Property prices in Dubai are going to continue rising for at least the next two to three years, experts have told The National.
The cost of renting in the emirate is also likely to keep going up during the same period, as the number of people seeking to buy or rent outstrips the volume of available properties.
A new report issued by ValuStrat management consultancy says almost 27,000 new homes were completed in 2024 – which the firm says is the lowest figure for six years.
Meanwhile, the emirate's population continued to grow, meaning demand was significantly outstripping supply. The ValuStrat report showed there were 20,066 new apartments completed last year, compared to 6,891 villas.
Part of the problem is not enough new properties are being built compared to apartment buildings, according to one expert. The ValuStrat report estimates that 118,401 apartments and 28,351 villas and townhouses are under construction, with a promised handover by 2028.
“There is a distinct lack of houses being built compared to apartments,” said Mario Volpi, head of brokerage at Novvi Properties. “It's easier to build a tower and have everything in it than have it all spread out in individual units like townhouses or villas.
“The number of houses handed over [in the report] is quite low. For prices to start softening then we need to have at least double that number.”
He suggested it would be 2027 at the earliest before supply caught up with demand and the cost of renting or buying a property subsided.
Another expert told The National it came down to a simple case of supply and demand.
"The market is telling us we do not have enough housing supply to meet the rising number of new residents moving to the emirate, with the population now above 3.8 million," said Matthew Green, head of research for real estate firm CBRE Mena.
"Prices and rents are expected to continue rising during 2025, but at a slower rate of growth than was recorded during 2023 and 2024.
"However, as the number of new residential deliveries increases through the period 2026-2028, we expect to see a more balanced supply and demand equation emerge, leading to some moderation of pricing growth from the current high levels, particularly for areas with significant unit completions."
This was also reflected in what he described as proxy indicators of residential demand such as increasing trips through Salik gates, mobile phone registrations, and DEWA connections.
"However, the post Covid boom in new off-plan sales launches has significantly swelled the development pipeline, with around 40-45,000 new units expected to be delivered in 2025, with annual deliveries then moving much higher again during the period 2026-2028," said Mr Green.
"This is likely to help moderate growth in rental and sales rates in the longer term, although for now demand continues to outweigh supply."
The emirate's population stands at 3.83 million, with growth projected at 3.6 per cent annually until 2030. The ValuStrat report also said Dubai's population grew by 170,000 people in 2024.
Other findings in the study showed the average cost of buying an apartment grew by 23.6 per cent, with villas increasing by 31.6 per cent. The cost of renting also grew with apartments rising by 13 per cent and villas going up by 5.8 per cent.
“We have a rising population but we don't have the supply [of properties] to match it,” said Haider Tuaima, director and head of real estate research with ValuStrat.
“Rents have already more than doubled since the pandemic and definitely have surpassed the previous peaks in 2014,” said Mr Tuaima. He added that current projections show supply could finally catch up with demand by 2028.
His reasoning was based on a pipeline of almost 150,000 properties set to be handed over to owners by 2028. Of these properties, 12 per cent were expected in the city's Jumeirah Village Circle (JVC) area. Another 8 per cent were due for Business Bay, followed by 5 per cent in Jumeirah Lake Towers (JLT), according to the report.
The National contacted number of property developers in the emirate, but only Damac was prepared to comment.
“Dubai’s rapid population growth and its position as a global hub for investment continue to drive strong demand for housing,” said Mohammed Tahaineh, general manager of projects at Damac.
This meant the property sector was having to rise to meet this demand by looking at “innovative solutions” involving advanced construction technologies and strategic planning.
Another expert said UAE residents could expect to see the cost of renting or owning a property increasing this year but perhaps not as much as first feared.
“With over 72,000 units scheduled for handover in 2025, the market will see a significant increase in supply, helping to balance the demand that has driven up property prices in recent years,” said Christopher Cina, development sales and consultancy director at Betterhomes. “A moderate increase in both rent and sales prices of less than 10 per cent is expected as the supply pipeline builds.”
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
THE BIO: Mohammed Ashiq Ali
Proudest achievement: “I came to a new country and started this shop”
Favourite TV programme: the news
Favourite place in Dubai: Al Fahidi. “They started the metro in 2009 and I didn’t take it yet.”
Family: six sons in Dubai and a daughter in Faisalabad
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Power: 110 horsepower
Torque: 147Nm
Price: From Dh59,700
On sale: now
Company%20profile
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The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
In numbers
1,000 tonnes of waste collected daily:
- 800 tonnes converted into alternative fuel
- 150 tonnes to landfill
- 50 tonnes sold as scrap metal
800 tonnes of RDF replaces 500 tonnes of coal
Two conveyor lines treat more than 350,000 tonnes of waste per year
25 staff on site
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
500 People from Gaza enter France
115 Special programme for artists
25 Evacuation of injured and sick
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
Tailors and retailers miss out on back-to-school rush
Tailors and retailers across the city said it was an ominous start to what is usually a busy season for sales.
With many parents opting to continue home learning for their children, the usual rush to buy school uniforms was muted this year.
“So far we have taken about 70 to 80 orders for items like shirts and trousers,” said Vikram Attrai, manager at Stallion Bespoke Tailors in Dubai.
“Last year in the same period we had about 200 orders and lots of demand.
“We custom fit uniform pieces and use materials such as cotton, wool and cashmere.
“Depending on size, a white shirt with logo is priced at about Dh100 to Dh150 and shorts, trousers, skirts and dresses cost between Dh150 to Dh250 a piece.”
A spokesman for Threads, a uniform shop based in Times Square Centre Dubai, said customer footfall had slowed down dramatically over the past few months.
“Now parents have the option to keep children doing online learning they don’t need uniforms so it has quietened down.”
Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
A Dog's Journey
Directed by: Gail Mancuso
Starring: Dennis Quaid, Josh Gad, Marg Helgenberger, Betty Gilpin, Kathryn Prescott
3 out of 5 stars
Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster with a decades-long career in TV. He has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others. Karam is also the founder of Takreem.
Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Company%20profile
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Company%20Profile
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Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
