REVEALED: Dubai neighbourhoods with the highest rent increases

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Last year proved to be a buoyant period for the residential real estate sector in Dubai, with rents and home prices hitting fresh highs.

But for residents of Damac Hills, Dubailand and Al Barsha the rental increases were particularly severe, according to the 2023 Annual Property Rental Market Report released by online marketplace dubizzle on Tuesday.

Damac Hills experienced an eye-popping 66.67 per cent increase in annual rental prices 2023, according to dubizzle’s latest report on the 2023 market. Meanwhile, this was followed by Dubailand (42.54 per cent), JVC (32 per cent) and Al Barsha (31.08 per cent).

If you were on the hunt for a villa rental in 2023, you would potentially deal with comparatively lower rental hikes, according to dubizzle.

“Affordable villa rentals increased by 16.64 per cent, with DAMAC Hills 2 emerging as the most popular affordable area for villa rentals, with an average yearly rent of Dhs96,000. Other areas like Mirdif, JVC, and Dubailand also maintained a steady popularity, offering villas with annual rents below Dhs200,000. Al Barsha, meanwhile, remained popular with those wanting larger, private spaces, boasting an average annual rental price of Dhs388,000, followed by Jumeirah and the newer Dubai Hills Estate,” said dubizzle in a statement.

In terms of luxury apartments, Dubai’s Business Bay area experienced the highest rise in rents of 21.05 per cent. Meanwhile, an average rental in Dubai Marina would set you back Dhs148,000 while the average apartment rental in Downtown Dubai was Dhs214,000 in 2023, said dubizzle.

Abu Dhabi’s more reasonable rents

Meanwhile, dubizzle further highlighted that Abu Dhabi’s rental market is more mixed with both rental decreases and increases in some areas. Here, areas such as Al Mushrif, Al Raha Gardens, Yas Island, Khalifa City, and Al Khalidiya all experienced drops in rental prices.

But luxury properties on Al Reem Island experienced a 5.33 per cent increase in average annual rents while Mohammed Bin Zayed City saw a 7.87 per cent increase in rents for villas. Meanwhile, the Corniche notched up 15.91 per cent rise in annual rent, reflecting its growing desirability as a central location at the heart of the city.

Commenting on the findings of the online marketplace’s latest report, Haider Khan, CEO of dubizzle, said: “ It’s a well documented fact that 2023 has been a defining year for UAE real estate. The data gathered from property seekers who generated over 77 million page views for listings on dubizzle for Dubai and nearly 14M page views for Abu Dhabi in 2023, provides further evidence that the UAE’s property market is going from strength to strength.”

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