AED 917 bn — This was the value of Dubai’s 270k real estate transactions in 2025, putting the emirate within striking distance of its AED 1 tn target (which Dubai hopes to reach by 2033) well ahead of schedule, Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum said in an X post. Transaction volumes and values were both up 20% y-o-y, while the number of new resident investors was up 23% y-o-y, and foreign investors accounted for 14% of total real estate investments.

Luxury is doing much of the heavy lifting: Some 500 USD 10 mn+ homes were sold in Dubai last year, putting the luxury residential market at an all-time high, according to a Knight Frank press release (pdf). The results make Dubai the busiest market globally for USD 10 mn+ homes.

This figure includes a record 68 homes transacting for over USD 25 mn, representing a 45% y-o-y jump. The total value of high-end transactions rose 27.7% y-o-y to USD 9.1 bn, and 4Q saw 143 transactions closed — up 39% q-o-q.

What’s driving the sales? Analysts have attributed this meteoric rise — surging from just 300 sales in 2020 — to the influx of international high-net-worth individuals permanently settling in Dubai.

The market is now primarily dominated by user-end activity, moving beyond speculative investment, with Dubai’s real estate market transitioning to an “established” market, Knight Frank said. While the five-year price rally is slowing, prime values are still forecast to expand by a further 3% this year.

Demand has yet to abate, with “sales happening faster than the stock is being replenished,” Knight Frank MENA’s head of research Faisal Durrani told EnterpriseAM UAE.

By district: Palm Jumeirah saw the most sales, with 28 USD 10 mn+ transactions, although the upcoming Palm Jebel Ali followed close behind with 22. The quarter also saw a new record for a UAE penthouse purchase, with an apartment in Business Bay’s Binghatti Residences selling for AED 550 mn (USD 149.7 mn).

The good news for prospective home buyers is: Prices are cooling despite the momentum. Price growth across the emirate has eased to 10% in 3Q of last year, down from 3Q 2024’s 16% high and suggesting the market is past its peak, Faisal Durrani told us. He chalks this up to regular cyclic price changes, though, saying that “while moderation in house price growth rates is inevitable, the structural drivers of demand — population expansion, wealth migration, and economic diversification — remain firmly intact.”

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