Dubai rental market poised to shatter 2025 contract record

Dubai’s rental sector is tracking toward a record annual tally, with market data released this week by fäm Properties showing 214,445 contracts registered through the first seven months of 2026, a 1.9% gain on the equivalent 2025 period. Last year closed with 377,660 registered contracts for the full year, a benchmark the market now appears positioned to exceed.

July alone produced 38,197 rental contracts, split between 18,431 newly signed agreements and 19,766 renewals. That renewal volume is the more telling figure. It signals tenant retention and pricing stability, two conditions that underpin landlord revenue and reduce the vacancy risk that typically pressures yields in uncertain conditions.

Firas Al Msaddi, chief executive of fäm Properties, read the renewal ratio as a direct indicator of market confidence. “The volume of renewals alone shows that, regardless of regional uncertainty over the last few months, people still see Dubai as one of the best places in the world to live and work,” he said. For investors holding residential stock, sustained renewal rates translate into predictable cash flows even as broader regional conditions have introduced uncertainty in recent months.

One-bedroom apartments are the engine of that demand. Through July, they accounted for 41% of all registered contracts, or 88,327 units, reflecting both their affordability positioning and the composition of Dubai’s renter base. That concentration matters to developers and landlords calibrating future supply decisions.

Meanwhile, the sales market delivered its own momentum. July recorded 13,872 transactions valued at AED34.5 billion ($9.39 billion). Off-plan sales dominated, capturing 9,585 transactions worth AED20.5 billion against 4,287 resale transactions valued at AED14.0 billion. The structural preference for pre-completion purchases points to investor and end-user confidence in future supply pipelines and pricing trajectories.

Dubai South was the emirate’s strongest sales performer in July, its fifth consecutive month at the top of the transaction volume rankings. The area recorded 2,351 sales transactions worth AED2.6 billion, with off-plan deals accounting for 2,231 of those transactions and AED2.3 billion of that total. The consistency of that performance illustrates the commercial pull of master-planned developments in capturing market share at scale.

Across property types, apartments led with 11,759 units worth AED17.8 billion. Villas numbered 1,322 transactions and reached AED7.8 billion. Plot sales contributed 268 transactions valued at AED6.9 billion, while commercial properties, including offices and shops, generated 515 transactions worth AED1.9 billion.

Price segmentation reveals a market distributed across multiple tiers, with the bulk of activity concentrated at the accessible end. Properties below AED1 million represented 43.4% of sales volume, and the AED1-2 million bracket accounted for a further 30.3%. Mid-range properties between AED2-3 million comprised 11.4% of transactions, with AED3-5 million units at 8.2% and premium properties exceeding AED5 million at 7%. That distribution reflects both affordability-driven demand and the numerical prevalence of smaller units in Dubai’s housing stock.

Luxury transactions punctuated the month at the other end of the spectrum. The highest-priced apartment sale reached AED166 million at Aman Residences Tower 2 in Jumeirah Second. The most expensive villa transaction closed at AED73 million at The Oasis, Lavita development.

With seven months of data now in, the question for investors and operators is whether the second half of 2026 can sustain the pace needed to clear last year’s full-year record, and whether off-plan dominance in the sales mix will hold as more completed inventory enters the resale pool.