Dubai Real Estate Delivery Surges: 104 Projects, AED 111 Billion Completed in H1 2026

Dubai developers completed 104 real estate projects worth more than AED 111 billion in the first half of 2026, a 38.7% increase in project count and a 52% jump in aggregate investment value compared to the same period in 2025, when 75 projects totalling AED 73 billion crossed the finish line.

The delivery numbers were substantial across every metric. New residential unit completions in Dubai reached 24,537 units, up more than 36% year-over-year. Ready-to-deliver construction areas grew 23.4%, reaching 1.95 million square meters against 1.58 million square meters in the prior half-year. The pipeline, in short, is moving faster than it was twelve months ago.

Land allocation figures told an even sharper story. The cost of land designated for completed developments jumped 135% to AED 19.46 billion from AED 8.27 billion. The physical area of that land roughly doubled, from 484,000 square meters in the first half of 2025 to approximately one million square meters by mid-2026. Both figures point to a construction cycle that is not only accelerating but growing more capital-intensive with each passing period.

Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi’s transaction market expanded at a pace that outstripped even Dubai’s delivery surge. Total real estate transaction value in the capital reached approximately AED 117 billion across the first six months, a 112% increase from the same 2025 window. Transaction count rose 61.7%. Sales transactions drove the bulk of activity, generating AED 86.1 billion through 16,838 deals, a 163.7% increase. Mortgage transactions accounted for AED 26.7 billion.

Foreign capital inflows into Abu Dhabi were the standout figure. Foreign direct investment in Abu Dhabi real estate climbed to approximately AED 13.8 billion, a 309% increase that already exceeded the full-year 2025 total by mid-year. Investors from 116 nationalities participated. Investment zones alone attracted approximately AED 75 billion.

The Abu Dhabi Real Estate Center reported that residential unit sales totalled AED 70.4 billion, with off-plan property accounting for 89% of sales value and 82% of transaction count. Resale prices increased 20% for apartments and 12% for villas. On the leasing side, approximately 233,000 valid residential lease contracts were active, with total lease value reaching AED 9.3 billion, an 8% annual increase.

Sharjah recorded AED 29.5 billion in real estate transaction value during the first half, a 9.3% increase, with transaction count growing to 59,460, up 23.7%. Residential properties led sales activity with 13,501 transactions. Mortgage transactions reached AED 7.6 billion. The emirate drew investors from 121 nationalities. Citizen investments totalled approximately AED 14.9 billion, Arab investments recorded about AED 5 billion, and investments from other nationalities reached approximately AED 8.2 billion. Eleven new real estate projects were registered during the period.

Ajman processed 6,815 transactions worth more than AED 10.8 billion. Trading transactions accounted for AED 7.64 billion, mortgage transactions for AED 1.88 billion. Ras Al Khaimah recorded AED 2.89 billion in transaction value from January through June, with sales transactions totalling AED 1.353 billion across 1,274 deals, mortgage transactions reaching AED 1.160 billion through 463 transactions, and real estate concessions adding approximately AED 380 million.

Taken together, the first-half data across all five emirates reflects a construction and transaction ecosystem operating well above its 2025 baseline. The more pressing question heading into the second half of 2026 is whether contractor capacity, land supply, and regulatory processing can keep pace with a pipeline that, by every available measure, is still expanding.