In mid-March, it was reported that Dubai was once again ranked as the number 1 choice for foreign capital investment, with 52.3 billion AED (14.24 billion USD) in new foreign investment projects in 2024, marking its 4th consecutive top ranking. This was up 33.2% from the 39.26 billion AED (10.69 billion USD) in 2023 and the highest since 2020. Meanwhile, both property transactions and traction values in Dubai reached a record-breaking level in 2024, thanks to investors from across the globe including Chinese buyers.
Last year, 180,900 transactions were made in the real estate market in Dubai, with a total value of 142.4 billion USD, up 36% and 27% year-on-year (YoY), respectively. Both new builds and second-hand housing saw significant growth in 2024, with new build transaction value growing 30% YoY to 91.1 billion USD. Price per square foot also grew 10% to 435 USD. The used market grew because of new payment plans and stimulus for settlement, with the total value reaching 51.2 billion USD, up 21% YoY.
Other data also shows that the Chinese investor had a much more significant presence in the property market in Dubai. In 2024, Chinese investment jumped to number 4 on the ranking by country, up from number 9 in 2023. Chinese capital contributed to roughly 8% of the real estate transactions in 2024 in Dubai.
After several years of the property boom, Dubai’s market is still popular among international investors, including Chinese ones. With both sale prices and rent going up, earlier buyers are seeing returns on their investments. 2024 saw an inrush of buyers from the UK, looking for better returns, as well as from neighbouring Middle Eastern countries searching for stability. Data from early 2025 also saw a stabilisation of prices in the market.
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