Dubai property market to enjoy sustained growth in 2018

Dubai’s real estate sector is predicted to enjoy sustained growth in 2018, according to consultancy firm Knight Frank.

Significant government investment which is spurring economic development ahead of Expo 2020 Dubai is driving demand, according to the industry analyst.

Its 2018 Forecast report analysed the property market fortunes of 13 cities around the world, with Paris, France, topping the table with a forecast 9 percent growth.

Prime residential prices in Dubai are less than a fifth of those found in the world's most expensive property market, according to the recent New World Wealth's Global Wealth Migration Review.

The report revealed that top-end real estate in Dubai was priced at around US$8,400 per square metre in the third quarter of 2017, up $200 per square metre year-on-year. While this was almost $2,000 per square metre more expensive than property in neighbouring Abu Dhabi, it appears very affordable when compared to Monaco – the world’s most expensive property market –where prime real estate is priced at $48,000 per square metre. Dubai topped the league table for the Middle East in terms of property prices.

According to the Dubai Land Department (DLD), investors from 217 countries worldwide invested a total of AED151 billion ($41.1 billion) in Dubai’s real estate market between January 2016 and June 2017.

Many market analysts believe the introduction of the 5 percent value added tax (VAT) in the UAE this month will boost this number significantly in 2018.

They believe the new level of transparency in real estate transactions brought about by the introduction of VAT will provide a vital extra incentive to institutional investors.
The VAT Law will be applied to all products and services in the UAE, unless exempted or zero rated by federal law. Many real estate experts believe the sector will benefit due to a “more open and clear system” in which to invest.