What does property in Dubai actually sell for?
Of the residential sales the Dubai Land Department recorded from 22 March to 18 September 2026, 77.0% were off-plan. In the 48 communities with at least 30 ready and 30 off-plan sales, off-plan sold at a median of 1.27x the ready price per square foot, with the middle half of communities between 1.12x and 1.42x. In 5 of them off-plan sold for less than ready. These are prices people actually paid, not what anyone is asking. Data pulled 18 September 2026, 20:32 UTC.
Is off-plan cheaper than ready in Dubai?
Usually not, per square foot. The typical community prices off-plan about a quarter above ready, and in about a quarter of communities the premium is 1.42x or more. Off-plan sold below ready in only these 5:
- Al Hebiah Sixth0.88x
- Wadi Al Safa 70.91x
- Wadi Al Safa 50.93x
- Nad Al Shiba First0.98x
- Jaddaf Waterfront0.99x
Off-plan median price per sq ft divided by ready median price per sq ft, in each community with at least 30 ready and 30 off-plan recorded sales. The middle half is the 25th to 75th percentile of those ratios, taken as the nearest-ranked value.
Community figures
Community figures appear here only once our data audit has checked them against the Dubai Land Department's records and the way rents are matched to buildings. For this pull that is the four communities below. The others will be added as they pass.
| Community | Recorded sales | Median AED / sq ft | Ready | Off-plan | Gross yield |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Palm Jumeirah | 416 | 3,215middle half 2,205–5,148 | 2,382 | 5,814 | withheld: off-plan mix, method under review |
| Jumeirah Village Circle (JVC) | withheld: duplicated source rows | 1,452middle half 1,222–1,724 | 1,260 | 1,590 | 6.28%rents filed under Al Barsha South Fourth; sales include off-plan |
| Business Bay | 1,966 | no single median (blends types); by type: Flat 2,275, Hotel Apartment 1,602 | 1,792 | 2,549 | withheld: sales mix, method under review |
| Dubai HillsDLD area only | 483 | 2,242middle half 1,984–2,463 | 2,229 | 2,260 | withheld: rents cannot be matched |
Ready and off-plan are median AED per sq ft. Each community page gives the reason for every figure marked withheld.
Is there a Dubai-wide rental yield?
We do not publish a city-wide rental yield. The DLD files many rents under a land-registry district rather than the community the sales use, and for a large share of communities the rents that carry the community's name mostly belong to other communities' buildings, or cannot be matched to any building that sold. A median across those would mix unlike things.
Where a community yield is shown, it is the median rent per square foot from new Ejari contracts over the median sale price per square foot, and the page states which rent records were used.
How are these figures calculated?
Recorded sales are Dubai Land Department sale transactions of flats, villas and hotel apartments with a price above zero, over 180 days. A median needs at least 30 sales behind it.
The middle half is the range the central 50% of sales fell in. Where it is wide, the median is a weak guide and should not be used to anchor an offer.
Ready and off-plan are kept apart because they are two different markets in the same place. A single median across both describes the mix of what sold, not either market.
Source: Dubai Land Department open data. Recorded sale transactions (flats, villas and hotel apartments) from 22 March to 18 September 2026; new Ejari rent contracts from 19 August to 17 September 2026. Not asking prices. A community is priced only with at least 30 recorded sales. Pulled 18 September 2026, 20:32 UTC.