Dubai luxury property soars

Luxury house prices in Dubai increased more than a tenth in the first half of the year making them the fastest rising properties in the world over that period, a new report has said.

Luxury house prices in Dubai increased more than a tenth in the first half of the year, making them the fastest-rising properties in the world over that period, according to a new report.

The international property broker Knight Frank has reported house prices in the emirate rose by 11.9 per cent in the six months to the end of June.

Between April and June prime property prices increased 6.1 per cent, the researchers found as the emirate's property market continues to recover from the 2008 crash.

Knight Frank also found over the past full year to June Dubai's prime house prices rocketed by 21.6 per cent, coming second only to those in the fast-growing Indonesian capital, Jakarta, where prime property prices rose 27.2 per cent in the same period.

"The price of luxury villas began to rise in early 2012 and apartments are now following suit," said Kate Everett Allen, the associate partner for international residential research at Knight Frank.

"The city is attracting demand from North African, Asian and Middle Eastern buyers. Many are cash buyers."

The Chinese city of Shanghai came third in Knight Frank's study, with luxury house prices there rising 17.5 per cent over the 12 months to June, followed by St Petersburg, Tel Aviv and New York.

Meanwhile, prime prices in mainland Europe continued to fall with luxury property prices in Madrid down 11.9 per cent over the year, those in Paris down 10 per cent and those in Rome down 7.7 per cent.