Dubai records 27% surge in Q1 property deals
Dubai recorded the second highest number of real estate transactions since February 2017 in the first quarter, with 6,590 deals valued at about Dh22.9 billion, a growth in number by 43 per cent and in value by 40 per cent year-on-year.
The real estate bulletin issued by Dubai Land Department, ‘Real Estate Updates,’ March 2021, showed that real estate transactions in Q1 2021 achieved a significant growth of 27 per cent and 47 per cent compared to Q1 2020 and Q1 2019, respectively.
Highlighting the continued attractiveness of the real estate sector to new investors, the bulletin said 5,683 new investors entered the market in Q1 2021, representing 64 per cent of the total number of investors during the same period.
“The figures revealed the continuity of achieving positive results in 2021, thereby continuing to enhance the trust of local and international investors in Dubai’s attractive and vibrant real estate environment,” the DLD bulletin said.
The value of real estate brokerage commissions achieved by active real estate brokers in the real estate market reached Dh392 million in Q1 2021, while 143,374 Ejari contracts were recorded in Q1 2021, 57 per cent of which were new contracts and 43% were renewed contracts
The top five areas for investor attractiveness for villa sales in Q1 were Hadaeq Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, followed by Wadi Al Safa 5, Wadi Al Safa 7, Nad Al Sheba 1, and Al Thanyah Fourth. In apartment sales, Dubai Marina, Palm Jumeirah, Business Bay, Burj Khalifa, and Al Merkadh topped the list in Q1 2021, said the bulletin.
In its recently-released Residential Property Market Report for Q1 2021, UAE-based real estate property agency Betterhomes said that the "worst is over" for Dubai's property market, owing to a rise in prices since last summer. The positive trends include a 12 per cent jump in the number of units transacted and a 19 per cent increase in the total value transacted in the residential market, according to the Dubai Land Department.
Richard Waind, group managing director at Betterhomes, said strict travel restrictions, lockdowns and the looming threat of tightening fiscal policies have given plenty of motivation to high net worth Europeans looking to invest in the UAE.
“We have seen a large number of Europeans who came to escape lockdown, take advantage of or relaxations in visa rules and extend their stays, with many now looking to buy holiday homes or become residents themselves. The number of transactions record by British, Italian, French, and German buyers increased by 168% since Q1 2020, with luxury villas and apartments on the Palm and other coastal areas being in particularly high demand," said
Other key findings included - in terms of residential sales - an 18 per cent price increase for villa communities in Dubai, owing to increased demand. In addition, there was a 167 per cent increase in the number of registered buyers for villas and townhouses, while the number of actual transactions increased by 72 per cent in the first quarter year on year.
Four-bedroom villa sales doubled over Q1 2020, followed by five-bedroom villas with an increase of 83 per cent. While off-plan sales accounted for over 70 per cent of the Dubai market in 2019, the pendulum has now "firmly swung the other way", with secondary market sales making up 66 per cent of the market in Q1 2021, the report said.