The Dubai real estate market continued to gain momentum as it attracted record Dh24.3 billion investment through 9,720 sales deals in August despite global headwinds. It is the highest performing month in terms of sales transactions volume and value in 12 years, latest data shows.
The emirate’s property market fetched investment worth nearly Dh160 billion in first eight months of 2022 as investors reposed trust in the Dubai’s future growth and rushed to invest in residential plots, apartments and villas to enjoy a quality lifestyle in the UAE. Analysts and property experts said sales transactions may exceed expectations by year-end if the upward trend continues with the same pace.
The Dubai’s real estate attracted over Dh20 billion in sales in a third consecutive month despite some cooling measures introduced by the government. It recorded Dh22.75 billion sales in June and Dh21 billion in July through 8,897 and 7,092 deals, respectively.
According to Property Finder, the leading proptech company in the Middle East, North Africa and Turkey, August witnessed a monthly growth rate in volume of around 37.1 per cent and 69.6 per cent compared to last year. In terms of value, August registered a month-on-month growth of 16.1 per cent and around 63.6 per cent on year-on-year basis.
Market reflects true merits
Mohamad Kaswani, managing director of Mortgage Finder, said the Dubai real estate market continues to reflect its true merits despite global headwinds.
“We took note of current trends redefining the immediate future of the real estate market, and as interest rates continue to rise, we’re seeing a rush of mortgage borrowers opting into our fixed-rate products hoping to stabilise their housing costs. Conversely, first-time homebuyers are actively considering a house purchase to provide more stability to their families due to high rental prices that have skyrocketed throughout the city,” Kaswani said.
“Additionally, as demand for residential properties continues to rise, many tenants find themselves pressured to purchase the properties they are residing in to alleviate the stress resulting from landlords demanding higher rental prices. The dual impact of home price appreciation along with interest rate hikes translates into a monthly mortgage payment up to 50 per cent higher than the same period last year, majority of which is caused by the appreciation of home price,” he said.
On right track
Ata Shobeiry, chief executive at Zoom Property, said Dubai real estate market is on right track and is expected to conclude the year on strong note.
“With sales figure crossing Dh24.3 billion in August, the Dubai property market has set another record in 2022. This shows that the market is on the right track, and the year will end on a strong note,” he said.
Shobeiry said the positive aspect here is that all the segments of the market, including off-plan properties, apartments, and villas, are growing in terms of sales volume and value.
“This is a good sign for investors as the market continues to surpass other advanced metropolises, despite tough challenges posed by global recession,” he said.
Ready property sales jump
In terms of the growing volume of transactions, total sales for ready properties jumped 27.4 per cent over July 2022 at 67.5 per cent compared to August 2021. Additionally, the value of transactions witnessed a 6.7 per cent month-on-month increase and 57.4 per cent on year-on-year basis, according to Property Finder.
The off-plan market transacted 4,392 properties worth Dh8.5 billion, the highest monthly transaction in 12 years. Considering the transactional volume, the off-plan market presented a significant increase of 51.1 per cent month-on-month increase and 72.1 per cent year-on-year basis. In terms of value, the market surged by 38.5 per cent month-on-month basis and 76.5 per cent year-on-year basis.
On the other hand, in terms of volume, the mortgage industry experienced an unprecedented growth of 15.7 per cent month-on-month basis, exceeding previous records year on year by 21.2 per cent.
“We are optimistic about the performance of the real estate market. Time and again, Dubai has leapt over other metropolises amid global economic challengesm” Marc Bellamy, founding partner of Williams International, said.
“We have witnessed an influx of HNWIs and overseas buyers investing in the emirate’s high-end developments, all of which proving to be a testament to a city that holds an abundance of safe and unmatched opportunities as a global hub for business, tourism and innovation,” he said.
Rental market mixed
The August rental market recorded an increase of 10.6 per cent month-on-month basis, while rental contracts dipped to 9.3 per cent year-on-year basis due to the decrease of the renewal rate by 18.9 per cent.
Furthermore, annual contracts witnessed around a 12.4 per cent growth rate month-on-month basis while non-annual contracts dropped by 52.2 per cent year-on-year basis. Residential contracts are growing larger than expected, acquiring 70.9 per cent in August — 7.5 per cent month-on-month basis — unlike contracts for commercial purposes, which witnessed an increase of 21.3 per cent month-on-month basis with a slight decrease of 0.6 per cent year-on-year basis.
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