Dubai Rents Fall Up to 14% in Some Areas as Tenants Switch Homes, Betterhomes Says

Overall rents eased by about 3%, Betterhomes representatives said during a webinar on the market and the company's Future Living Report 2026, though results varied widely by community. Rents in Jumeirah Islands rose 29%, which the firm attributed to continued demand for more exclusive neighbourhoods.

The figures point to a market where tenants, not landlords, have more leverage. New leases rose 19% in October while renewals fell 25%, Betterhomes said, suggesting residents are shopping for alternatives rather than renewing automatically.

Sales have slowed more sharply. Off-plan transactions came to just under 6,400 in October, about half the level of a year earlier, though off-plan still made up roughly 62% of sales. Betterhomes linked the drop to far fewer project launches as developers turned cautious. In the secondary market, deals rose from about 3,500 in September to more than 3,800 in October but remained around 40% below last year. Average resale prices were about Dh1,650 per square foot, down around 2.4% year on year, and sellers were generally achieving 8% to 9% below their asking prices.

The company's resident survey, conducted in June and July among nearly 2,000 people of 63 nationalities, pointed to longer-term commitment despite the slowdown. Ninety-one per cent said they intended to stay in Dubai for at least five more years and 69% for 10 years or more. Homeownership among respondents rose to 32%, from 28% in 2025 and 23% in 2024, and 55% of tenants said they planned to buy within one to three years. Seventy per cent said their confidence in Dubai as a place to live and invest had held steady or grown despite regional developments.

Buyers are also becoming more selective: 76% of respondents rated a developer's track record as important, 74% construction quality and 58% on-time delivery, while 77% wanted more parks and walkable areas in new projects.

Betterhomes said transaction volumes could recover in the coming months but gave no view on when or by how much.