The Dubai market, sourced and dated
A record 2025, then a sharp slowdown in 2026 as regional conflict weighed on activity. Both are in the data below. Nothing here is a forecast.
Market ledger
| Period | Figure | What it measures | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | AED 917bn | Total value of Dubai real estate transactions, up 20% year on year; more than 270,000 transactions | Government of Dubai Media Office, 12 Jan 2026 |
| 2025 | AED 680bn+ | Real estate investments across 258,600 deals, up 29% in value | Government of Dubai Media Office, 12 Jan 2026 |
| 2025 | 193,100 | Investors, up 24%; 129,600 of them new; residents made up 56.6% | Government of Dubai Media Office, 12 Jan 2026 |
| 2025 | AED 13.59bn | Brokerage commissions, up 31%; 96,440 broker-led transactions, up 54%; 32,294 registered brokers | Government of Dubai Media Office, 9 Mar 2026 |
| Q1 2026 | AED 139.1bn | Residential sales value, up 21.5% year on year; about 44,200 transactions; 73% off-plan by count | Cavendish Maxwell, Q1 2026 |
| Q1 2026 | AED 1,683 / sq ft | Average residential sale price, up 9.6% year on year; gross yields 7.2% apartments, 5.0% villas | Cavendish Maxwell, Q1 2026 |
| Q3 2026 | AED 72.6bn | Residential sales value, down 47% year on year; 34,000 transactions, down 38%; off-plan 65% of value, 72% of purchases | The National, 7 Oct 2026 |
| 9M 2026 | AED 292bn | Residential sales value for January–September, down 27%; 112,580 transactions, down 23% | The National, 7 Oct 2026 |
| 2026 | 5–15% | Price decline between end-2025 and September 2026, per industry reports cited by S&P Global Ratings | The National, 7 Oct 2026 |
| H1 2026 | 12.3M sq ft | New industrial and logistics requirements in Dubai; Dubai South rents up 22% to AED 55 per sq ft | Knight Frank, 29 Jul 2026 |
| Target 2033 | AED 1tn | Market value target of the Dubai Real Estate Sector Strategy 2033; transactions to grow 70%; homeownership to 33% | Government of Dubai Media Office, 29 Oct 2024 |
How to read this: DLD figures cover all transaction types. Cavendish Maxwell figures cover residential sales only, so the two series don't add up and shouldn't be compared directly.
Who is buying Dubai, by nationality
The Dubai Land Department publishes prices, volumes and locations, but not buyer nationalities. The most recent rankings come from DXBinteract data and broker research, reported in the press. They are shown here as published, with their scope, and should be read as indicative.
| Rank | Nationality | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | India | 20.59% |
| 2 | United Kingdom | 13.26% |
| 3 | Egypt | 12.60% |
| 4 | United States | 8.99% |
| 5 | Pakistan | 6.94% |
| 6 | Saudi Arabia | 5.72% |
| 7 | Australia | 5.72% |
| 8 | Germany | 4.16% |
| 9 | France | 3.78% |
| 10 | Canada | 3.05% |
| 11 | Netherlands | 2.83% |
| 12 | Russia | 2.50% |
| 13 | Morocco | 2.33% |
| 14 | Spain | 2.11% |
| 15 | Kuwait | 2.11% |
| 16 | Turkey | 2.05% |
| 17 | Nigeria | 1.89% |
DXBinteract data. Gulf Today, “Indians topped investors' list owning property in Dubai (DXBinteract data, late Feb–May 2026)”, 29 May 2026. The first ten were corroborated by Khaleej Times, 9 Jul 2026. Ranks 18 to 20 were not published.
| Rank | Nationality | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | India | 22% |
| 2 | United Kingdom | 17% |
| 3 | China | 14% |
Anarock research. Khaleej Times, “Indian, British buyers drive Dubai property market as sales hit Dh226 billion (Anarock)”, 19 Jul 2026. Buyers came from more than 150 countries in 2025.
| Rank | Country | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | India | 16.3% |
| 2 | United States | 13.0% |
| 3 | United Kingdom | — |
| 4 | Pakistan | — |
| 5 | Saudi Arabia | — |
Search interest, not purchases; the top ten made up 65.4%. DXBinteract analysis. Emirates 24|7, “Dubai property 2026: India tops international buyer interest, US surges to second (DXBinteract, Jun–Aug 2026)”, 23 Sep 2026.
AED 142bn across 42,814 transactions, with investors from more than 100 nationalities. Russia, China, the UK, the US, France and Kazakhstan were named as significant contributors, without a ranking.
Abu Dhabi Media Office, 2026Earlier official DLD rankings (2015 to 2020)
| Rank | Nationality |
|---|---|
| 1 | India |
| 2 | UAE |
| 3 | China |
| 4 | Saudi Arabia |
| 5 | United Kingdom |
| 6 | Pakistan |
| 7 | France |
| 8 | Russia |
| 9 | Jordan |
| 10 | Egypt |
| Rank | Nationality | Transactions | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | UAE | close to 12,000 | AED 37.4bn |
| 2 | India | 10,628 | more than AED 20.4bn |
| 3 | Pakistan | 5,398 | about AED 7bn |
| 4 | Saudi Arabia | 5,366 | AED 12.5bn |
| 5 | United Kingdom | 4,188 | AED 9bn |
| 6 | Egypt | not stated | not stated |
| 7 | Jordan | 2,235 | AED 4.2bn |
| 8 | China | 2,177 | AED 3.1bn |
| 9 | Lebanon | 1,313 | AED 2.6bn |
| 10 | United States | 1,119 | close to AED 2.9bn |
Where private wealth is moving
Henley & Partners projected a net inflow of 9,800 millionaires to the UAE in 2025, up from 6,700 the year before, the most of any country.
| Country | Net change |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom | −16,500 |
| China | −7,800 |
| India | −3,500 |
| South Korea | −2,400 |
| France | −800 |
| Spain | −500 |
| Germany | −400 |
| Norway | −150 |
| Ireland | −100 |
| Sweden | −50 |
Business Standard, “9,800 millionaires to move to UAE in 2025 (Henley Private Wealth Migration Report 2025)”, 25 Jun 2025. Millionaires are people with US$1M+ in liquid investable wealth.
In its 2026 report, Henley gave the UAE a Wealth Mobility Competitiveness score of 85.3, the highest score it cited, “despite recent regional tensions”. Henley & Partners, 16 Jun 2026
Why this site is in these languages
Languages follow the evidence above: the nationalities buying in Dubai in 2025 and 2026, plus the countries with the largest wealth outflows.
| Language | Version | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| English | Written | India, UK, US, Australia, Canada: five of the top ten buyer nationalities in Dubai, late Feb–May 2026 (DXBinteract) |
| Hindi | Written | India: first in every recent dataset (20.59% of purchases, 2026; 22% of buyers, 2025; 16.3% of online interest, Jun–Aug 2026) |
| Arabic | Written | Egypt (third, 12.60%), Saudi Arabia (5.72%), Morocco and Kuwait in the 2026 ranking, plus Emirati and other GCC buyers |
| Chinese (Simplified) | Written | China: third in 2025 (14%, Anarock); named a significant contributor in Abu Dhabi, 2025 |
| Russian | Written | Russia: 2.50% in 2026; named in Abu Dhabi 2025; also serves Kazakh and other CIS investors |
| French | Written | France (3.78%, 2026) and Morocco (2.33%); also Canada and Lebanon |
| Urdu | On request | Pakistan: fifth in 2026 (6.94%) and fourth in online interest |
| German, Dutch, Spanish, Turkish | On request | Germany 4.16%, Netherlands 2.83%, Spain 2.11%, Turkey 2.05% of 2026 purchases |
| Korean, Norwegian, Swedish, Italian | On request | Henley 2025 millionaire outflows (South Korea −2,400) and Jun–Aug 2026 online interest (Italy) |
| Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu, Bengali, Punjabi | On request | Indian regional investor communities; Evara's team advises in Kannada, Tamil and Telugu |
Sources
Checked on 24 October 2026. If a source updates a figure, we update this page and note the date.
- Government of Dubai Media Office, “Dubai's real estate market records new historic milestone (DLD data)”, 12 Jan 2026. www.mediaoffice.ae
- Government of Dubai Media Office, “Dubai brokerage sector strengthens its role as a key driver of market growth in 2025 (DLD data)”, 9 Mar 2026. www.mediaoffice.ae
- Cavendish Maxwell, “Dubai Residential Market Performance Q1 2026”, Q1 2026. cavendishmaxwell.com
- The National, “Dubai home sale transactions fall in third quarter amid regional uncertainty (Cavendish Maxwell; S&P Global Ratings)”, 7 Oct 2026. www.thenationalnews.com
- Knight Frank, “UAE industrial and logistics market review 2026”, 29 Jul 2026. www.knightfrank.ae
- Government of Dubai Media Office, “Dubai Real Estate Sector Strategy 2033”, 29 Oct 2024. mediaoffice.ae
- Dubai Land Department, “Golden Visa application – Investor (e-service)”, accessed 24 Oct 2026. dubailand.gov.ae
- Dubai Land Department, “Frequently Asked Questions”, accessed 24 Oct 2026. dubailand.gov.ae
- Dubai Land Department, “Dubai Real Estate Legislation (incl. Law No. 8 of 2007 on escrow accounts)”, compendium. rdc.dubailand.gov.ae
- Dubai Land Department, “Usufruct / Musataha right registration (e-service)”, accessed 24 Oct 2026. dubailand.gov.ae
- Dubai Land Department, “Registration of real estate fund companies (e-service)”, accessed 24 Oct 2026. dubailand.gov.ae
- UAE Federal Tax Authority, “Real Estate Investment for Natural Persons – Corporate Tax Guide”, Oct 2024. tax.gov.ae
- UAE Federal Tax Authority, “Corporate Tax General Guide”, Sep 2023. tax.gov.ae
- UAE Federal Tax Authority, “Non-Resident Persons – Corporate Tax Guide”, Oct 2023. tax.gov.ae
- UAE Federal Tax Authority, “Taxation of Family Foundations – Corporate Tax Guide”, May 2025. tax.gov.ae
- Government of Dubai Media Office, “DLD: Dubai records 51,414 real estate transactions worth over AED175 billion in 2020”, 3 Feb 2021. mediaoffice.ae
- Dubai Land Department, “DLD reveals the top 10 nationalities that invested in Dubai's real estate market over the past 18 months”, 28 Aug 2017. dubailand.gov.ae
- Dubai Land Department, “150 nationalities invested AED 135 billion in Dubai's real estate market in 2015”, 2016. dubailand.gov.ae
- Government of Dubai Media Office, “Dubai Land Department marks strongest performance ever with 1.6 million transactions”, 7 Feb 2024. mediaoffice.ae
- DXBinteract, “Buyers' nationalities in Dubai property market: the truth”, 2025. dxbinteract.com
- Business Standard, “9,800 millionaires to move to UAE in 2025 (Henley Private Wealth Migration Report 2025)”, 25 Jun 2025. www.business-standard.com
- Henley & Partners, “Henley Private Wealth Migration Report 2026”, 16 Jun 2026. www.henleyglobal.com
- Gulf Today, “Indians topped investors' list owning property in Dubai (DXBinteract data, late Feb–May 2026)”, 29 May 2026. www.gulftoday.ae
- Khaleej Times, “Indian, UK, Egyptian investors top Dubai property buyers in 2026 (Harbor Real Estate, citing DXBinteract)”, 9 Jul 2026. www.khaleejtimes.com
- Khaleej Times, “Indian, British buyers drive Dubai property market as sales hit Dh226 billion (Anarock)”, 19 Jul 2026. www.khaleejtimes.com
- Emirates 24|7, “Dubai property 2026: India tops international buyer interest, US surges to second (DXBinteract, Jun–Aug 2026)”, 23 Sep 2026. www.emirates247.com
- Abu Dhabi Media Office, “Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre records 44% increase, reaching AED142bn in transactions in 2025”, 2026. www.mediaoffice.abudhabi
- MICHELIN Guide, “The MICHELIN Guide Dubai selection nearly doubles in size in its fifth edition”, 6 Oct 2026. guide.michelin.com
- Knight Frank, “Dubai US$10m+ residential sales, Q4 2025”, 12 Jan 2026. www.knightfrank.ae
- Government of Dubai Media Office, “Dubai's tourism industry achieves third successive record-breaking year”, 9 Feb 2026. www.mediaoffice.ae
- Gulf News, “Dubai Airport records 95.2m fliers last year”, 11 Feb 2026. gulfnews.com
Tell us the mandate. We reply within 24 hours.
Private briefings in Dubai, in Bengaluru or by video call.