RIYADH: Dubai’s real estate sector completed 104 projects worth more than 111 billion dirhams ($30.22 billion) in the first half of 2026, with investment value rising 52 percent from a year earlier, official data showed.
The number of completed projects increased 38.7 percent from 75 in the first half of 2025, according to data from the Dubai Land Department. The investment value of completed projects rose from 73 billion dirhams in the year-earlier period.
The figures underscore the continued expansion of Dubai’s property market, which has remained a key pillar of the emirate’s broader economic diversification strategy.
The growth in Dubai’s real estate sector comes amid continued construction and urban-development activity across the Gulf Cooperation Council region. Saudi Arabia issued more than 34,000 building permits across the Kingdom from January through June, while Qatar recorded 2,240 building permits in the second quarter, up 26.1 percent from the previous quarter.
Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, and Chairman of the Executive Council of Dubai, said: “The significant increase in the volume of real estate transactions and projects and the value of investment flows in these projects is a testament to the renewed international confidence of the global business community and investors in the strength of Dubai’s economic environment.”
He added: “The Emirate has succeeded in consolidating an integrated economic model based on a flexible legislative system, advanced infrastructure, high transparency, and a solid strategic partnership with the private sector, which enhances its ability to attract global capital and provide a secure investment environment that ensures the highest rates of growth and returns.”
Al Maktoum further said that the results achieved in the first half of 2026 confirm Dubai is advancing steadily toward the goals of its Economic Agenda, also known as D33, which aims to double the size of the emirate’s economy and cement its place among the world’s top three economic cities.
Surge in projects, residential units
The first half of 2026 saw a surge in the completion of new investment real estate projects, underscoring a strategic focus by developers and investors on delivering quality projects that enhance Dubai’s urban landscape.
Data from the Dubai Land Department also showed a marked increase in residential supply. The number of new residential units rose by more than 36 percent to 24,537 units, compared with 18,043 units in the first half of the previous year. Completed built-up areas ready for handover grew by more than 23.4 percent to 1.95 million sq. meters, up from 1.58 million sq. meters in the same period of 2025.
The cost of land allocated to projects jumped by more than 135 percent to 19.46 billion dirhams, from 8.27 billion dirhams in the corresponding period of 2025.
The area of land allocated for completed projects roughly doubled to about one million sq. meters, compared with 484,000 sq. meters in the first half of last year.