Aldar sells Abu Dhabi's 'most expensive' penthouse for $37m

Aldar, the biggest listed developer in Abu Dhabi, has sold the emirate’s most expensive apartment for Dh137 million ($37 million) as demand for luxury property continues to rise in the UAE capital.

The three-bedroom penthouse, covering an entire floor at Nobu Residences Abu Dhabi, also fetched the emirate's highest price per square metre, at more than Dh96,000 a square metre, Aldar said on Monday.

Aldar's record transaction follows the recent sale of a four-bed duplex sky villa, also at Nobu Residences Abu Dhabi, for Dh130 million.

“This milestone transaction at Nobu Residences not only sets a new benchmark for residential property in Abu Dhabi but also underscores the maturity of the real estate market,” said Talal Al Dhiyebi, group chief executive of Aldar.

“Year on year, we are seeing healthy increases in both the volume and value of homes purchased, driven by supportive government policies and initiatives that have increased the attractiveness of Abu Dhabi.”

The property market in the UAE has maintained a robust growth momentum after it bounced back from the coronavirus-induced slowdown in 2021.

The ValuStrat Price Index, which analyses changes in property values, grew by 4.2 per cent annually for the UAE capital last year.

Aldar also recently sold a four-bed duplex sky villa at Nobu Residences for Dh130 million. Photo Aldar

Abu Dhabi recorded 2,238 off-plan sales transactions last year, which represented 75.1 per cent of overall sales and an increase of 39.4 per cent from the same period in 2022.

Ready home sales volumes rose by 36.5 per cent annually last year.

Saadiyat Island registered the highest annual capital gains in the fourth quarter, as villa prices rose by 12.6 per cent, ValuStrat said in its latest quarterly real estate review report.

The island was also among the best performing in terms of apartment sales, with a 4.1 per cent increase in prices in the last three months of 2023.

Luxury property demand is on the rise in the emirate and developers are launching new developments to capitalise on the trend.

In November, Aldar launched the sale of branded properties at Nobu Residences Abu Dhabi on Saadiyat Island.

Located in the upmarket Mamsha Al Saadiyat, Nobu Residences includes 88 apartments, a 125-room hotel, a Nobu restaurant and a rooftop bar.

The development is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2027.

Penthouse living room at Nobu Residences Abu Dhabi. Photo Aldar

Aldar expects the trend to continue and will continue to bring “the UAE’s most luxurious lifestyle concepts to life” on Saadiyat Island, as well as at some other prime locations in Abu Dhabi, Mr Al Dhiyebi said.

“Abu Dhabi’s real estate sector continues to gain significant momentum, with a sustained surge in demand across property types,” said Rashed Al Omaira, acting director general at Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre.

“This new record reflects the resilience and maturity of our real estate market, reaffirming the solid growth of Abu Dhabi as a preferred place in which to live, work and invest.”

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The biog

Hometown: Cairo

Age: 37

Favourite TV series: The Handmaid’s Tale, Black Mirror

Favourite anime series: Death Note, One Piece and Hellsing

Favourite book: Designing Brand Identity, Fifth Edition

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Sole survivors

Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.

On Instagram: @WithHopeUAE

Although social media can be harmful to our mental health, paradoxically, one of the antidotes comes with the many social-media accounts devoted to normalising mental-health struggles. With Hope UAE is one of them.
The group, which has about 3,600 followers, was started three years ago by five Emirati women to address the stigma surrounding the subject. Via Instagram, the group recently began featuring personal accounts by Emiratis. The posts are written under the hashtag #mymindmatters, along with a black-and-white photo of the subject holding the group’s signature red balloon.
“Depression is ugly,” says one of the users, Amani. “It paints everything around me and everything in me.”
Saaed, meanwhile, faces the daunting task of caring for four family members with psychological disorders. “I’ve had no support and no resources here to help me,” he says. “It has been, and still is, a one-man battle against the demons of fractured minds.”
In addition to With Hope UAE’s frank social-media presence, the group holds talks and workshops in Dubai. “Change takes time,” Reem Al Ali, vice chairman and a founding member of With Hope UAE, told The National earlier this year. “It won’t happen overnight, and it will take persistent and passionate people to bring about this change.”