Dubai Real Estate Market Report — February, 2024

Dubai Real Estate Market Report – February 2024

For Dubai's property market, February 2024 rewrote the February record book on the two metrics that count: how many deals closed and what they were worth. Taking all property types together, 11,999 sales were completed for AED 36.89 billion, with the median landing at AED 1,518/sqft. Narrowed to the apartment, villa and commercial basis, activity totalled 11,671 transactions valued at AED 28.23 billion — a rise of +28% in volume and +25% in value from February 2023.

The month's profile was clearly driven by apartments, yet the more revealing point is how broad-based it was: every category saw prices climb, and that advance reflected genuine growth rather than a change in the mix of what was trading.

Headline figures

Year-on-year performance by category

Apartments carried the load. The segment recorded 9,491 transactions, a +40% year-on-year jump and a hefty 2,710 deals more than the previous February — the strongest February turnout in the 11-year series. Value rose +34% to AED 17.75 billion, and this went beyond sheer volume: the median came in at AED 1,673/sqft, +25% higher over the year and +40% above 2014, likewise a February high for the series. The typical apartment ticket hit AED 1,272,000, up +24% on twelve months earlier.

Villas bucked the volume trend and were the sole category to contract. Deal count eased -12% to 1,861, roughly 254 below February 2023. Even so, value rose +12% to AED 9.87 billion, as firmer pricing more than made up for the lighter volume: the median stayed at AED 1,228/sqft, +13% up on the year and +70% versus 2014 — the largest ten-year gain of any category and, thinner sales notwithstanding, still the highest February price per square foot on record for the series. The median villa ticket climbed +20% to AED 3,050,000.

Commercial was the smallest slice yet the most heated on pricing. Its 319 transactions, a +24% gain, were the highest February tally since 2014, while value expanded +23% to AED 609.46 million. Price per square foot surged +36% to AED 1,355/sqft — the steepest annual price shift among the three categories — landing +20% above 2014. The median commercial ticket rose +35% to AED 1,250,000.

Every category, including plots and buildings

Plots deserve a mention because they explain almost the whole distance between the two headline totals. A mere 328 plot deals produced AED 8.66 billion — precisely the gap between the all-property figure of AED 36.89 billion and the apartment/villa/commercial total of AED 28.23 billion. With a median of AED 453/sqft but a median ticket of AED 5,850,000, plots posted comfortably the biggest deal size of any category, which is how so few sales shifted so much value.

Primary versus resale

On the apartment/villa/commercial basis, off-plan once more set the pace: primary sales accounted for 60% of volume and 58% of value, equal to 7,028 deals worth AED 16.47 billion. The resale market claimed the remaining 40% of volume but a marginally higher 42% of value — 4,643 secondary deals worth AED 11.76 billion. That modest reversal is the takeaway: resale contributed more value than its share of transactions suggested, implying secondary sales tilted toward pricier tickets than the typical off-plan deal.

Where the activity was

By value, Madinat Dubai Almelaheyah led the table at AED 1.96 billion, narrowly ahead of Marsa Dubai at AED 1.92 billion and Business Bay at AED 1.83 billion, with Hadaeq Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid (AED 1.48 billion) and Downtown Dubai (AED 1.36 billion) completing the top five. By volume, Al Barsha South Fourth headed the field with 1,216 transactions, ahead of Madinat Dubai Almelaheyah (1,048), Business Bay (883), Marsa Dubai (529) and Al Merkadh (518). Madinat Dubai Almelaheyah, Business Bay and Marsa Dubai feature on both rankings, pairing deep activity with high-value stock.

Rental market

The lettings market mirrored the sales momentum, with new leases repricing more quickly than renewals. Apartments recorded 10,491 new contracts (+4.77%) at a median of AED 61,200, up +20%, versus 12,576 renewals (+15.75%) at a median of AED 50,000, up just +5.71% — a plain divide between what those moving pay and what sitting tenants face. Villa new leases (1,292) hit a median of AED 156,000, up +11.43%, while commercial delivered the sharpest new-lease increase: a median of AED 110,000, up +26.18% across 1,728 contracts.

Supply

The pipeline leaned firmly toward what is still to come. Developers launched 20,841 units over 49 projects, whereas only 1,941 units across 11 projects reached handover — a net 18,900 more launched than completed, a launch-to-delivery ratio of 10.7. February was about adding supply rather than working it off.

Launched

• Sonate Residences – Al Barsha South Fifth (Condor), 215 units
• Equiti Home-B – Jabal Ali First (Bnh), 302 units
• Azizi Venice 10 - Building B – Dubai South (Azizi), 1,263 units
• Vento Tower – Business Bay (Anax), 227 units
• Q Gardens Lofts 2 – Al Barsha South Fourth (Ays), 221 units
• Sobha One - Podium – Ras Al Khor (Sobha), 3,045 units
• Lagoon Views 2 - Tower C – Al Hebiah Fifth (Damac), 162 units
• Helvetia Residences – Al Barsha South Fourth (Dhg), 432 units
• Forum Heights – Al Barsha South Fifth (Forum Group), 299 units
• Eleve By Deyaar – Jabal Ali Industrial Second (Deyaar), 818 units
• Lagoon Views 7 - Tower B – Al Hebiah Fifth (Damac), 96 units
• Oria – Dubai Creek Harbour (Emaar), 163 units
• Ocean Point - Townhouses – Madinat Dubai Almelaheyah (Emaar), 217 units
• 1 Wood Residence – Al Barsha South Fourth (Object One), 227 units
• Divine Residencia – Al Hebiah Second (Takmeel), 69 units
• Vincitore Aqua Dimore – Al Barsha South 2 (Vincitore), 987 units
• Sunrise Living At Jumeirah Park – Al Thanyah Fifth (Sunrise Valley), 161 units
• Ab Cavalier – Al Barsha South Fourth (Ab Developers), 171 units
• Hz Residences 4 – Warsan Fourth (Al Helal Al Zahaby), 87 units
• Squarex Residence – Al Barsha South Fourth (Tasmeer), 382 units
• Red Square -B – Al Barsha South Fifth (Tiger), 835 units
• Aura Elegance – Nadd Hessa (Aura Infinite), 109 units
• Ag 9ine – Wadi Al Safa 5 (Ag Properties), 260 units
• Maison Elysee I – Al Barsha South Fourth (Pantheon), 355 units
• Azizi Riviera 67 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 198 units
• Lagoon Views 4 - Tower C – Al Hebiah Fifth (Damac), 144 units
• Moonsa Residences – Warsan Fourth (City Properties), 93 units
• The 100 - 2 – Nad Al Sheba First (Al Zahir Investments), 46 units
• Lagoon Views 5 – Al Hebiah Fifth (Damac), 48 units
• Adeba Azizi – Al Jaddaf (Azizi), 304 units
• Lagoon Views 1 - Tower C – Al Hebiah Fifth (Damac), 162 units
• Azizi Venice 7 - Building E – Dubai South (Azizi), 2,276 units
• Fairway Villas 3 – Dubai South (Emaar), 72 units
• Manhattan 2 By Sd – Al Barsha South Fourth (Samana), 193 units
• Violet Tower – Al Barsha South Fourth (Dubai Investments), 287 units
• Hammock Park – Jabal Ali First (Divine Hills One), 252 units
• Kaya – Al Yelayiss 2 (Nshama), 164 units
• Park Views Residences A – Al Kifaf (Wasl), 615 units
• Bayz 101 By Danube – Business Bay (Danube), 1,346 units
• Bay Villas - Dubai Islands – Dubai Islands (Nakheel), 615 units
• Avenue Residence 6 – Jabal Ali First (Nabni), 96 units
• Maison Elysee Ii – Al Barsha South Fourth (Pantheon), 352 units
• Nad Al Sheba Gardens Phase 4 – Nad Al Sheba First (Meraas), 188 units
• The Palm Crown – Palm Jumeirah (Nakheel), 38 units
• Roma Residence By Jrp – Al Barsha South Fourth (Jrp), 80 units
• Emerald Vision Tower – Al Barsha South Fifth (Vision Avenue Homes), 143 units
• Address Residences Zabeel Tower 4 – Zaabeel First (Emaar), 1,748 units
• Alba – Wadi Al Safa 2 (Tiger), 22 units
• The Valley - Farm Gardens 2 – Al Yufrah 1 (Emaar), 256 units

Delivered

• Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum City , District One Phase Iii , A Villas – Al Merkadh (Meydan), 38 units
• Luna Residence – Wadi Al Safa 5 (Desert Falcon), 190 units
• Arabian Ranches Lll - Ruba – Wadi Al Safa 5 (Emaar), 430 units
• Forum Residences – Wadi Al Safa 3 (Varnada), 46 units
• Murooj Al Furjan 2 – Jabal Ali First (Nakheel), 350 units
• Maya Townhouses – Wadi Al Safa 3 (Tanmiyat), 30 units
• La Rosa 5 – Wadi Al Safa 5 (Dubai Properties), 216 units
• Murooj Al Furjan 1 – Jabal Ali First (Nakheel), 266 units
• Unieestate Supreme Residence – Al Barsha South 3 (Uniestate), 138 units
• Serenity Lakes 5-Old – Al Barsha South Fourth (Nakheel), 163 units
• The Pulse Villas 2 – Dubai South (Dubai South), 74 units

Most expensive sales

Top apartment sales

1. AED 50,000,000 – Keturah B2, Al Jaddaf
2. AED 37,000,000 – Keturah B1, Al Jaddaf
3. AED 33,650,888 – Bayview Tower 2, Marsa Dubai
4. AED 26,000,000 – Anantara Residences North, Palm Jumeirah
5. AED 24,500,000 – Bulgari Residences 2, Jumeirah Bay Islands

Top villa sales

1. AED 120,000,000 – Hadaeq Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid
2. AED 88,000,000 – Palm Jumeirah
3. AED 65,530,000 – Ghadeer Al Tair
4. AED 65,200,000 – Al Merkadh
5. AED 55,000,000 – Emirates Living

Notes on methodology

Scope. The headline totals and category table span every property category in the data, Plot and Building included. The primary/resale breakdown, top-area rankings and year-on-year series cover 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 are medians rather than averages. Year-on-year sets the period against the same period twelve months before. All values are in AED; areas in square feet.