Dubai Land Department sales data · Q1 2024 to Q3 2026
Dubai saw a wave of regional uncertainty from 28 February 2026, when the Iran-US war began, and buyer activity cooled in response. But the number that matters most for anyone holding or buying property — price per square foot — barely moved. The median is down just 1.8% from its Q4 2025 peak, and still 6.5% higher than a year earlier. Deal activity slowed as buyers paused to watch events unfold, not because values gave way.
Through a sharp pullback in deal-making, the all-property median price per square foot stayed within 2% of its all-time Q4 2025 peak throughout the period on this page, and is still up year-on-year in every quarter shown. That is the clearest sign owners did not need to discount to sell.
The drop was concentrated in how many people transacted, not what sellers were getting for their property. Buyers who stayed in the market, or who bought in Q2 and Q3 2026, paid prices within a narrow band of the market's recent highs.
Q4 2025 and Q1 2026 were the two strongest quarters in this entire dataset, worth a combined AED 363 bn. Even the quietest quarter since, Q2 2026, still landed within the range of a normal 2024 quarter (AED 110-148 bn) — a cooling-off, not new territory for the market.
All property types, including plots.
All property types, including plots.
All-property median and apartment median. Q3 2026 all-property figure is the July DLD median.
| Quarter | Transactions | Value (AED bn) | Median AED/sqft | Apt AED/sqft | Volume YoY | Value YoY | PSF YoY |
|---|
January and February 2026 were record months, worth AED 71.7 bn and AED 60.8 bn, carrying Q1 to a record AED 175.9 bn. Momentum was strong heading into the quarter even as events in late February began to weigh on sentiment.
Value eased to AED 110.4 bn and volume to 38,257 deals as buyers took a wait-and-see approach. Villas saw the biggest pullback in activity. Importantly, this was buyers stepping back, not sellers cutting prices to move stock.
While deal count cooled, the all-property median price per square foot dipped only 1.8% from its Q4 2025 peak and stayed up year-on-year throughout. Some agreed-deal prices moved a little more at the margin — Betterhomes tracked about a 7% pullback (AED 1,850 to 1,688/sqft) — but the broader DLD median held firm.
The June memorandum of understanding eased regional tensions, and activity has since stabilised at roughly 12-14k sales a month. Q3 2026 provisional figures show about 37,200 deals worth AED 92.6 bn — broadly steady on Q2's volume, with the market finding its footing at a calmer, more measured pace than the record run of late 2025.
Source: Dubai Land Department transaction data, as compiled and reported by Ananta Prime Real Estate. Figures for Q3 2026 are provisional and subject to revision as the quarter closes. This page is for general market information and is not investment advice — speak with our team for guidance on a specific purchase or sale.