$28m Dubai villa is the most expensive sale in Emirates Hills this year

The five-bedroom property comes with a cinema, gym and swimming pool

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A luxury villa in Dubai's Emirates Hills has sold for Dh102.8 million ($27.9m) — the highest sale in the community so far this year.

The villa was sold by Myles Bush of Phoenix Homes, which said it is the second most expensive sale recorded in Emirates Hills.

The property, which sits on a plot of 38,000 square feet, has a built-up area of more than 20,000 square feet. It backs on to the Montgomerie Golf Club, and comes with five bedrooms, a private cinema, a swimming pool and a gym. It was sold by a Maltese businessman to an Indian entrepreneur.

Dubai's prime property sector has boomed in the past year, with prices rising almost 60 per cent in the past 12 months.

Mr Bush, who sealed deals for Dubai’s most expensive villa in 2016, its largest land sale in 2017 and its largest residential lease in 2019, said the sale "underlines the positive growth trajectory we are seeing in local real estate". He will receive a seven-figure commission as a result of Phoenix Homes' 80 per cent commission model.

The deal follows the recent record set for the most expensive sale of a residential property in Dubai.

A villa on Palm Jumeirah was sold by Belleview Real Estate's Conor McKay for Dh280m, eclipsing the previous record held for more than seven years by real estate broker Chris Boswell, who sold a Palm Jumeirah beachfront palace for Dh185m in 2015.

“It’s interesting to note that this year’s record-breaking sale also came from an agency which offers its brokers a similar 80 per cent commission model,” Mr Bush said.

"This is clearly the way forwards for high-achieving agencies to attract the best talent.”

Also, an apartment at the Bulgari Resort and Residences in Dubai last month set a record for the highest price per square foot in the city. The three-bedroom property on Jumeirah Bay Island sold for Dh40m — which equates to Dh12,624 per square foot.

Dubai registered 25,972 property transactions in the first quarter of this year, the highest number of quarterly deals since 2010, according to Mo’asher, the emirate’s official sales price index issued by the Dubai Land Department in partnership with Property Finder.

The emirate's property market has made a strong recovery from the pandemic-driven slowdown as the UAE's economy improves, helped by fiscal and monetary measures.

Consultancy Knight Frank reported a record-breaking 93 ultra-prime home sales last year and another 32 ultra-prime deals in the first quarter of 2022, exceeding the second best annual total set in 2015.

Prime areas include Palm Jumeirah, Emirates Hills and Jumeirah Bay Island, among others.

Updated: May 12, 2023, 1:41 PM