THE NEWS DESK

Dubai Posts Biggest Single-Day Turnover of 2025: AED 4.46 Bn in 24 hr

Sunday 29 Sep lived up to its "Golden Sunday" nickname with 1,537 registrations worth a record AED 4.46 billion—the highest one-day tally this year and +36 % above the previous peak set in March.

  • Headline deal: a 153,000 sq ft Business Bay plot that changed hands for AED 362 million (AED 2,366/ft²), setting a new benchmark for commercial land on the bay.

  • Star re-sale: a Marina Gate 2 three-bed that last traded in 2015 at AED 4.4 M resold for AED 7.3 M, a 64 % gain in ten years and a net 7.8 % gross yield for the seller who leased it out.

  • Geography: Business Bay led the value table (AED 494 M), followed by JVC (AED 312 M) and Dubai South (AED 283 M).

Why it matters: One-day spikes usually precede quarter-end portfolio shuffles, but volumes stayed elevated on Monday, implying genuine liquidity rather than a single institutional shuffle.

Source: DLD transfer files

September Scoreboard: 20,127 Deals Worth AED 54.3 Bn—Best Sept on Record

September wrapped with +11.3 % more transactions and +21 % more value than Sep-24, sealing the busiest third-quarter close ever.

  • Segment split: Apartments 17,112 sales (AED 31.8 Bn); plots 1,545 sales (AED 15.7 Bn); villas only 955 sales (AED 5.2 Bn) as stock dried up.

  • Average city-wide transacted price hit AED 1,689/ft², up 2.8 % month-on-month and 31 % above 2014’s previous high.

  • Mortgages slipped: 3,787 new loans (-9.2 % YoY) worth AED 12.1 Bn (-24 % YoY), the first double-digit decline since Jan-23—evidence that cash and payment-plan buyers are crowding out leveraged demand.

Take-away: With off-plan now 62 % of YTD volume, developers control pricing power, but the mortgage dip shows locals are being priced into equity partnerships rather than vanilla home loans.

Source: Kelt & Co Realty monthly digest

Branded Residence Mania: Aman Tower Flat Fetches AED 83 M, Villas Hit AED 200 M

Luxury set new ceilings last week.

  • Most expensive apartment: full-floor unit in Aman Residences Tower 1, Jumeirah Second, closed at AED 83 M (AED 5,650/ft²)—the priciest flat sale of 2025 and 18 % above the last penthouses in the same project.

  • Most expensive villa: a World Islands palace that traded for AED 200 M, doubling the previous island record set in 2021.

  • Branded premium: data from Knight Frank show branded units now command a 40 % price premium over non-branded stock in the same micro-markets, while still offering 5–6 % net yields thanks to ultra-high rents.

Investor angle: Trophy buyers are treating these assets as “crypto-proof” store-of-value rather than yield plays, explaining why cap-rates below 4 % are still acceptable.

Source: Arabian Business top-deals tracker

JVC Crowned Yield King at 7.39 % as Binghatti Tops Volume Table

Looking for cash-flow? The numbers say head north-west.

  • Jumeirah Village Circle averaged 7.39 % gross yield in September with entry prices still around AED 1,238/ft²—nearly twice Downtown’s 3.8 %.

  • Volume champs:

    1. Binghatti Skyrise – 318 sales, AED 577.8 M

    2. Binghatti Aquarise – 305 sales, AED 512.6 M

    3. Damac Islands-Seychelles 2 – 176 villa sales, AED 531.6 M

  • Payment edge: 70 % of buyers in the two Binghatti towers opted for 1 % per-month post-handover plans, effectively leveraging rental income to cover installments.

Bottom line: With Q4 launches already 45 % pre-sold, yield hunters may have to accept smaller unit sizes or move toward Dubai South where similar 7 % yields still exist below AED 900/ft².

Source: Kelt & Co Realty project leaderboard