The volume and value of real estate transactions in Dubai rose sharply in the first half of the year amid the entry of more than 59,000 new investors, including several residents, into the booming market.
The number of transactions reached 125,538, up nearly 26 per cent from 99,947 during the first six months of last year, the Dubai Media Office said on Sunday, quoting Dubai Land Department (DLD) data.
The value of these transactions rose about 25 per cent to about Dh431 billion ($117 billion), “highlighting the strong growth momentum in the market”, the report said.
The total number of real estate procedures, including sales, leases, and other transaction types, exceeded 1.3 million during the same period.
The market attracted 94,717 investors – a 26 per cent increase – who completed 118,132 investments valued at approximately Dh326 billion during the period. The number of new investors in Dubai’s real estate market rose by 22 per cent to 59,075, with investments growing 40 per cent to Dh157 billion, the report said.
“Residents in the UAE accounted for 45 per cent of these new investors, highlighting the success of strategies aimed at converting tenants into homeowners,” the report said.
“This also underscores the attractiveness of the local market for long-term stability.”
Dubai's property market has been booming in recent years, having benefited from government initiatives such as residency permits for retired and remote workers, expansion of the 10-year golden visa programme and overall growth in the UAE’s economy on diversification efforts.
This month, a new scheme was also launched to help Emiratis and UAE residents who do not own any freehold residential property in the emirate get on the property ladder.
Under the initiative, first-time buyers will have priority access to new homes from participating developers as well as existing inventory, discounts or limited-time offers on the sales price of off-plan units, flexible payment plans and “improved” mortgage options with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees.
The initiative will cover properties valued at up to Dh5 million. DLD expects 5,000 new investors to enter the market this year following the initiative.
In the first half of this year, a total of Dh228.35 billion came from foreign investors, with Dh28.4 billion came from Arab investors, the media office said. Gulf investors contributed Dh22.56 billion in investments.
For transaction numbers, Al Barsha South Fourth topped the list with 10,469 deals, followed by Al Yalayis 1 with 7,595 transactions, and Wadi Al Safa 5 with 7,178.
Business Bay (6,601), Dubai Marina (6,428), Airport City (5,569), Jebel Ali First (4,275), Al Thanyah Fifth (3,956), Burj Khalifa (3,670), and Meaisem First (3,643) rounded off the list of the top 10 areas.
In terms of transaction value, Dubai Marina topped the list with Dh25.1 billion in deals, followed by Business Bay at Dh22.5 billion, Burj Khalifa at Dh17.1 billion, and Palm Jumeirah at Dh16.96 billion, “underscoring the concentration of luxury investments in these prime locations”.
Al Yalayis 1 (Dh15.7 billion), Meaisem Second (Dh15.4 billion), Wadi Al Safa 5 (Dh15.3 billion), Airport City (Dh15.2 billion), Al Barsha South Fourth (Dh14.9 billion) and Mohammed Bin Rashid Gardens (Dh14.5 billion) also recorded high value deals.
Watch: Dubai's millionaires double as London drops down wealth list
The ultra-prime segment in Dubai has seen growth on rising demand, with sales of $10 million-plus homes hitting a record high of $2.6 billion in the second quarter of 2025, a report by property consultancy Knight Frank found.
This was 37 per cent ahead of the $1.9 billion recorded in the first quarter and a 63 per cent increase on the same period last year.
The total number of $10 million-plus sales during the second quarter hit 143, including 22 transactions for more than $25 million.
Know your cyber adversaries
Cryptojacking: Compromises a device or network to mine cryptocurrencies without an organisation's knowledge.
Distributed denial-of-service: Floods systems, servers or networks with information, effectively blocking them.
Man-in-the-middle attack: Intercepts two-way communication to obtain information, spy on participants or alter the outcome.
Malware: Installs itself in a network when a user clicks on a compromised link or email attachment.
Phishing: Aims to secure personal information, such as passwords and credit card numbers.
Ransomware: Encrypts user data, denying access and demands a payment to decrypt it.
Spyware: Collects information without the user's knowledge, which is then passed on to bad actors.
Trojans: Create a backdoor into systems, which becomes a point of entry for an attack.
Viruses: Infect applications in a system and replicate themselves as they go, just like their biological counterparts.
Worms: Send copies of themselves to other users or contacts. They don't attack the system, but they overload it.
Zero-day exploit: Exploits a vulnerability in software before a fix is found.
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Tottenham 0-1 Ajax, Tuesday
Second leg
Ajax v Tottenham, Wednesday, May 8, 11pm
Game is on BeIN Sports
Tips to stay safe during hot weather
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
- Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
- Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
- Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
- Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
- Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
- Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
Zakat definitions
Zakat: an Arabic word meaning ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’.
Nisab: the minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to pay zakat. Traditionally, the nisab threshold was 87.48 grams of gold, or 612.36 grams of silver. The monetary value of the nisab therefore varies by current prices and currencies.
Zakat Al Mal: the ‘cleansing’ of wealth, as one of the five pillars of Islam; a spiritual duty for all Muslims meeting the ‘nisab’ wealth criteria in a lunar year, to pay 2.5 per cent of their wealth in alms to the deserving and needy.
Zakat Al Fitr: a donation to charity given during Ramadan, before Eid Al Fitr, in the form of food. Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of the needs of themselves and their family must pay two qadahs (an old measure just over 2 kilograms) of flour, wheat, barley or rice from each person in a household, as a minimum.
