Inayat-ur-Rahman, Business Editor

Dubai property prices continue to increase across various affordable and luxury segments as key areas record high numbers. Sales trends in the first half of the year indicate that average prices of affordable properties have increased up to 8 per cent while rates in upscale areas surged up to 19 per cent, according to the Zoom Property Insights.

Arabian Ranches, Dubai Hills Estate, Downtown Dubai, and Dubai Marina have remained the preferred choices among high-net-worth investors, while small-ticket investors focused on suburban areas, such as Dubailand, DAMAC Hills 2, Business Bay, and Jumeirah Village Circle.

Ata Shobeiry, CEO of Zoom Property, believes that the Dubai property market will break previous records in 2022.

“It’s certainly a good sign for Dubai real estate that key areas are performing up to their standards. While the increase in demand and price of luxury properties in Dubai has been driving the market, it’s the growth in the affordable property segment that indicates a well-rounded performance. With this high momentum, 2022 is surely going to conclude on a record-breaking note for Dubai real estate,” Shobeiry said.

Business Bay, JVC dominate the affordable segment.

With a price increase of nearly 6.4 per cent during H1, Business Bay remained one of the most sought-after areas for affordable apartments during H1, 2022. With this increase, the average price per square foot jumped to Dhs 1,436.

It was followed by JLT and JVC, as both these areas recorded a price increase of 5.7 and 2.8, respectively. The average property price per square foot in the former remained Dhs 987, while the latter jumped to Dhs 872. Average prices in Dubai Sports City also rose to Dhs 626 after an increase of 3.1 per cent.

For affordable villas, JVC, with a 7.7 per cent price increase, produced high numbers as the average prices rose to Dhs 660. On a similar note, Dubailand recorded a 5.7 per cent price increase, taking the average price to Dhs 816. DAMAC Hills (with a 5.25 per cent increase and Dhs 1,035 average price) and The Springs (with a 1.65 per cent increase and Dhs 1,128 average price) were other notable areas for affordable villas in H1, 2022.

Downtown Dubai & Palm Jumeirah lead the luxury segment.

Downtown Dubai noted the highest price increase of 6.7 per cent during the first half, taking the average price per square foot to Dhs 2,237 among areas for luxury apartments. It was followed by Dubai Marina with a nearly 6 per cent increase and Dhs 1,459 price per square foot. Dubai Hills Estate remained a close third with a 5.95 per cent increase. The average per square foot in this community was recorded at Dhs 1,491.

Besides the aforementioned, prices of luxury apartments in Palm Jumeirah and JBR also increased during the first half of the year, according to the Zoom Property Insights.

The highest price increase for luxury villas was noted in Palm Jumeirah at a little over 18 per cent. The average property price in this prime community has reached Dhs 3,619 per square foot.

Dubai Hills Estate remains the only other community to hit the double-digit mark in terms of an increase in the prices of luxury homes. With an 11.15 per cent increase, its average price per square foot rose to Dhs 1,490. Prices of luxury homes in The Villa, with a nearly 8 per cent increase, have jumped to Dhs 850.

“The latest statistics reveal that luxury villas continue to outperform other properties, with some communities reporting double-digit growth. However, apartments are catching up as well. This growth, although uneven in many areas, depicts the market is on the right track with abundant lucrative options for investors and HNWIs,” Shobeiry said.

Meanwhile, Dubai’s real estate sector maintains a sustainable growth in terms of sales value and volume in August 2022. According to Mo’asher, Dubai’s official Sales Price and Rental Performance Index launched by Dubai Land Department (DLD) in cooperation with Property Finder, Dubai’s real estate market records a total of 9,720 sales transactions registered in August 2022. The data marks the highest performance in the last decade and demonstrates a significant increase in the overall performance of the sales transaction volume by 69.57 percent and 63.58 percent in terms of value year on year, which recorded the highest performance for a month ever recorded in the last 10 years.

In August 2022, Mo’asher recorded a 1.348 monthly index for sales and an index price of Dhs 1,311,362. The apartments monthly Index recorded 1.428 and an index price of Dhs 1,229,308.

Furthermore, Mo’asher recorded a 0.983 monthly index for rental and an index price of Dhs 53,902. The apartments monthly Index recorded 0.988 and an index price of Dhs 49,195 whereas, the villas/townhouses’ monthly Index recorded 0.891 and an index price of Dhs 137,034.