Dubai apartment sales prices are 11.7 percent cheaper than in 2017, reveals 'Property Finder Trends' report

Highlights include:

• Dubai apartments have a median advertised price of AED 1,163 per sq ft 
• New affordable off-plan villas in Dubai South, Dubailand and Town Square were popular with buyers in H1 2019
• Some of the higher value, older luxury villa communities have not performed as well as newer, more affordable projects

Dubai: Dubai apartment sales prices in the first half of 2019 are 11.7 percent cheaper than they were two years ago and dropped 3.9 percent compared to H2 2018, according to data in ‘Property Finder Trends’ report, released earlier this month.

Apartments for sale fared worse than rentals, with low to mid-single-digit percentage drops right across the country.

For Dubai apartments, the median advertised price is AED 1,163 per square foot, revealed the ‘Trends’ report. Ras Al Khaimah apartments for sale had the biggest decline in prices in H1 2019, dropping 6.2 percent to an advertised median price of AED 560 per square foot; exactly half the median advertised price in Abu Dhabi which dropped 4.4 percent to AED 1,120. 

Ajman, with a median square foot advertised price of just AED 269, is still by far the cheapest. Prices dropped 3.9 percent in H1. Sharjah apartments held their value best in H1 as they have done for the last couple of years. They declined modestly by 1.5 percent during this half-year to a median advertised price of AED 475 per square foot.

Apartment communities in Dubai that witnessed the biggest sales price drop in H1 2019 were Al Sufouh (-10.5 percent), Remraam (-9.6 percent), Downtown Dubai (-7.4 percent), Old Town (-7.2 percent) and Jumeirah Lakes Towers (-6.5 percent). Mirdif, Jumeirah Village Triangle, Dubai South, Arjan and Al Furjan stayed resilient and resisted the price drop.

Villas for sale
Villa prices in Dubai dropped 4.3 percent to an advertised median price of AED 855 per square foot compared to H2 2018. They are 12.1 percent cheaper than they were in 2017. New affordable off-plan offerings in Dubai South, Dubailand and Town Square were popular with buyers.

Ajman’s villa prices were flat, dropping just 0.6 percent compared to H2 2018. Sharjah dropped 1.6 percent while Ras Al Khaimah experienced a significant drop of 5.9 percent. Abu Dhabi bucked the national downward trend, with a 1.5 percent increase to a median villa advertised price of AED 827 per square foot.

Villa communities in Dubai that experienced the biggest decline in sales prices in H1 2019 were Damac Hills (-8.2 percent), Emirates Hills (-6.6 percent), Green Community Motor City (-5.4 percent), Dubai Silicon Oasis (-5.2 percent), Al Furjan and The Villa (-5.1 percent). Communities like Living Legends, District One in Mohammed Bin Rashid City, Mirdif, Green Community DIP and Palm Jumeirah Signature Villas recorded zero or a very marginal drop in villa sales prices.

“As new affordable villa communities are getting completed and handed over, we have seen a migration to these communities from popular areas such as Dubai Marina. Families are choosing to live a little further out in the suburban areas of Dubai in order to gain access to a larger property with outside space. We have also seen a large influx of renters converting to home buyers, especially in these new villa communities,” said Lynnette Abad, Director of Data & Research, Property Finder.

Transactions in Dubai
Although overall sales transactions are steady and in line with 2018 but the type of properties being purchased is changing. Apartment transactions are down by 5 percent but villa sales are up by 35 percent.

Dubai apartments remain the preferred property type, and although their year-on-year transaction numbers have declined, the value has increased. This is reflective of an end-user driven market. End-users tend to buy larger apartments and those in prime locations, while studios and 1-bed apartments that offer higher yields are preferred by investors.

Downtown Dubai saw the most apartment sales in H1 2019 at 1,586, of which 1,288 were off-plan transactions. Dubai Hills Estate (972 off-plan apartment transactions) and The Lagoons in Dubai Creek Harbour (853 off-plan apartment transactions), both Emaar developments, were also popular.

For villas, there have been more transactions but at lower values, mostly in the new, affordable communities targeted at the low to middle income segment. Dubai South with 434 sales (all off-plan) had by far the most villa/townhouse transactions in H1 2019. Town Square with 188 sales (128 off-plan) also fits this description. Another two Emaar projects targeted at mid-upper income end-users were popular: Arabian Ranches 2 had the second most with 331 transactions, 231 of which were off-plan, and Dubai Hills Estate had 208, including 207 off-plan sales.

Meanwhile, some of the higher value, older luxury villa communities have not performed as well as the newer, more affordable projects. Vendors marketing unrenovated, poorly maintained prime located properties in the Palm Jumeirah or Emirates Living communities are at the mercy of the market and some have seen significant losses.

Secondary market vendors who do not need to sell are choosing to hang onto their properties. Richard Waind, Managing Director at Better Homes writing for ‘Trends’, said: “We are starting to see the availability of property in the secondary market dry up as those with no pressing need to sell hold on to their assets to ride out the current price cycle. This should put a natural handbrake on future price falls.”

About Property Finder – www.propertyfinder.ae  

Property Finder is the leading property portal in the MENA region and Turkey that facilitates the house-hunting journey for both buyers and renters.

Founded in 2007, the website has evolved over the years as the go-to platform for developers, real estate brokerages, and house hunters to make informed decisions on all things real estate.

A UAE-born start-up, Property Finder has branched out of the country’s shores and operates in a total of seven markets, including Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Egypt, and Morocco, and has a significant stake in the second-largest property portal in Turkey, which has over 6 million monthly visitors and more than 18,000 real estate agents. 

US private equity firm General Atlantic led Property Finder’s latest round of investment of a total of $120 million in 2018. This is being used to hire further exceptional talent and investing in its technology and product capabilities.

The property portal employs over 450 employees globally, of which 204 people work out of its Dubai office, and generates over six million monthly visits as a Group.

In April 2019, Property Finder announced the acquisition of JRD Group, following an increased investment in Turkish portal Zingat.

In 2014, Property Finder acquired eSimsar.com, the top property portal in Saudi Arabia, while in 2013, the Group bought out realestate.com.lb, the number 1 property portal in Lebanon, and lastly, the acquisition of Selektimmo, a Moroccan portal, to pad out sarouty.ma, Property Finder’s Moroccan offering, in 2016.

For media enquiries, please contact Anna Lucas Southgate
anna@propertyfinder.ae  
+971 55 115 9971

© Press Release 2019