Dubai Real Estate Market Report — March, 2026

Dubai Real Estate Market Report – March 2026

Dubai's market delivered a March 2026 that looked quieter on count but richer on value. Across apartments, villas and commercial property, 13,322 transactions changed hands — down 10% on March 2025 — yet the combined value of those deals still edged up 1% to AED 38.99 billion. Counting every property type, plots and buildings included, the month recorded 13,501 transactions worth AED 43.39 billion, the highest total value for any March in the series.

The story is consistent throughout the figures: buyers completed fewer deals but paid more per square foot. The all-property median settled at AED 1,742/sqft, and every category posted its highest March price per square foot in the 13-year record. Volume, in contrast, set no record — the softness was concentrated in the residential categories while pricing carried the result.

Headline figures

Year-on-year performance by category

Apartments remain the market's centre of gravity, making up 10,680 of the month's deals — but that was 978 fewer than a year earlier, an 8% pullback that made the segment the main drag on overall volume. Value proved far stickier, easing just 2% to AED 22.26 billion, because pricing moved the other way: the median reached AED 1,750/sqft, up 2% year on year and 38% above the 2014 base, the highest March reading in the series. The median apartment ticket climbed 5% to AED 1,375,000, and the top end ran hot — the AED 422,000,000 sale at Aman Residences Tower 2 in Jumeirah Second led all apartment deals.

Villas saw the steepest pullback in activity. At 2,230 transactions the segment fell 19% — 540 fewer sales and the lowest March volume since 2021. Value, remarkably, did not track the count downward: it finished flat at AED 14.55 billion, propped up entirely by price. Villa median price per square foot jumped 15% to AED 1,687, now 125% above the 2014 base and a series-high March figure, while the median ticket climbed 22% to AED 4,056,000. Fewer buyers transacted, in other words, but each paid substantially more — a AED 95,000,000 Palm Jumeirah sale topped the villa table.

Commercial broke from every trend. It was the only category to expand, with volume edging up 1% to 412 — just 3 more deals than last March, yet enough to mark the highest March commercial volume since 2014. The value move was far more dramatic: up 81% to AED 2.18 billion, alongside a 99% surge in median price per square foot to AED 3,351 and a 90% jump in the median ticket to AED 3,118,157. That combination — marginal volume growth against near-doubling value and pricing — points to a mix shift toward larger, higher-value commercial assets rather than a broad pickup in deal flow.

Every category, including plots and buildings

Primary versus resale

The market's tilt toward new supply was pronounced. Primary developer sales accounted for 77% of both transactions and value — 10,237 deals worth AED 29.91 billion. Resale made up the remaining 23% on each measure, or 3,085 deals worth AED 9.08 billion. Because resale's value share exactly matched its volume share, the secondary market is neither commanding a premium nor trading at a discount to its weight; its smaller footprint is simply proportional.

Where the activity was

Al Yelayiss 5 led all districts by value at AED 3.41 billion, with neighbouring Al Yelayiss 1 next at AED 2.62 billion — both land-heavy master-development zones. Dubai South, Business Bay and Wadi Al Safa 3 followed at AED 1.69 billion, AED 1.60 billion and AED 1.59 billion. On sheer count, Dubai South led with 1,000 transactions, ahead of Al Barsha South Fourth (903), Wadi Al Safa 5 (851), Al Yelayiss 1 (820) and Wadi Al Safa 3 (770), underscoring how much of March's activity clustered in the southern growth corridor.

Rental market

The leasing market split along a clear line between new signings and renewals. New-lease volumes contracted across every segment — apartment new leases fell 29.14% to 7,731 and commercial new leases dropped 28.38% to 1,254 — while renewals proved far steadier and, in villas, even edged up 0.23% to 1,316. Rents, meanwhile, kept climbing: apartment renewal rents rose 7.03% to a median AED 59,000, new apartment rents rose 5% to AED 72,450, and commercial rents advanced on both new (+12%) and renewed (+9.43%) contracts. The lone soft spot was the new villa segment, where the median rent slipped 2.70% to AED 180,000. With apartment renewals (12,823) comfortably outnumbering new leases, the picture is one of tenants staying put and absorbing higher renewal rents rather than testing the open market.

Supply

Developers stayed firmly in expansion mode, with 12 projects launching 4,053 units over the month against 12 projects delivering 2,025 — a launch-to-delivery ratio of 2.0 that added a net 2,028 units to the forward pipeline. New supply, in short, is arriving at roughly twice the pace at which it is being handed over.

Launched

• Rabdan Square – Nad Al Sheba First (Rabdan), 36 units
• Binghatti Skyflame 1 – Wadi Al Safa 3 (Binghatti), 1,407 units
• Samana Business Hub – Jabal Ali Industrial Second (Samana), 323 units
• The Wilds Residences 3 – Wadi Al Safa 3 (Aldar), 375 units
• Binghatti Skyflame 2 – Wadi Al Safa 3 (Binghatti), 801 units
• Vivida Residences – Dubai South (Namo), 66 units
• Marquis Horizon – Dubai South (Marquis Home), 174 units
• South Lofts By Premier Choice – Saih Shuaib 2 (Premier Choice International), 149 units
• Damac Islands 2 - Antigua 1 – Al Yelayiss 1 (Damac), 468 units
• Serra Residence By Wujod – Wadi Al Safa 2 (Wujod), 20 units
• Stories By Mirfa – Dubai South (Mirfa Ibc Developers), 100 units
• Villa Del Garda Residences – Dubai Islands (Mr Eight), 134 units

Delivered

• Cubix Residences – Al Barsha South Fourth (Qube Development), 72 units
• Neva Residences – Al Barsha South Fourth (Tiger), 409 units
• Silver Park Residency – Warsan Fourth (Manjothi), 76 units
• Vista By Prestige One – Al Hebiah Fourth (Prestige One), 140 units
• The Residence By Prestige One – Al Barsha South Fourth (Prestige One), 98 units
• The Valley - Farm Gardens – Al Yufrah 1 (Emaar), 146 units
• Ra1n Residence – Al Barsha South Fourth (Object One), 146 units
• Ellington House Ii – Hadaeq Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid (Ellington), 166 units
• Aras Heights – Wadi Al Safa 3 (Aras Development), 73 units
• Sunridge – Madinat Dubai Almelaheyah (Emaar), 148 units
• The Valley - Elora – Al Yufrah 1 (Emaar), 430 units
• Pg One At Al Furjan – Jabal Ali First (Pg Properties), 121 units

Most expensive sales

Top apartment sales

1. AED 422,000,000 – Aman Residences Tower 2, Jumeirah Second
2. AED 356,232,500 – Aman Residences Tower 1, Jumeirah Second
3. AED 90,000,000 – Bluewaters Residences 8, Marsa Dubai
4. AED 84,642,000 – Solaya 1, Jumeirah First
5. AED 73,000,000 – Baccarat Residence T1, Downtown Dubai

Top villa sales

1. AED 95,000,000 – Palm Jumeirah
2. AED 60,000,000 – Emirates Living
3. AED 59,500,000 – Hadaeq Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid
4. AED 50,639,000 – Palm Jebel Ali
5. AED 43,606,000 – area not recorded

Notes on methodology

Scope. Headline totals and the category table cover every property category recorded in the data, including Plot and Building. The primary/resale split, top-area rankings and the year-on-year series cover Apartment, Villa and Commercial only, so those figures are deliberately smaller than the headline and should not be added across sections.

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

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