KHALEEJ TIMES, Monday October 19, 2020 / 2 , Rabi' al-awwal , 1442
Dubai prime residential secondary market sales volume doubles
Emirates:
Dubai's prime residential property market is witnessing strong transaction
volumes, especially the secondary market which doubled quarter-on-quarter.
According to an analysis by Luxhabitat Sotheby's based on data from the
Dubai Land Department, more than 2,297 apartments and 438 villas were
transacted in Q3 2020, an increase of 24 per cent in overall number of units
sold quarter-on-quarter.
Total volume of transactions in the prime residential market stood at Dh7.4
billion compared to Dh5 billion in Q2 2020, an increase of 49 per cent.
However, prices of prime residential market fell 10 per cent from Dh1,327 to
Dh1,194 per square feet.
The top 3 areas in terms of sales volume were MBR City (Dh2.2 billion),
Downtown Dubai (Dh1.2 billion) and Palm Jumeirah (Dh1 billion).
"We have seen the demand rise for townhouses and villas as they are more
appealing to end-users, especially those properties with good outdoor spaces
and swimming pools. Palm Jumeirah, MBR City District 1, Arabian Ranches, Al
Barari and Dubai Hills Estate amongst others have witnessed a significant
spike in interest from end-users," said Andrew Cleator, managing director of
Luxhabitat Sotheby's International Realty.
"Add this to the fact that banks are currently offering low fixed-rate
mortgages as well as higher loan to value rates. This has triggered a flurry
of first-time buyer purchases as buyers now see the long-term benefits of
owning as opposed to renting," said Cleator.
Data showed that Dubai's secondary prime residential market has doubled in
sales volume quarter-on-quarter as the volume of transactions reached Dh6
billion in Q3 compared to Dh2.7 billion in the previous quarter. There also
has been a price correction of 12 per cent, from Dh1,169 per sqft in Q2 to
Dh1,028 in Q3.
The number of apartments sold in the secondary market doubled
quarter-on-quarter from 520 to 1,177 and the number of villas sold nearly
doubled from 188 to 418. The average price of an apartment in the secondary
prime residential market is now Dh1.8 million and a villa is Dh6 million.
"As the off-plan segment hasn't been able to absorb the capital with enough
new releases, cash is diverted to the most stable secondary property markets
and we have seen a big increase in the prime residential markets. This will
only strengthen further as Dubai will play a key role in the post-pandemic
scenario," said George Azar, CEO of Luxhabitat Sotheby's International
Realty.
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