This is the KhaleejKeys quarterly read of Dubai's ready-property market: completed, DLD-registered sales from 1 July to 30 September 2026, compared with the same three months of 2025. Every figure is a median, and apartments and villas are always reported separately.
The quarter in three numbers
| Q3 2025 | Q3 2026 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apartment median, AED/sqft | 1,292 | 1,359 | +5.2% |
| Villa median, AED/sqft | 1,402 | 1,413 | +0.8% |
| Villa premium over apartments | 8.5% | 4.0% | narrowed |
Apartment prices per square foot finished the quarter above last year, and villas held level. The gap between them closed by more than half.
Steady through the quarter
Month by month, neither market moved much inside the quarter:
| Month (2026) | Apartment AED/sqft | Villa AED/sqft |
|---|---|---|
| July | 1,344 | 1,419 |
| August | 1,378 | 1,424 |
| September | 1,350 | 1,400 |
Read the apartment figure with care
The 5.2% apartment rise is real, but it says as much about which apartments sold as about prices. Sales under AED 1 million made up a smaller share of the quarter than a year earlier, and the pricier communities a larger one. Holding the mix fixed across the 21 busiest communities, prices were broadly flat year on year.
We unpack that in full in Dubai apartment prices rose 5%. Most communities did not.
Fewer sales, firmer prices
Fewer homes have been changing hands. From March to July 2026, completed apartment sales ran at roughly 1,600 to 2,300 a month, against 2,700 to 3,700 a month through 2025. Villa sales show the same step down.
Prices did not fall with them. Lower volume with medians holding is a reminder that a quieter market is not automatically a cheaper one. We leave August and September out of the volume comparison: the most recent months are still filling in as late registrations arrive, so their counts would understate the market.
Where Dubai bought
The communities with the most completed ready sales in Q3 2026, all property types, as registered by 7 October (late registrations may still add to each):
| Community | Sales |
|---|---|
| Jumeirah Village Circle (JVC) | 1,033 |
| Dubai Marina | 463 |
| Business Bay | 458 |
| Downtown Dubai | 319 |
| International City Phase 1 | 278 |
| Silicon Oasis | 269 |
| Dubai Hills Estate | 239 |
| Dubai Sports City | 233 |
| Arjan | 225 |
| Discovery Gardens | 202 |
| Dubai Creek Harbour | 202 |
JVC remains in a league of its own, with more than twice the sales of any other community. Discovery Gardens and Dubai Creek Harbour tie for tenth.
Who moved
Among communities with at least 100 apartment sales in both Q3 2025 and Q3 2026:
- Biggest rises: Dubai Marina (+11.2%, to AED 1,997/sqft), Silicon Oasis (+6.9%), Dubai Sports City (+5.3%) and Dubai South (+5.1%).
- Biggest falls: Palm Jumeirah (-6.4%), Dubai Production City (IMPZ) (-6.2%), Meydan One Community (-6.1%), and Sobha Hartland and JBR (both -4.8%).
More affordable communities mostly rose while much of the prime end softened. Dubai Marina's rise is mostly mix: three prime towers (Liv Waterside, Liv Marina and Jumeirah Living Marina Gate) went from 12 of its apartment sales in Q3 2025 to 122 in Q3 2026, and without them Marina's median fell 2.1%. Like the citywide figure, a community median moves with what sold.
How we measured this
Completed, DLD-registered ready-sale transactions only, from the KhaleejKeys database as of 7 October 2026. Off-plan launches are a separate market and are not included. Medians throughout; community comparisons require at least 100 sales in each period. The most recent weeks can still rise as late registrations arrive.
Look up the registered sales behind any community or building on KhaleejKeys, free and with no sign-up.
Source: DLD completed ready-sale transactions, 400,000+ records. This report is general information, not investment advice.