Dubai property deals almost double over first half

24/07/2014 01:17 AST

More than Dh113 billion of real estate changed hands in Dubai during the first half of 2014 – nearly double the amount recorded the same time last year – official figures have shown.

New figures from the Dubai Land Department (DLD) show that the total value of real estate transactions taking place in Dubai surged during the first six months, up 46.9 per cent on transactions recorded during the same period the previous year.

DLD, which is responsible for recording details of all property sales, mortgage transactions and other property deals in the emirate, said that cash sales accounted for 54 per cent of total transactions taking place over the period, with 22,096 deals taking place worth a total of Dh61.5bn.

At the same time 6,922 mortgages were taken out during the period worth Dh47.3bn.

“The real estate market in Dubai is able to regenerate and offer a variety of products to attract investors. We believe that Dubai can sustain this level of attraction and build on the momentum that is developing from the increased demand,” said Sultan Butti bin Merjen, the DLD Director General.

Dubai Marina was the area with the most cash sales for apartments, with 2,576 changing hands over the period for Dh5.87bn. It was followed by Business Bay, Al Thenaya Al Khamesa, Al Warsan 1 and Burj Khalifa.

Dubai Marina was also the neighbourhood where the most mortgages were taken out on apartments with 751 transactions worth Dh1.36bn. It was followed by Business Bay and Al Thunaya 5.

Al Hibiya 3 was the area with the most land sales, with 938 transactions worth Dh3.09bn taking place. This district was followed by Al Barsha South 4, Al Thenaya Al Khamesa, Wadi Al Safa 5 and Jabal Ali 1. Analysts pointed out that more detailed DLD figures indicate that although the value of transactions remains similar in the second quarter of the year, the number of transactions during the final three months fell significantly.

“The number of transactions [in the second quarter] dropped 10 per cent quarter-on-quarter and 18 per cent year-on-year,” said Matthew Green, the head of research at CBRE’s Dubai office.

The National