– General Residential
On a citywide level, residential prices have been trending upwards now since late 2020. As of December 2023, the citywide price index had reached its highest value since mid-2015.
– Apartments Analysis
The only discernible trend has been that price drops have been more common in larger apartments, perhaps indicating that demand for luxury apartments is starting to decline. At the same time the issue of weightage has to be considered here, as this does not account for several factors that can drastically affect the results of an index construction. Sample size also has to be considered (i.e. a sample that makes up 10% of the overall market at best should not be interpreted as indicative of any significant shifts in sentiment).
– Villas Evaluation
Like apartments, falling prices have trended towards larger villas, perhaps suggesting that demand for luxury properties across the market is now declining. However, villas arguably have an even greater scope for variability than apartments, further calling into question the significance of a six-month sample size that hardly begins to consider any number of variables that could drastically change the outlook of an index; the UAE Central Bank’s index from their 2023 Q3 report is just one example of this.