Cash buyers account for 53% of Dubai ready property sales in August 2026
Cash buyers accounted for 53% of ready residential property transactions in Dubai in August 2026, exceeding mortgage-backed purchases by transaction volume, according to REIDIN's latest Dubai Residential Real Estate Market Overview.
A total of 1,704 completed homes were purchased in cash, representing 53% of the 3,216 ready-property transactions recorded during the month. Mortgage-backed purchases accounted for 1,512 transactions, or 47%.
The gap was narrower by value. Cash purchases totalled $1.15 billion (AED 4.24 billion), equivalent to 50.9% of ready-property sales value, while mortgage-backed transactions reached $1.11 billion (AED 4.09 billion), or 49.1%.
REIDIN's analysis covers ready residential sales only. Transactions without a recorded finance value are classified as cash purchases, while those with a recorded finance value are classified as mortgage-backed. Refinancing, mortgage top-ups and other secured lending transactions are excluded.
Palm Jumeirah leads Dubai cash property purchases by value
Palm Jumeirah recorded the highest value of cash purchases of ready homes in August at $169 million (AED 620 million), followed by Downtown Dubai at $103 million (AED 380 million) and Dubai Marina at $76 million (AED 280 million).
Jumeirah Village Circle ranked fourth by cash purchase value at $63 million (AED 230 million), followed by Dubai Hills Estate at $60 million (AED 220 million).
By transaction volume, Jumeirah Village Circle was the leading location for cash purchases, with 252 transactions. Business Bay followed with 130, Dubai Marina with 120, Downtown Dubai with 92 and International City with 83.
The rankings differed for mortgage-backed purchases. Damac Lagoons recorded the highest value at $60 million (AED 220 million), followed by Mudon at $54 million (AED 200 million). Dubai Hills Estate and Dubai Marina each recorded $52 million (AED 190 million), while Jumeirah Village Circle registered $44 million (AED 160 million).
Jumeirah Village Circle also led mortgage-backed purchases by volume, with 133 transactions, followed by Dubai Marina with 76, Business Bay with 73, Damac Lagoons with 64 and Dubai Hills Estate with 60.
Ready properties account for 28% of Dubai residential sales
Ready properties accounted for 28.1% of Dubai residential transactions in August, with 3,216 sales worth $2.27 billion (AED 8.33 billion). Their share of total residential sales value was higher at 34.1%.
Off-plan properties accounted for the majority of activity, with 8,224 transactions worth $4.38 billion (AED 16.10 billion), representing 71.9% of transaction volume and 65.9% of sales value.
Within the ready market, apartments accounted for 2,616 transactions worth $1.21 billion (AED 4.43 billion), while completed villas recorded 600 transactions valued at $1.06 billion (AED 3.90 billion).
Off-plan apartment sales reached 7,423 transactions worth $3.09 billion (AED 11.35 billion), while off-plan villas recorded 801 transactions valued at $1.29 billion (AED 4.75 billion).
Downtown Dubai tops ready apartment sales by value
Downtown Dubai recorded the highest value of ready apartment sales in August at $139 million (AED 510 million), followed by Dubai Marina at $128 million (AED 470 million), Business Bay at $98 million (AED 360 million), Jumeirah Village Circle at $93 million (AED 340 million) and Palm Jumeirah at $76 million (AED 280 million).
Jumeirah Village Circle led ready apartment sales by volume with 370 transactions, ahead of Business Bay with 203, Dubai Marina with 196, Downtown Dubai with 133 and Arjan with 105.
Palm Jumeirah ranked first for ready villa sales by value at $136 million (AED 500 million), followed by Emirates Hills at $84 million (AED 310 million), Damac Lagoons at $68 million (AED 250 million), Mudon at $57 million (AED 210 million) and Dubai Hills Estate at $52 million (AED 190 million).
By volume, Damac Lagoons recorded 69 ready villa transactions, followed by Damac Hills 2 with 63, Mudon with 53, The Springs with 28 and The Valley with 26.
Dubai residential property sales reach $6.65 billion in August
Across the wider Dubai residential property market, 11,440 sales worth $6.65 billion (AED 24.43 billion) were recorded in August, compared with 13,398 transactions valued at $7.21 billion (AED 26.49 billion) in July.
Transaction volume declined 14.6% month on month, while sales value fell 7.8%.
Apartments accounted for 10,039 transactions worth $4.30 billion (AED 15.78 billion), representing approximately 88% of total sales volume and 65% of value. Villas generated $2.36 billion (AED 8.65 billion) across 1,401 transactions, accounting for about 12% of volume and 35% of value.
Primary sales represented 69.3% of residential transaction volume, with 7,925 transactions worth $3.90 billion (AED 14.34 billion). Secondary-market sales totalled 3,515 transactions valued at $2.75 billion (AED 10.10 billion).
Apartments dominated primary sales, with 7,304 transactions worth $3.00 billion (AED 11 billion), while primary villa sales reached 621 transactions valued at $907 million (AED 3.33 billion).
In the secondary market, apartments recorded 2,735 transactions worth $1.30 billion (AED 4.78 billion), compared with 780 villa sales valued at $1.45 billion (AED 5.32 billion).
Luxury ready-property sales reach $621 million
Dubai recorded 253 luxury residential transactions worth a combined $1.55 billion (AED 5.71 billion) in August. REIDIN defines luxury transactions as residential sales valued at $2.72 million (AED 10 million) or more.
Off-plan properties accounted for 165 luxury transactions worth $934 million (AED 3.43 billion), representing 65.2% of transaction volume and 60.1% of value.
Ready luxury properties generated $621 million (AED 2.28 billion) from 88 transactions, equivalent to 39.9% of luxury sales value and 34.8% of volume.
Villas dominated the completed luxury segment, generating $477 million (AED 1.75 billion) across 61 transactions, compared with $144 million (AED 530 million) across 27 ready luxury apartment sales.
Palm Jumeirah led ready luxury locations by value, recording $169 million (AED 619.4 million) across 13 transactions. Emirates Hills followed with $84 million (AED 307.8 million) from four sales, while District One recorded $49 million (AED 180 million) from two transactions.
The highest-value residential transaction during the month was a ready villa in District One sold for $43.6 million (AED 160 million).
Palm Jumeirah accounted for three of the five largest villa transactions, at $34.0 million (AED 125 million), $31.9 million (AED 117 million) and $30.0 million (AED 110 million). All five of the highest-value villa transactions listed by REIDIN for August were ready properties.
REIDIN's report covers residential sales registered with the Dubai Land Department between 1 and 31 August 2026, excluding transactions in the Dubai International Financial Centre. It defines ready sales as transactions involving completed residential properties and off-plan sales as transactions in projects under development at the time of registration.
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