Real estate transactions are going through the roof in Dubai – and new figures show that cash buyers account for more 80 per cent of the value of property sold in the emirate so far this year.
The Government of Dubai Land Department revealed that across the emirate the total value of real estate transactions – a figure that includes sales of property and land and the value of new mortgages – soared to Dhs108 billion ($29.4 billion) in the first six months of 2013.
That's a hefty 30 per cent more than the figure recorded at the same point last year, and the Land Department's director general Sultan bin Mejren predicted that the emirate's rapidly recovering property market would continue to surge ahead.
And the department revealed that Dhs28.8 billion of that figure came from the sale of property units – across more than 21,300 transactions. In a striking statistic, it also revealed that Dhs23.2 billion of that figure – or almost 81 per cent – came from transactions that did not require a mortgage. Mortgages accounted for just Dhs4.7 billion of the value of sales.
And there's one area of Dubai in particular where buyers are particularly keen to pick up a property, judging by the latest figures. Dubai Marina takes top spot for sales of property and land so far this year – with more than 3,700 transactions worth Dhs6.6 billion recorded by the end of June.
It's not just completed properties that are seeing an increase in interest from buyers either – the Land Department stats show that land sales reached Dhs75 billion in the first half of 2013 in 7,277 transactions – an increase of 69 per cent on the same period last year.
Bin Mejren said "investors continue to capitalize on opportunities that have risen as a result of price corrections witnessed in the market over the past two years". And he sees little sign of an end to the surge in sales – saying that as prices continue to rise in the months ahead "investors will be encouraged to increase their spending in Dubai".
7Days
19 July
