Abu Dhabi residential market records strong capital gains in the second quarter

Villa prices rose by 5.6% and apartment prices by 4.2% during the three-month period, ValuStrat report finds

Rental values in Abu Dhabi jumped 8.5 per cent annually and 2.2 per cent quarterly, according to a new report. Khushnum Bhandari / The National

Abu Dhabi’s residential market recorded strong annual capital gains in the second quarter of 2023 as the demand for property continues to rise in the emirate, a report by property consultancy ValuStrat has found.

The ValuStrat Price Index covering Abu Dhabi’s residential market grew by 4.9 per cent annually with villa prices rising by 5.6 per cent and apartment prices by 4.2 per cent in the three months to the end of June, the report said.

Saadiyat Island recorded the highest annual capital gains with villa prices increasing 9.2 per cent and apartments by 5.7 per cent in the April-June period.

Apartment prices in Al Reem, Al Muneera Island and Al Bandar rose 5.1 per cent on an annual basis, while villa prices in Mohamed Bin Zayed City, Al Reef, and Al Raha grew 5.4 per cent, 4.3 per cent, 5.6 per cent, respectively.

Rental values in Abu Dhabi also jumped 8.5 per cent annually and 2.2 per cent quarterly, the consultancy said in the report.

The UAE property market has bounced back strongly from the coronavirus pandemic thanks to government initiatives, higher oil prices and other measures to support the economy.

Abu Dhabi recorded 10,557 real estate transactions worth Dh46.33 billion ($12.61 billion) in the first half of 2023 amid strong demand from buyers, according to official data.

The value of the deals more than doubled during the six-month period, while the volume of transactions, which include property sales and mortgages, rose by 41 per cent on an annual basis, the Abu Dhabi media office reported last month, citing data from the Department of Municipalities and Transport.

The emirate recorded 6,730 real estate sale and purchase transactions valued at Dh25.09 billion during the period. There were also 3,827 mortgage transactions with a total value of Dh21.24 billion.

“Abu Dhabi's real estate market continues to thrive, showcasing a resilient and optimistic investor sentiment,” Adeeb Al Afifi, executive director of the property sector at DMT, said at the time.

In the first half of the year, 272 apartments were completed in Abu Dhabi with another 6,122 residential units to be completed for the rest of the year, according to ValuStrat data.

The average citywide residential asking price per square foot in the second quarter was up 6 per cent from the same period last year.

The average asking price for ready apartments in the second quarter rose 6.1 per cent annually to Dh13,989 per square metre, while the average asking price for ready villas jumped 5.8 per cent to Dh11,400 per square metre.

Abu Dhabi off-plan transaction volumes, which represented 69.1 per cent of overall sales, rose 78.6 per cent during the January-June period, while the ready property sales jumped 15.5 per cent boosting the property market.

Office asking rents in the primary commercial districts within the city rose 2 per cent year on year, with the average citywide asking rent for offices sized between 93 square metres and 186 square metres at Dh787 per square metre, the report said.

Average occupancy among buildings within the city’s central business districts stood at 91.3 per cent.