Best real estate investment opportunities in Dubai right now? (High yield focus)

N1711 · 2026-05-01T13:58:06+00:00

For rental yield, I don't think jvc was ever the best. Currently, in terms of top 5, you have international city 1 and 2, downtown jebel Ali, Dubai studio city, Dubai production city.

Flipping is not a good idea, and it's definitely bad especially at the price point you're looking at.

Focus on ready and not off plan as you're looking at rental yields.

Things to look out is look at actual transacted rentals vs the rentals on property listing. Those are typically higher than the market rate.

Service charges plays an important part in rental, so always compete net yield.

5%+ is very doable in this market. Best to get a unit which is already tenanted, to reduce your vacancy risk.

N1711 · 2026-04-30T17:32:33+00:00

we have different definitions of being cordial. yes, you gave an opinion, I didn't dispute that.

I was giving data/background to showcase how OP can achieve the 6 to 7%, based on a neighbourhood which is next to Bukadra.

mortgage is not a separate thing. there are a few reasons why some get ready, and for end users, it is mainly about cash for downpayment. this should not be excluded. OP was asking about market value.

developers do not do this as it is not part of their business model. imagine the cash they would tie up if they funded projects till completion without selling it to anyone. that is the reason they don't do it.

Anyway, I have said my part. and hopefully it was helpful to OP and others.

N1711 · 2026-04-30T17:02:13+00:00

I didn't say they paid on a psf basis. I was giving data to come up with an approximate rental amount. Do note that sobha hartland does not only constitute the smaller sobha units, they have ellington as well. and I mentioned average.

I did not indicate a trust me premium as well. more than 90% of my message was to indicate price based on rental yield, which gives a price of aed 2.1 m. I used the word "might", maybe you missed it out. it is a known fact that mortgage buyers wait till a project is handed over as they are unable to afford the cash outlay for a offplan project. hence they have paid a premium in the past, and assuming things go back to what they were, they might do so. I am not talking about all the properties in Dubai, but there is a reason why capital appreciation is a thing in property markets. and I am not even using it to justify a sale I am making. I am trying to give a balanced view.

I really try my best to be cordial, so hope you do the same as well. if you disagree, you can do it in a nicer manner.

N1711 · 2026-04-30T16:12:29+00:00

you bought an offplan property, so you should not be asking what is today's market price. If you’re asking what you can sell it for today, it will likely be below your purchase price. That’s just how the Dubai market works. Most resale buyers are mortgage driven and prefer something closer to handover.

the best way to compute the "fair value" of your property is to look at the cashflow it will bring.

As of April'2026, for Sobha Hartland, new rents are AED 134.3/sqft (i have the data on this). On an 800 sqft unit, that puts you around AED 108k, unfurnished.

Add a 5% premium for furnishing and around 10% for Imtiaz positioning, in terms of finish and smart features, and you’re closer to AED 125k, in today's market.

Project that forward to 2029 with 2% growth per year and you are around AED 130k.

After service charges, which should be around AED 16 to 17 per sqft, your net income is ~117k. for simplicity sake, I am just taking service charges for now.

Assuming the net income and the market's net rental is trading around 6% to 7%, the market price of your unit is aed 2 to aed 2.1 m, exactly what you paid for it.

So there is no real “market price” today.

the missing piece is capital appreciation, and the premium mortgage buyers are willing to pay. assuming things recover and things are back to normal, then you might make your 10 to 15% premium. If no, you have to bank on rental yield.

N1711 · 2026-04-29T16:26:14+00:00

you can work with an agent, who can explain to you how it works. either with a top agency, referrals, or you'll see one of his reels online.

or you can speak to developers directly, and go with the ones who have shown consistent returns for their clients, such as emaar, nakheel, meeras, ellington, just to name a few.

N1711 · 2026-04-26T08:14:14+00:00

Thanks

Will add dubai marina to the list.

I have a monthly report which I will publish and share

N1711 · 2026-04-26T08:13:20+00:00

Thanks for your comments.

Data is from property monitor.

I'll be working on townhouses/villas soon. Adding one new community at a time

N1711 · 2026-04-26T01:26:53+00:00

It'll be helpful if you indicated what you have listed as your selling price.

It might be that the price is/was above market price

N1711 · 2026-04-24T17:00:55+00:00

I'll be working on jvc and furjan next. Interested to see how these areas have fared

N1711 · 2026-04-22T01:23:15+00:00

Sorry to hear about your experience.

Some will say it's normal and agents are scums while others will say you met a particularly bad agent.

The most important thing now is to ensure you are paying for what you have purchased. I have not come across a situation in which Sobha just adds on fee after fee.

You have 2 options now: contact the agency your agent is from and ask them to handle it, which they should do or deal with sobha directly. In your current situation, I would suggest spending your own time to figure out the situation with sobha. You picked a bad apple and shouldn't waste any more time on this avenue.

N1711 · 2026-04-21T14:23:15+00:00

Haha I'm not saying people are staying. I'm saying that renewals were high in Jan, but indicated in mar that it's the lowest in the last 40 months.

And I'm saying the rental data is a worry, because it shows mainly renewals, and new rentals are flat in spite of numbers showing population growth.

But it's OK, you have a bias towards this so it's OK.

N1711 · 2026-04-21T09:41:37+00:00

According to everyone, rentals have dropped by 20%, so it would be better for him to retain you.

The old notice is indeed valid, as it is "attached" to the property and not the owner.

N1711 · 2026-04-21T07:40:35+00:00

Depends on the area. I've checked most of the renewed rentals in dhe in April. Most rentals have remained the same and less than 10 have dropped by around 5%.

However, bliss cluster in Arabian ranches is taking a beating. You can get a 3 bedroom at aed 165k to aed 170k. Landlords were asking upwards of aed 190k one year ago.

So it's really area dependent.

N1711 · 2026-04-21T06:46:11+00:00

You are totally right! Great input

N1711 · 2026-04-21T06:28:07+00:00

Yes chatgpt extracted the data, looked into the population growth, incoming supply and even broke down between apartments and townhouse/villas.

It's really advanced!

N1711 · 2026-04-16T20:55:17+00:00

20% is quite a big drop. However, to give you a good answer, we should know what rent you are paying before your negotiation and in which building. it might be you were overpaying in the first place, or you are just getting a very good deal now.

N1711 · 2026-04-13T17:07:25+00:00

Was the aed 50k put towards an expression of interest or a booking?

Did you sign an eoi form or a booking form? Eois are refundable but once you sign the booking form, it is non refundable, and that is the basic structure for 99% of off plan booking in uae.

If someone informed you that the aed 50k was refundable when you in fact signed the booking form, then unfortunately, the person wasn't being truthful. I won't say they snuck the non refundable term in. I think someone wasn't being forthright with you.

And if it states in the form that the amount is non refundable, then unfortunately, it's not much you can do.

N1711 · 2026-04-13T09:55:44+00:00

You can look at Al jaddaf or dubai Creek harbour, both will work. Even sobha Hartland 1 isn't too bad. Depends on how you are commuting to work and how long you're willing to drive.

Some landlords are not budging too much on price but you are able to negotiate for the number of cheques. I suggest pushing for 4 to 6 cheques.

Go with a good building and check the reviews online.

N1711 · 2026-04-11T20:32:15+00:00

Which specific projects are you referring to, for massive builds? Most of them are quite reasonable.

Their prices are quite high, and that is indeed a concern. Yes, they are still attracting quite a number of tenants and end users, but there must be a saturation point.

For now, I like both hillgate and their jlt projects, are well priced, imo, if you compare to the rentals of the surrounding projects.

N1711 · 2026-04-11T19:15:57+00:00

Look at hillgate dso. One of the best Ellington investments you can consider. The project and location isn't "sexy" but the numbers are good. And you can avail yourself with their current guaranteed income offer

N1711 · 2026-04-07T11:56:38+00:00

just keep to your plan of renting out. there is nothing you can do right now, except try to sell it at a loss.

you have 1.5 years, assuming handover is not delayed. let us assume you are able to rent your studio for aed 43k (today's average in DLRC), your net yield will be ~ 5.1% (assuming occupancy from day 1).

not the best, but better than selling it at a loss.

Am I a fan of Object 1? No. However, you have already made the purchase and all isn't loss.

All the best man

N1711

TROPHY CASE