Dubai residential sales hit record AED541.5bn in 2025 – report
Dubai residential property market recorded more than 200,000 transactions worth AED541.5 billion in 2025.
According to new data from real estate advisory Cavendish Maxwell, transaction volumes rose by nearly 19 per cent year on year, while sales values increased 27 per cent.
Off-plan properties in Dubai accounted for 73 per cent of residential sales, up from 69 per cent in 2024. Off-plan transactions totalled AED395.7 billion, an increase of 32 per cent from the previous year.
Around 40,400 new residential units were delivered during 2025, below an earlier projection of 82,600 units. Completions were 16.4 per cent higher than in 2024, when 34,700 units were delivered.
Construction timelines have shortened by nearly 37 per cent since 2021. Residential units took an average of 942 days to complete in 2025, compared with 1,494 days five years earlier.
Apartments drive off-plan market share
Apartments accounted for more than 83 per cent of off-plan sales, up from 80 per cent in 2024. Apartments also represented nearly 88 per cent of new project launches.
The market share of villas and townhouses declined to 16.7 per cent from 19.3 per cent a year earlier.
In the ready property segment, apartments accounted for nearly 82 per cent of sales. Around 44,000 ready apartments were sold in 2025, compared with 42,400 in 2024. Ready townhouse sales reached 6,400, while villa sales totalled 3,600.
Jumeirah Village Circle and Business Bay recorded the highest number of off-plan and ready apartment transactions. In off-plan sales, 12,261 apartments were sold in Jumeirah Village Circle and 8,626 in Business Bay. In the ready segment, 5,301 apartments were sold in Jumeirah Village Circle and 3,247 in Business Bay.
In the off-plan villa and townhouse segment, DAMAC Islands recorded 4,845 sales, followed by The Valley with 2,936 and Grand Polo Club and Resort with 2,521. In the ready segment, DAMAC Hills 2 led sales with 1,066 transactions.
Luxury home sales priced between AED20 million and AED50 million rose by more than 47 per cent year on year, with around 2,500 transactions. More than 70 per cent of these sales were off-plan. Ultra luxury homes priced above AED50 million recorded nearly AED28 billion in sales across 302 transactions.
Rental prices increase across Dubai
Average residential sale prices increased 12.1 per cent in 2025 to AED1,673 per square foot. Rental prices rose by an average of 11 per cent to just under AED76 per square foot.
More than 590,000 rental contracts were registered during the year, with renewals accounting for nearly two-thirds.
Gross rental yields for apartments averaged 7 per cent, with International City recording 8.9 per cent. Villa and townhouse rental yields averaged 4.8 per cent, with Al Barari reaching nearly 7 per cent.
A total of 685 new residential projects comprising around 174,900 units were launched in 2025. Apartments accounted for nearly 88 per cent of new launches.
Around 110,500 units are scheduled for delivery in 2026, with additional supply planned for 2027 and 2028.
Ronan Arthur, director and head of residential valuation at Cavendish Maxwell, said: “After another record-breaking year, Dubai’s residential market is beginning to show signs of normalisation, with rising supply and slowing price growth pointing towards more balanced conditions in 2026. Performance will increasingly depend on absorption rates, buyer sentiment and the market’s ability to digest upcoming completions.”
This article was originally published in Arabian Business.
