Dubai's real estate market delivered its strongest quarter on record in Q3 2024, with total sales turnover hitting AED 142 billion ($38.7 billion) — a milestone confirmed by Property Finder's latest market report. The emirate processed 50,439 transactions in a single quarter, the highest volume ever recorded, cementing Dubai's status as one of the world's most active property markets.
Off-Plan Sales Drive Historic Q3 2024 Surge
Off-plan properties were the dominant force behind Dubai's record-breaking Q3 2024 performance. Off-plan sales rose 58.7% year-on-year to reach 31,800 transactions — itself the highest quarterly figure on record for this segment. The total value of these deals climbed 42.3% to AED 67.45 billion ($18.4 billion), compared with AED 47.39 billion ($12.9 billion) in Q3 2023.
These numbers reflect a sustained and accelerating appetite among both investors and end-buyers for off-plan property, a trend that has gathered pace over successive quarters as new project launches and developer payment plans attract broader participation.
Ready Property Transactions Also Strengthen
While off-plan sales captured most of the headlines, the ready property segment demonstrated its own resilience. Transactions in this category rose 13.3% by volume to 18,639 deals in Q3 2024, up from 16,450 in the same period a year earlier. The total value reached AED 74.53 billion ($20.3 billion) — a 20.8% increase — and accounted for 52% of total transaction values for the quarter.
That the ready segment commands more than half of total transaction value even as off-plan volumes dominate is a sign of a well-balanced market, with both categories contributing meaningfully to overall growth.
Cherif Sleiman: A Shift Toward 'Buy-to-Live'
Cherif Sleiman, Chief Revenue Officer at Property Finder, pointed to a notable structural shift in buyer behaviour emerging from the Q3 2024 data. Rather than purely investment-driven purchases, the market is increasingly seeing demand from those intending to live in the properties they buy.
"This is the quarter that is revealing the trend of owning a property for use, as opposed to investment," Sleiman noted. In line with this, mortgage processing through Property Finder's advisory services has risen steadily, reflecting growing buy-to-live activity.
Dubai Real Estate Strategy 2033 Underpins Long-Term Outlook
The record Q3 2024 figures arrive against the backdrop of the Dubai Real Estate Strategy 2033, a government framework designed to ensure long-term market stability and sustainable growth. The strategy positions real estate as a core pillar of Dubai's broader economic ambitions, and the Q3 data suggests the market is performing in step with those goals.
Despite already operating at historic highs, Dubai's property market continues to attract both international investors and residents — a dual appeal that sets it apart from many global real estate markets and supports the outlook for continued activity into 2025.
