According to a recent study, the combined real estate sales of Dubai and Abu Dhabi in 2023 exceeded 455.7 billion UAE dirhams ($124 billion), driven by a strong off-plan market that broke yearly records.
According to data published by Property Finder, a real estate portal with operations in the United Arab Emirates, Dubai saw a record number of sales transactions in 2023, totaling AED 411.74 billion, up 56% from the previous year.
Similar to this, Abu Dhabi saw total transaction values of AED 44 billion, a 120% rise from AED 19.9 billion the year before.
Robust off-plan market
According to the report, off-plan sales drove growth in the real estate market in both Dubai and Abu Dhabi, with the former benefiting more from a thriving tourism sector that raised housing demand.
In 2023, off-plan sales in Dubai saw a value of AED 160.46 billion, up from AED 93 billion in 2022—a 72.3% increase. A third of the total transaction value was made up of off-plan transactions.
Off-plan sales in the emirate increased to 68,783 transactions in 2023 from 43,151 in 2022, a 59.4% increase and the highest annual performance for the off-plan market to date.
With a 20.72% year-over-year increase, existing sales in Dubai reached 64,351 transactions, up from 53,308 in 2022—the highest annual performance ever.
The largest off-plan sales in 2023 were recorded by Marsa Dubai, Palm Jumeirah, A Merkadh, and Business Bay. The report also noted that the Burj Khalifa experienced the only decline in the total value of off-plan transactions, which was -15% when compared to 2022.
Abu Dhabi’s off-sales segment saw a similar trajectory in 2023, reaching AED 35.57 billion and accounting for 81% of the emirate’s total sales transaction value. This represented a 174% increase over 2022, when AED 12.98 billion, or 65% of the total value, was the total sales transaction value.
In 2023, popular neighborhoods for apartments were Al Reem Island, Yas Island, Al Raha Beach, and Khalifa City; for villas, the most sought-after locations were Saadiyat Island, Al Reef, and Al Reem Island.
