Dubai’s commercial real estate market weathered a challenging second quarter marked by regional geopolitical uncertainty, with office and retail property sales posting triple-digit annual growth despite a slowdown in overall transaction activity.
According to a report by CRC Property, total commercial sales value fell 36 per cent quarter-on-quarter to Dh24.25 billion in the second quarter of 2026, while transaction volumes declined to 2,840 deals from 3,619 in the previous quarter. The brokerage attributed the moderation to the regional conflict that erupted in late February, which weighed on investor sentiment and delayed large-ticket investment decisions.
However, the market’s longer-term fundamentals remained intact. Office sales value surged 190 per cent year-on-year, while retail sales value jumped 178 per cent, signalling continued investor confidence in Dubai’s commercial property sector. CRC described the downturn as an event-driven correction rather than a structural shift in market momentum.
“Q2 2026 was a quarter that tested the resilience of Dubai’s commercial real estate market and it passed with encouraging signs of underlying strength,” said Behnam Bargh, managing director of CRC Property. “While transaction volumes corrected, institutional-grade capital continued to flow into premium office assets and the city has once again shown its ability to weather near-term disruption while staying anchored to the fundamentals that continue to attract capital from around the world.”
The office segment recorded 1,005 transactions during the quarter, down 35.8 per cent from the previous three months, but sales value slipped by a comparatively modest 8 per cent to Dh7.5 billion. Compared with an estimated Dh2.6 billion in office sales during the same period last year, the latest figures underscore the strength of demand for premium workspace assets.
Business Bay remained Dubai’s dominant office market, accounting for 441 transactions, nearly half of all office deals across the city. Al Sufouh 1 and Jumeirah Lakes Towers followed, while units smaller than 1,500 square feet represented more than 60 per cent of transactions, highlighting robust demand from small businesses, start-ups and owner-occupiers.
The retail segment also experienced a quarterly pullback, with sales value falling to Dh1.63 billion. Yet compared with Q2 2025, retail transaction volumes climbed nearly 59 per cent while sales value rose more than 178 per cent.
