Dubai real estate market is world’s busiest for luxury properties over $10m

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Dubai’s luxury residential market continued its hot streak, with 176 homes worth at least $10m changing hands in the first half of this year, according to property consultancy Knight Frank.

“Dubai’s luxury homes market continues to attract the attention of the world’s wealthy, with global high-net-worth-individuals remaining laser focused on acquiring second homes in the emirate,” said Faisal Durrani, Knight Frank’s head of Middle East research.

Luxury properties headline real estate growth

The city emerged as the world’s busiest market for properties worth over $10m during the first quarter, surpassing Hong Kong and New York. Demand has stayed resilient in the segment, with transactions worth $3.1bn recorded in the first half.

With average prices hovering around Dhs6,900($1879) per square foot, the emirate’s luxury offering is still “relatively affordable,” Knight Frank said.

Dubai’s luxury property boom has been in part due to the emirate’s deft handling of the Covid pandemic, followed by a raft of government measures to attract more long-term expatriates, and the war in Ukraine that led to an influx of Russians.

In addition, international buyers from China are also “quickly re-emerging as key players in the city’s residential landscape,” Knight Frank said.

Roughly a third of all luxury homes sold are located on Palm Jumeirah, the artificial and palm-shaped area on reclaimed land off Dubai’s coast. Other, more inland areas away from the coast could soon gain prime status, according to Knight Frank.

“Improving inland infrastructure could be one way to spur development away from the coast, particularly given the rising importance of green space or parks to internationalhigh-net-worth-individuals eyeing up residential purchases in Dubai,” Durrani said.