What Dh574bn in property sales means for Dubai residents

Dubai’s property market has recorded one of the strongest nine-month stretches in its history, and the figures carry weight well beyond the trading floors and brokerages. For residents, renters, savers and families weighing a home purchase, the pace of activity between January and September 2026 offers a snapshot of how demand, supply and access to housing are shaping up across the emirate.

According to the Dubai Land Department, total real estate transactions during the first nine months of 2026 exceeded Dh574.12 billion, carried out across 165,018 transactions. That figure represents about 62.47 percent of the total value recorded for the whole of 2025, which stood at Dh919 billion. The concentration of this year’s activity into a relatively short window is striking.

Sales alone, from the start of the year to the end of September, reached approximately Dh379.4 billion, the second highest sales value in the history of the Dubai real estate market, trailing only the full-year figure achieved in 2025. Those sales were spread across 123,416 transactions, of which 104,198 involved residential units, 9,514 involved buildings and 9,704 involved land. The heavy weighting toward residential deals underlines where ordinary buyers and occupants are most active.

For households trying to read the market, the split between ready and off-plan property is one of the more telling details. Sales of ready-built properties accounted for the largest share, at Dh196.08 billion through approximately 39,320 transactions, distributed as 27,020 residential units, 2,605 buildings and 9,704 land transactions. Off-plan sales, by contrast, reached Dh183.32 billion through 84,090 transactions, comprising 77,180 residential units and 6,909 buildings. The sheer number of off-plan deals, far exceeding ready-property counts, points to substantial future housing supply now being committed, a factor that will matter to anyone planning where to live in the years ahead.

Financing activity offers another window into how residents are engaging with the market. Mortgage transactions totalled Dh151.13 billion across 34,910 deals, including 22,060 on residential units, 4,223 on buildings and 8,627 on land. Gifts and donations, which often reflect transfers between family members, amounted to Dh43.6 billion through 6,692 transactions, distributed as 5,133 residential units, 431 buildings and 1,128 land parcels.

Geography matters to residents as much as totals, and the ranking of the highest-selling areas shows where value and, by extension, demand are concentrated. Business Bay topped the list for the first nine months of the year with sales exceeding Dh20 billion, followed by Airport City at approximately Dh17.72 billion and Al Yalayis 1 at Dh16.09 billion. Palm Deira came fourth at Dh12.98 billion, with Palm Jumeirah fifth at Dh11.61 billion. Me’aisem 2 ranked sixth at Dh11.5 billion, Jumeirah Village Circle seventh at Dh10.29 billion, Palm Jebel Ali eighth at Dh9.4 billion, the Burj Khalifa area ninth at Dh8.86 billion, and the Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Gardens area tenth at Dh8.5 billion.

Meanwhile, the monthly picture reinforces the sense of sustained momentum. September sales alone exceeded Dh29.66 billion through 11,430 transactions, comprising 9,744 residential units, 777 buildings and 910 land deals. Within that month, ready properties accounted for Dh16.03 billion across 3,955 transactions, while off-plan sales reached Dh13.63 billion through 7,476 transactions. Mortgage activity in September amounted to Dh16.79 billion across 4,266 transactions, split between 2,602 residential units, 621 buildings and 1,043 land deals. Gifts and donations in the month totalled Dh4.33 billion through 796 transactions, made up of 616 residential units, 52 buildings and 128 land parcels. Taken together, the total value of real estate transactions in September came to more than Dh50.78 billion across 16,490 deals.

For the general public, these numbers translate into practical questions: how accessible housing remains, whether the flow of new projects will ease pressure on supply, and how the market’s direction affects everyday decisions about renting, buying or transferring property within families. The full reference report on the nine-month figures is available at https://www.emirates247.com/business/dubai-real-estate-transactions-hit-dh574-billion-in-nine-months-second-highest-sales-value-in-market-history/6205.

What the data makes plain is that demand for residential units and new projects remains high, buyer segments are diverse and investment flow has continued. Whether that momentum serves the broader public interest, in the form of adequate housing access and balanced pricing, will be the question residents watch as the final quarter of the year unfolds.