Wasl
5. AED 55,648,210 – Bayview Tower 1, Marsa Dubai

Top villa sales

1. AED 202,000,000 – Palm Jumeirah
2. AED 79,399,000 – Wadi Al Safa 3
3. AED 69,014,983 – World Islands
4. AED 64,500,000 – Emirates Living
5. AED 61,610,000 – Ghadeer Al Tair

Notes on methodology

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

Rounding. The headline totals are the authoritative 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 same period a year earlier. All values are in AED; areas are in square feet.