Dubai Real Estate Breaks Records in H1 2024

Dubai has a penchant for breaking records and its real estate market is no different. H1 2024’s AED 233 billion (~$63.4 billion) worth of sales comprising approximately 80,000 transactions represents the highest-performing half-year for the Dubai market — ever. It is a 29.87% rise in value and a 31% rise in volume from H1 2023.

The Numbers

The numbers are hugely encouraging. Ready properties continue to lead the charge, making up 62% of all transactions when sorted by value. But, off-plan is H1’s veritable star, accounting for 54% of all transactions by volume. This tallies with its rapid growth — remarkably, 80% of all units launched in Dubai since 2022 have now been sold. Concurrently, property prices have also risen in H1 2024 by as much as 41%, with average sale price-per-square-foot for luxury properties surging by up to 15%. This skyrocketing is due in no small part to deals over $10 million (~$36.7 million); 190 were completed during the year’s first half totalling $3.2 billion (~AED 11.75 billion).

The Buyers 

Dubai enjoys long-standing cultural ties with the United Kingdom and India, so it is no shock that British and Indian nationals were the most prolific buyers of its real estate in H1 2024. Newer countries also proved significant sources, including China, Lebanon, France and wider Europe, and North America — a diversity that symbolises Dubai’s melting pot of cultures.

Dubai Meets World

If Dubai real estate attracts the world, it also attracts comparisons with the world. In H1 2024, the city enjoyed the highest rental value growth globally. Q1 2024 also saw Dubai’s average property price per square foot stand at $352 (~AED 1292) — less than half of that in New York, Singapore and Los Angeles. The high ROIs alone are a golden attraction, but they are complemented by the Golden Visa as well, available through a minimum property investment of AED 2 million (~$544,519). Added to this are incentives such as no income tax, marginal corporate tax, and Dubai’s sheer variety of luxury lifestyles.

The Future 

The U.A.E. is expecting 6700 millionaires as residents in 2024, the highest globally and with many moving to Dubai. Increasing prices also constitute a continuing trend, with off-plan property prices expected to rise by as much as 15% in H2 2024. Dubai real estate can start looking towards breaking its record of AED 411.74 billion (~$112.1 billion) worth of sales transactions from 2023. For a city where the future even has its own museum, it is no surprise that real estate is embracing tomorrow as well.