Dubai Ranked First in Luxury Homes Market in H1 of 2023

As many as 176 deals valued around $3.1 billion, as against the total sales of $3.9 billion in 2022, took place in the luxury property market in Dubai in the first six months of 2023, latest data from real estate consultancy Knight Frank released on Thursday showed.

With 92 transactions worth $1.7 billion in terms of $10-million-plus property deals in the first quarter of 2023, the Emirate overtook Hong Kong (67 sales worth $988 million) and New York (58 deals worth $942 million), and London sold saw 36 sales completed with a value of 736 million, the consultancy said.

On an annual basis, London claimed top spot last year with 246 $10mn-plus homes sold for $4.7bn, compared with the $3.9bn raised in Dubai in 224 transactions.

Prime neighbourhoods of Palm Jumeirah, Emirates Hills, and Jumeirah Bay Island in Dubai continued to dominate sales, accounting for 63% of all $10-million-plus home sales in the second quarter of this year.

Faisal Durrani, Partner, and Head of Middle East Research, Knight Frank, said that the city has already achieved 79% of the total number of $10-million homes sold in 2022.

Andrew Cummings, Partner and Head of Prime Residential, Knight Frank, said that the demand for luxury properties offering immediate occupancy remains robust, driven by the discerning preferences of Dubai residents seeking both utility and a sense of presence within the city.

“There is a notable surge in interest for opulent branded residences, fuelled by the record-breaking sales and remarkable sell-out achievements witnessed by esteemed brands such as Six Senses, Baccarat, and Bvlgari,” he said.

The high demand for luxury homes is attributed to the migration of millionaires across the world to Dubai as these properties offered strong return on investment, high quality of life, and safety aspects.

UAE Second

The UAE is ranked second country in the world after Australia in millionaire migration and as many as 4,500 millionaires are expected to relocate to the Emirates in 2023, according to Henley & Partners, the investment migration consultancy based in London.

The UAE has attracted 5,200 high-net-worth individuals, surpassing its forecast of 4,000, the highest globally in 2022.

According to Durrani, 86% of the global HNWIs cited parks as their top consideration when looking at making a residential investment in Dubai. Given the limited number of development sites in coastal communities, this may be a way to create more inland prime neighbourhoods,” he said.

The average sales price during second quarter stood at $16.5 million for all $10 million-plus home sales. As a result of high demand, apartment and villa prices have increased 15% and 46% respectively as of the end of June 2023. However, prices are still relatively affordable with average transacted prices continuing to hover at around $1878.78 per square foot.