Abu Dhabi Property Deals Rise 76% to AED171 Billion in Nine Months, Official Data Show

The number of deals in the capital rose 32.8% to 38,483. Foreign investors drove much of the growth. ADREC data showed foreign investment in investment zones, where non-nationals may buy, rose 131% to AED86.11 billion, or 81% of the value traded in those areas. Non-resident individuals invested AED17.22 billion, more than double the AED8.2 billion they put in during all of 2025.

The figures show Abu Dhabi's market growing much faster than its neighbours in value terms this year, despite the war-driven sell-off in UAE equities. Sales rose 105% in value to AED119.33 billion across 23,749 deals, while mortgages totalled AED45.92 billion. ADREC registered 54 new development projects in the period, and the number of licensed real estate professionals rose 32% to 3,677.

Dubai remains far larger. Dubai Land Department data showed transactions approaching AED625 billion across 181,866 deals in the first ten months of 2026, made up of about AED411.98 billion in sales, about AED164 billion in mortgages and about AED49 billion in gifts. The roundup did not give a year-on-year comparison for Dubai's ten-month total. In the first half, 104 projects worth more than AED111 billion were completed in the emirate, up from 75 projects worth AED73 billion a year earlier.

Sharjah's transactions rose 5.6% to AED46.8 billion in the nine months, from AED44.3 billion, and the number of deals rose 14% to 91,560. Buyers came from 130 nationalities, and 9,891 new investors entered the market. Sales totalled AED35 billion across 24,749 deals, and mortgages about AED10.2 billion.

In Ajman, October brought 1,140 transactions worth AED1.95 billion. Ras Al Khaimah recorded about AED2.89 billion of transactions in the first half, including AED1.353 billion in sales and AED1.160 billion in mortgages.

The roundup draws only on official transaction volumes and does not cover prices or rents. Independent data on those measures has been weaker in parts of Dubai. Abu Dhabi's figures run only to September, so the effect of the latest round of regional attacks on deal flow will not show until the fourth-quarter data.