Dubai Real Estate Market Report — Q1, 2025

Dubai Real Estate Market Report – Q1 2025

Dubai's residential market began 2025 running at full pace. Every property type combined delivered 45,415 transactions worth AED 143.04 billion — both all-property series highs — at a median of AED 1,564/sqft. Focusing on the apartment, villa and commercial segments, volume reached 44,387 deals, up 22% on Q1 2024, while value rose 29% to AED 117.31 billion.

The quarter's narrative moved from breadth to depth: volumes were already elevated a year earlier, yet this Q1 surpassed them thanks to a villa surge, stronger pricing, and a primary market still shouldering most of the load.

Headline figures

Year-on-year performance by category

By value, the market ranked apartments first, then villas, then plots, commercial and a single building. Apartments stayed the volume engine, posting 32,910 deals (+11%) worth AED 62.54 billion (+9%) — 3,379 more transactions than a year before and the strongest Q1 apartment volume in the 12-year series. The median apartment price rose to AED 1,675/sqft (+2%, and +42% above 2014), also a Q1 series high, with the median ticket at AED 1,311,553 (+4%).

Villas propelled the expansion. Volume surged 74% to 10,266 deals — 4,351 more than in Q1 2024 and the highest Q1 villa count in the series — while value climbed 60% to AED 51.20 billion. The real movement showed up in villa pricing: AED 1,454/sqft, up 19% year on year and 98% above the 2014 base, a Q1 series high for price per square foot. Both villa volume and price per sqft reached 12-year records this quarter, even as the median villa ticket eased 1% to AED 3,150,000 — a sign the run was fuelled by broader participation rather than just trophy deals.

Commercial was smaller but robust: 1,211 deals (+25%), its strongest Q1 count since 2014, generating AED 3.57 billion (+89%). Its median price per sqft climbed 13% to AED 1,540 — a Q1 series high — and the median ticket advanced 24% to AED 1,550,000, the steepest ticket gain of the three segments.

Every category, including plots and buildings

Beyond the three core segments, plots added 1,027 deals worth AED 25.70 billion, ranking third by value with a substantial AED 5,000,000 median ticket at just AED 446/sqft. A single building sale of AED 30.60 million carried the largest median ticket of any category at AED 30,600,000 — underscoring that headline totals span asset types that don't compare directly.

Primary versus resale

The primary market carried most of the load, accounting for 65% of volume and 63% of value — 28,920 deals worth AED 74.16 billion. Resale claimed the remaining 35% of volume but a slightly larger 37% of value, on 15,467 deals worth AED 43.15 billion. That two-point gap between resale's value and volume shares suggests resale activity leans toward higher-priced, established stock.

Where the activity was

Marsa Dubai led by value at AED 8.94 billion, ahead of Wadi Al Safa 5 (AED 7.23 billion), Palm Jebel Ali (AED 6.85 billion), Business Bay (AED 6.62 billion) and Al Yufrah 1 (AED 6.48 billion). By volume, Al Barsha South Fourth topped the table with 3,585 deals, followed by Wadi Al Safa 5 (3,572), Business Bay (2,754), Dubai South (2,627) and Marsa Dubai (2,545). Three areas — Marsa Dubai, Wadi Al Safa 5 and Business Bay — appear on both lists, combining high transaction counts with high aggregate value.

Rental market

Rents climbed on nearly every measure. New apartment leases (33,312 contracts, +6.10%) reached a median of AED 70,000, up 12.90%, while renewals (41,518, +4.50%) hit AED 55,000, up 10%. New villa leases posted the sharpest rent gain, up 16.13% to AED 180,000 across 4,177 contracts, with renewals at AED 154,350 (+10.25%). Commercial was the sole exception to the broader rise: new commercial median rent eased 0.94% to AED 105,000, even as commercial renewals climbed 17.78% to AED 106,000 and new-lease volume jumped 22.04% to 6,474 contracts.

Supply

Supply tilted decisively toward the pipeline: 37,250 units launched across 124 projects against 12,102 units delivered across 52 projects — a launch-to-delivery ratio of 3.1 and a net 25,148 more units launched than handed over. Developers are evidently restocking well ahead of completion.

Selected launches

• Serenia District - West – Al Thanyah Fifth (Palma), 423 units
• Tulip Oasis 10 – Wadi Al Safa 3 (Ame Development), 130 units
• Albero – Dubai Creek Harbour (Emaar), 479 units
• Samana Resorts - Tower B – Me'Aisem First (Samana), 969 units
• Woodland Crest – Nad Al Sheba First (Amis), 52 units
• Avenue Residence 8 – Jabal Ali First (Nabni), 104 units
• Arista One – Al Satwa (Arista), 64 units
• Celeste – Al Jaddaf (Hre), 51 units
• Aman Residences Dubai - Tower 2 – Jumeirah Second (H&H), 78 units
• Altan – Dubai Creek Harbour (Emaar), 479 units
• … and 114 further projects

Selected completions

• Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum City District One, B Villas – Al Merkadh (Meydan), 161 units
• Binghatti Galaxy - 2 – Al Barsha South Fourth (Binghatti), 148 units
• Azizi Riviera 61 – Al Merkadh (Azizi), 242 units
• Vincitore Boulevard 6 – Al Barsha South 3 (Vincitore), 685 units
• Jumeirah Living Marsa Al Arab – Um Suqaim Third (Meraas), 31 units
• Island Park Ii – Dubai Creek Harbour (Emaar), 174 units
• Platinum By Vision – Wadi Al Safa 2 (Vision Developments), 100 units
• Nadine Residences 2 – Jabal Ali First (London Gate), 102 units
• Creek Crescent – Dubai Creek Harbour (Emaar), 243 units
• Le Parc Homes Ii – Al Barsha South Fourth (Kbw), 13 units
• … and 42 further projects

Most expensive sales

Top apartment sales

1. AED 116,000,000 – The Rings - 1, Jumeirah Second
2. AED 66,500,000 – Bluewaters Residences 8, Marsa Dubai
3. AED 65,760,000 – One Sankari West Tower, Business Bay
4. AED 62,000,000 – The Rings - 2, Jumeirah Second
5. AED 60,230,400 – Luxury Family Residences 3, Business Bay

Top villa sales

1. AED 425,000,000 – Emirates Living
2. AED 140,000,000 – Hadaeq Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid
3. AED 130,000,000 – Bukadra
4. AED 115,000,000 – Palm Jumeirah
5. AED 75,000,000 – World Islands

Notes on methodology

Scope. Headline figures and the category table span every property category present in the data, Plot and Building included. The primary/resale breakdown, top-area rankings and year-on-year series apply to Apartment, Villa and Commercial only, so those figures are deliberately smaller than the headline and should not be totalled across sections.

Rounding. Headline totals remain the authoritative rounded figures. Category-level breakdowns are rounded independently and may not sum precisely to the headline.

Definitions. Price figures denote medians, not averages. Year-on-year sets the period against the matching period one year earlier. All values are in AED; areas are in square feet.