Residential sales in Dubai account for 45% of transactions in 2020 – report

Residential sales transactions worth Dhs27.2bn were recorded in 2020, constituting 45.3 per cent of all transactions in Dubai.

Transactions worth over Dhs60bn were recorded in the emirate last year, a report by Bayut & dubizzle noted, citing data released by the Dubai Land Department (DLD).

Off-plan transactions led the pack in 2020, equalling Dhs14.4bn and accounting for 53 per cent of total residential transactions. Meanwhile, transactions for ready properties stood at Dhs12.8bn.

“In 2020, prospective buyers and tenants in search of affordable housing have turned to the suburbs of Dubai, including Jumeirah Village Circle, Mirdif, Dubailand and Akoya Oxygen. On the other hand, historically popular neighbourhoods such as Dubai Marina, Downtown Dubai, Jumeirah and Arabian Ranches remain the top choices for luxury properties for sale and rent,” the Dubai Property Annual Sales and Rental Market Report for 2020 read.

Over seven million sessions on Bayut & dubizzle were recorded in December 2020, reflecting growing appetite of investors in real estate.

Sales 
Dubai Marina has led the sales category for luxury apartment, recording 526 transactions in the last six months, as per DLD’s data. In the affordable apartment sales category, Jumeirah Village Circle (JVC) has dominated interest in 2020, the report suggested.

The price-per-square-foot for ready apartments in Dubai Marina has also become more affordable in 2020, declining from Dhs1,278.1 to Dhs1,170.7, the report read.

However, in the luxury villas for sale category, Arabian Ranches remained the favourite, registering 164 transactions over the last six months, DLD data suggested.  The average price-per-square-foot for villas in Arabian Ranches also saw a minor price reduction from Dhs889 to Dhs872.9, the report added.

Meanwhile, ready villas in Dubailand have emerged as the most popular choice for buying affordable villas.

Rental
Jumeirah Village Circle (JVC) has remained at the forefront for budget-conscious tenants in 2020, the report highlighted. Meanwhile, Dubai Marina has been chosen as the premiere choice for luxury apartment rentals in 2020, as per trends observed on Bayut & dubizzle. The rental costs for apartments in JVC experienced declines between 10-17 per cent.

The average rents for four- and five-bedroom houses in Jumeirah have seen minor decreases under 6 per cent, standing at Dhs170k and Dhs216k, respectively, the report expounded.

Outlook
“For the next six months, based on what we have seen in the last year, trends look very positive – the prices have begin to stabilise, especially in popular communities,” Fibha Ahmed, director of sales for Bayut & dubizzle told Gulf Business.

“We see that Downtown [Dubai] will continue to hold its value, Business Bay rents did not decline that much, and we see the same trend in Palm [Jumeirah]. All the initiatives that the government has taken has really led the investor confidence. Building up to Expo 2020, I believe that the trend will be very similar to what we saw in the last 6 months -stabilisation of prices and more and more interest and activity,” Ahmed added.