UAE-headquartered Sobha Realty completed around 3,000 residential units ahead of schedule and launched approximately 15,000 new units during 2025, driven by four major master developments across the UAE, company officials said in a recent media briefing.

The launches included Sobha Solis, Sobha Central and Sobha Skyparks in Dubai and Downtown UAQ in Umm Al Quwain.

As of 2025, the developer’s UAE portfolio exceeded 39,000 units across 14 master-planned projects in Dubai and Umm Al Quwain.

The company’s expansion momentum has continued into 2026 with the launch of Sobha Sanctuary in Dubai and Sobha City in Abu Dhabi, bringing Sobha Realty’s total UAE master developments to 16.

“We are fundamentally a build-to-sell company, focused on designing and delivering products that meet customer expectations,” said Francis Alfred, Managing Director of Sobha Realty. “Regardless of market fluctuations, we remain committed to maintaining our track record of early project delivery through our backward integration model.”

Spanning approximately 37.5 million square feet (sq.ft), Sobha Sanctuary is the developer’s largest master-planned community in Dubai. The 50 billion UAE dirhams ($13.6 billion) project will feature approximately 20,000 residential units split into 18,000 apartments and 2,000 villas.

Construction has started on the project with enabling works underway. The first phase, comprising 250 villas, is targeted for completion by the fourth quarter of 2029.

Spanning approximately 38 million sq ft, the $10.8-billion (AED 40 billion) Sobha City will feature around 7,000 residential units, including 4,000 apartments and 3,000 villas, delivered across multiple phases.

Construction is scheduled to start in second quarter of 2026, with the first phase, representing one-third of the residential units, targeted for completion by the fourth quarter of 2029.

Financial resilience

Alfred said the developer remains financially resilient despite regional volatility, supported by strong sales backlog and land bank

“We’ve got almost three years’ revenue backlog because we had extraordinary sales in the last three to four years,” he said.

He added that the company has sufficient land bank for approximately four-and-a-half years of future development.

Sobha’s vertically integrated model and in-house manufacturing capabilities have also helped mitigate supply-chain disruptions and raw material price fluctuations.

Alfred said the company’s manufacturing facilities maintain their own stock. For raw materials, alternative import routes through Oman, Fujairah, and other ports have helped mitigate delays.

“Although short-term price inflation exists, we expect conditions to normalise as regional tensions ease,” he said. “We ensure that we do not pass cost increases on to customers; instead, we absorb them to ensure that product quality is never compromised.”

He said he expects the real estate market to emerge even stronger than before the regional conflict, supported by the renewed global confidence in the UAE as a safe and well-managed economy.

“Despite the unforeseen regional situation, life in the UAE has remained stable, with business and economic activity continuing uninterrupted. The moment a ceasefire was announced, enquiries and conversions tripled, indicating that many buyers had only paused temporarily and were waiting for clarity.”

Ashish Parakh, Group Chief Sales and Marketing Officer said in Dubai, the buyer mix is typically around 60 percent international investors and 40 percent UAE residents.

“In Abu Dhabi, that ratio has reversed. We’re also seeing growing interest from the US, Canada, and key European markets for properties in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.”

To reduce the financial entry barrier for buyers, Sobha Realty has partnered with leading UAE banks to offer home finance solutions for off-plan property purchases across all its developments.

Francis credited the successful tie-ups for off-plan financing to Sobha’s financial foundation and on-time delivery of projects.

“The fact that buyers can secure financing even in the current environment reflects both the strength of the market and the strength of the Sobha brand,” he said.

Nature-integrated communities

Both Sobha Sanctuary and Sobha City developments span nearly the same land area, integrating nature, wellness, and community living, supported by a wide range of leisure, retail, healthcare, and educational amenities.

A defining feature across both developments is the allocation of more than 50 percent of land area to green landscapes and forest-inspired environments. Each development is planned to include more than 50,000 trees.

James Marvin, CEO, PNC Architects, said the extensive landscaping strategy is designed to reduce ambient temperatures and lower long-term cooling demand.

“As tree cover increases, ground temperature drops and the air around a villa becomes cooler. Air entering a home may be 35°C instead of 40°C, and with cooling systems, it reduces further to around 25°C, thus lowering air- conditioning demand and contributing to long term energy efficiency.”

Marvin said Sobha City will have every villa and townhouse opening onto an interconnected green space.

“Every unit will have a minimum 10 metre green buffer. A child can step out from the back garden into a continuous green corridor and move across an entire cluster safely under tree covered canopies without having to cross a street. Similarly, apartments will be separated from roads by a 25 to 30 metre forested green strip.”

He said landscaping works are being advanced ahead of vertical construction to ensure mature greenery by the time residents move in.

Sustainability

Sobha One, comprising five interconnected towers under construction in Dubai, is scheduled for completion in the fourth quarter of 2026. In 2025, the project was awarded the Green Mark Platinum Super Low Energy (SLE) certification by Singapore’s Building and Construction Authority (BCA), making it the first building outside Singapore to receive this distinction.

“Unlike design-led certifications, Green Mark SLE is heavily focused on measurable energy efficiency outcomes, making it a strong validation of Sobha Realty’s low-carbon development approach,” noted Alfred.

He added that the certification serves as a performance benchmark for the company’s future developments, helping guide sustainability targets that deliver long-term environmental benefits, operational efficiency, and enhanced occupant wellbeing.

Sobha One was financed through Sobha Realty’s $750 million Green Sukuk issued in 2025.

(Reporting by Dennis Daniel; Editing by Anoop Menon)

(anoop.menon@lseg.com)

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