More leases and sales cleared than in the prior four weeks, but annual comparisons remain soft. Live asking prices still sit well above achieved deals, leaving tenants and buyers room to negotiate.
Rentals
More contracts cleared, without a broad return of pricing power
| Transacted measure | 4 weeks to 2026-08-23 | vs prior 4 weeks | vs year ago |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent registrations | 16,252 | +4.0% | +7.2% |
| Median annual rent | AED 85,292 | 0.0% | -3.4% |
| Median AED/sqm | AED 945 | +2.2% | -5.0% |
| Registered rent value | AED 1.99bn | +4.7% | +4.7% |
Demand improved, but tenants still paid less per square metre than a year ago. Confidence is high, based on 16,252 filtered DLD registrations. The short-window rise in AED/sqm is real, but it follows several weak quarters and has not repaired the annual decline.
Year to 2026-08-23, 108,871 registrations cleared, up 3.1% year on year. Median annual rent was unchanged and median AED/sqm was 0.5% lower. The latest four-week annual decline is therefore materially weaker than the year-to-date picture.
Rent Quarterly Activity
Jan 2025–Aug 2026 · Deals (bars, left axis) · Avg AED/sqm (line, right axis)
Three-bedroom homes led the short-window pricing move
| Segment, transacted | Deals | Deals vs prior | Deals vs year ago | AED/sqm vs prior | AED/sqm vs year ago | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1BR | 5,754 | +8.8% | +12.0% | +0.6% | -7.6% | High |
| 2BR | 3,314 | +2.4% | +8.3% | +1.4% | -4.8% | High |
| 3BR | 849 | +11.1% | +13.8% | +6.3% | -5.0% | High |
| 4BR | 55 | +22.2% | +31.0% | +7.1% | +15.3% | Low |
The liquid 1BR-to-3BR market added contracts, with 3BR homes producing the clearest near-term price gain. Yet each remained cheaper per square metre than a year ago. The 4BR result is too thin and mix-sensitive to support a market-wide conclusion. Studio registrations cannot be isolated reliably from the room coding in this cut, so the data does not support a defensible studio comparison.
Dubai Sports City gained; JVT traded volume for price
| Area, transacted | Deals | Deals vs prior | AED/sqm vs prior | Deals vs year ago | AED/sqm vs year ago | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JVC | 1,504 | +6.9% | +0.4% | +3.5% | -14.0% | High |
| Business Bay | 986 | +7.6% | +3.6% | +21.9% | -5.6% | High |
| Dubai Marina | 926 | +11.8% | +3.1% | +19.9% | -8.8% | High |
| Dubai Hills Estate | 511 | +16.9% | +0.8% | +53.9% | -13.6% | High, mix-sensitive |
| Dubai Creek Harbour | 449 | +22.7% | -1.7% | +13.4% | -7.9% | High |
| Dubai Sports City | 315 | +26.0% | +8.4% | +10.5% | -4.8% | High, mix-sensitive |
| JVT | 398 | +25.2% | -5.2% | -4.3% | +2.3% | High |
| Dubai Silicon Oasis | 333 | -4.9% | -1.2% | +3.4% | -2.7% | High |
| Al Nahda | 316 | -20.4% | +0.2% | +5.0% | -2.8% | High |
| Town Square | 260 | -1.5% | +0.1% | -17.5% | -4.6% | High |
Dubai Sports City was the clearest liquid short-window gainer. JVT absorbed substantially more contracts only after achieved rates fell. Al Nahda, Dubai Silicon Oasis and Town Square lost momentum. Across the major apartment corridors, annual pricing was still mostly negative.
Live supply remains priced above settled leases
| Apartment | Live median ask | Live listings | Transacted median, 4 weeks to 2026-08-23 | Asking premium |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1BR | AED 84,999 | 48,380 | AED 70,240 | +21.0% |
| 2BR | AED 140,000 | 34,922 | AED 110,378 | +26.8% |
| 3BR | AED 240,000 | 10,888 | AED 175,601 | +36.7% |
Live figures are dated 2026-09-05. These are broad bedroom groups rather than matched homes, so the exact gaps carry moderate confidence. The direction is high confidence: asking premiums widen with size, and tenants have the most negotiating room in larger apartments.
Whole-market asking data were volatile as corpus coverage changed: the captured median was AED 120,000 on 2026-08-30 but AED 105,000 on 2026-09-05, while the sample fell from 133,741 to 54,654. Bedroom-level full-corpus cuts above are the sounder live measure. Among registered Ejari contracts, new leases represented 50.2% in August, up from 47.6% in July but below 51.2% in August 2025. Renewals therefore still account for roughly half of registered demand.
The weakness extends across several quarters
Citywide average rent per sqm peaked at AED 1,140 in 2025-Q4, fell to AED 1,011 in 2026-Q2 and stands at AED 1,007 in partial Q3. Dubai Marina fell 15.9% in Q2 and another 5.9% in partial Q3; Business Bay fell 14.2% then 3.9%; JVC fell 12.0% then 0.6%; Dubai South fell 6.8% then 2.1%. Four distinct corridors point in the same direction.
Rental view: landlords should price from recent registrations rather than portal expectations. Tenants retain leverage, particularly in 2BR and 3BR apartments.
Secondary
Deal flow improved slightly, but remained sharply below last year
| Transacted measure | 4 weeks to 2026-08-23 | vs prior 4 weeks | vs year ago |
|---|---|---|---|
| Secondary registrations | 10,757 | +2.5% | -30.9% |
| Median sale value | AED 1.10m | +0.1% | -18.2% |
| Median AED/sqm | AED 18,257 | -0.2% | -2.8% |
| Registered value | AED 18.08bn | +4.4% | -39.8% |
| Average home size | 84 sqm | 0.0% | -8.7% |
The short-window market stabilised; it did not reaccelerate. Confidence is high, based on 10,757 DLD registrations. Deal count and registered value improved from the prior period, while unit pricing was flat. Against last year, both liquidity and pricing were weaker, with smaller homes contributing to the 18.2% fall in the median ticket.
Year to 2026-08-23, 94,120 sales cleared, down 13.1% year on year. Median sale value fell 4.0%, while median AED/sqm rose 4.1%. The medium-horizon result still shows higher unit pricing on fewer, smaller deals; the latest settled window no longer shows that annual price growth.
Sale Quarterly Activity
Jan 2025–Aug 2026 · Deals (bars, left axis) · Avg AED/sqm (line, right axis)
Villas outperformed apartments in the latest window
| Segment, transacted | Deals | Deals vs prior | Deals vs year ago | AED/sqm vs prior | AED/sqm vs year ago | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apartments | 10,052 | +2.3% | -32.4% | -0.2% | -4.2% | High |
| Villas | 705 | +6.8% | +2.3% | +3.6% | +4.0% | High |
Villas improved on both comparisons, although their average size fell to 227 sqm from 253 sqm in the prior period and 262 sqm a year ago. Apartments supplied most transactions but remained materially weaker than last year. The split points to relative villa resilience, not broad secondary appreciation.
Jabal Ali led volume; Meydan's price jump was mix-sensitive
| Area, transacted | Deals | Deals vs prior | AED/sqm vs prior | Deals vs year ago | AED/sqm vs year ago | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dubai South | 1,912 | -12.9% | -0.6% | +182.0% | +25.7% | High, development-led |
| Jabal Ali Industrial Second | 952 | +98.7% | +1.7% | n/a | n/a | High, development-led |
| JVC | 763 | +9.9% | -2.1% | -49.3% | -5.6% | High |
| Wadi Al Safa 4 | 485 | +66.1% | -0.2% | -15.2% | -13.9% | High, mix-sensitive |
| Jabal Ali First | 272 | +47.8% | +3.5% | -46.2% | -36.8% | High, mix-sensitive |
| DIP | 266 | +11.3% | +20.5% | -70.2% | -18.1% | High, mix-sensitive |
| Meydan | 233 | -6.4% | +45.1% | n/a | n/a | High count, mix-sensitive |
| Dubai Marina | 209 | -6.7% | +13.1% | -42.4% | -2.0% | High, mix-sensitive |
| Dubai Production City | 200 | -19.4% | -6.3% | -63.5% | -9.1% | High |
| Dubai Creek Harbour | 133 | -32.1% | +0.3% | -62.1% | -2.3% | High |
Jabal Ali Industrial Second supplied the clearest volume gain. Meydan and DIP posted large short-window unit-price increases, but changing unit and project mix makes those figures poor evidence of like-for-like appreciation. Dubai Creek Harbour and Dubai Production City lost liquidity. Established corridors including JVC and Dubai Marina remained well below last year's deal counts.
Seller expectations still lead achieved prices
| Apartment | Live median ask | Live listings | Transacted median, 4 weeks to 2026-08-23 | Asking premium |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1BR | AED 1.36m | 44,708 | AED 1.19m | +14.1% |
| 2BR | AED 2.55m | 33,902 | AED 2.02m | +26.4% |
| 3BR | AED 4.62m | 12,603 | AED 3.48m | +32.6% |
Live figures are dated 2026-09-05. These are broad bedroom groups rather than matched units, so exact premiums carry moderate confidence. The negotiation signal is high confidence, particularly above one bedroom. Live supply is ample while achieved secondary volume remains 30.9% below last year.
Cooling is now a multi-quarter pattern
Citywide average sale pricing peaked at AED 21,164/sqm in 2026-Q1, fell to AED 20,148 in Q2 and stands at AED 19,211 in partial Q3. Dubai Marina fell 8.2% in Q2 and 4.6% in partial Q3; Business Bay fell 12.4% then 2.9%; JVC rose 2.8% in Q2 but reversed 7.5% in partial Q3. Dubai South remains the exception, rising 7.3% and another 2.4%. Weakness across three major apartment corridors makes this more than a four-week blip.
Value corridors retain the strongest indicative yields
| Indicative 75 sqm area yield | Gross yield | Rent sample | Ready-resale sample | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dubai Sports City | 8.2% | 3,999 | 1,228 | High, area level |
| Dubai South | 8.0% | 2,302 | 402 | High, area level |
| Dubai Silicon Oasis | 7.8% | 6,241 | 1,370 | High, area level |
| Arjan | 6.9% | 492 | 150 | Moderate |
| JVC | 6.8% | 16,286 | 4,869 | High, area level |
Yield Comparison
These are gross area benchmarks for a 75 sqm apartment, with sale values restricted to ready resale. They are not building-specific net returns. Service charges, vacancy, maintenance and acquisition costs reduce realised yield.
Secondary view: buyers should negotiate from recent ready-resale AED/sqm comparables, especially for 2BR and 3BR apartments. Sellers have some medium-term support from higher year-to-date unit pricing, but current liquidity rewards realistic asking prices.
Method and caveats
- Transacted figures are DLD registrations for the exact settled window 4 weeks to 2026-08-23. Rental figures use the standard outlier filter; sale figures cover secondary registrations. The newest fortnight was excluded because registrations are incomplete.
- Live figures use the full-market listings corpus dated 2026-09-05. Asking-to-transacted comparisons are broad bedroom segments, not identical homes.
- Citywide and principal area pricing findings are high confidence, generally based on more than 100 transactions. Exact asking gaps are moderate confidence because listing and transaction mixes differ. The 4BR rental result is low confidence at 55 registrations.
- No major Eid holiday falls inside the latest, prior, or year-ago four-week windows; no holiday adjustment was required.
- Partial 2026-Q3 trajectory runs through 2026-08-23 and is not a completed quarter. Yield estimates are gross, area-level and indicative.