Rental Vs Ownership In Dubai: July 2024 Insights And Key Areas Unveiled

Property Finder, a prominent property portal in the MENA region, has released market performance highlights for July 2024. These insights shed light on the current real estate landscape.

According to its data, July saw transaction values matching the highest peak recorded earlier this year in May. Ten areas accounted for 51% of total transactions, including Al Barsha South Fourth, Business Bay, Marsa Dubai, Jebel Ali First, Wadi Al Safa, and Al Thayah Fifth.

Rental Trends in July 2024

In July 2024, 80% of tenants were looking for apartments, while the remaining 20% considered villas or townhouses. Among those seeking apartments, around 60% preferred furnished properties, whereas 38% opted for unfurnished ones. For villas or townhouses, approximately 57% of tenants sought unfurnished units, with 42% favouring furnished options.

When it came to apartment preferences, 37% of tenants searched for one-bedroom units. Meanwhile, 31.7% showed interest in two-bedroom apartments and 20.9% in studios. For villas or townhouses, there was a fairly even distribution: 43.1% looked for three-bedroom units and 35.4% sought four-bedroom or larger options.

Ownership Insights

Among property seekers interested in ownership, 59% were looking for apartments and 41% for villas or townhouses. Investors showed varied preferences: 33.6% searched for one-bedroom units, while 35.2% leaned towards two-bedroom apartments and 13.7% towards studios.

For those interested in villas or townhouses, the preferences were clear: 39.8% sought three-bedroom units and 44.9% aimed for four-bedroom or larger options. Popular areas for ownership included Dubai Marina, Jumeirah Village Circle, Downtown Dubai, Business Bay, and Palm Jumeirah.

Off-Plan vs Existing Market

The existing market saw record-breaking volumes and values in July 2024 with approximately 8,400 transactions compared to May's 6,606 transactions—a rise of 27%. The value of these transactions reached Dh36 billion, surpassing June's peak by 23%. The off-plan market also experienced significant growth with a year-on-year increase of about 77%, totalling around 9,300 transactions.

The value of off-plan transactions rose by approximately Dh19.4 billion compared to Dh12.6 billion in May last year—an increase of about 54%. This indicates a robust demand across both existing and new developments.

Cherif Sleiman, Chief Revenue Officer at Property Finder stated: "With the UAE striding towards its vision 'We the Emirates 2031', we are at an exciting time in the nation's development journey across social, economic and investment sectors." He added that this is reflected in the real estate market's upward trend in transaction volume and value.

Sleiman noted that regulatory reports from Sharjah indicate promising investment interest as well. Both existing and off-plan projects are thriving due to constant diversification of property demand backed by growing returns on investment.

Newer developments outside central city locations are gaining traction partly due to developer efforts to maintain momentum with steady supply while nurturing communities appealing to a global audience.