The flat market in Jumeirah, Palm Jumeirah and Downtown Dubai recorded the highest gains.

Real estate analysts said Jumeirah Village Circle, Business Bay and Dubai Marina were the top areas to buy property in Dubai as the market remained strong from the first quarter, with February proving to be a record-breaking month with 8,515 transactions.

Damac Lagoons, Arabian Ranches 3, Al Yelayiss 2. According to Zoom Property Insights, Nad Al Sheba First and The Valley remained popular with villa buyers, while for flats, JVC, Dubai Marina, Business Bay and Dubai Creek Harbour were the top choices .

Jumeirah, Palm Jumeirah and Downtown Dubai recorded the highest gains in the flat market, while Palm Jumeirah, Emirates Hills and Jumeirah recorded the highest jumps in price per square foot for villas.

The off-plan market is driving Dubai real estate as it recorded a slightly over 78 per cent increase in sales, Zoom Insights reported, compared to a jump of 18.8 per cent in the secondary market.

Insights data also revealed that a total of 17,741 transactions have been recorded so far in 2023. In terms of prices, the market witnessed increases of 10.5 per cent and 11.5 per cent in January and February respectively.

Ata Shobeiry, CEO of Zoom Property, cited rising demand and increased interest from high net worth individuals as the main reasons for Dubai real estate's outperformance." Despite the global challenges of inflation, the Dubai real estate market continues its upward trend, attracting foreign investors and high net worth individuals. Judging by recent trends, both prices and demand will increase over time," he said.

The average price per square foot for flats has reached Dhs1,211, while villas are priced at Dhs1,432. The highest sales transactions were recorded in Damac Lagoons, Arabian Ranches 3 and Al Yelayiss 2. February 2023 also saw Nad Al Sheba First and The Valley gaining popularity among villa buyers.

In terms of price per square foot, flats in Jumeirah, Palm Jumeirah and Downtown Dubai recorded the highest increases at Dhs2,388, Dhs2,311 and Dhs2,278 respectively. In terms of villas, The Palm Jumeirah (Dhs4,309), Emirates Hills (Dhs2,428) and Jumeirah (Dhs2,325) recorded the highest price jumps per square foot.

"With the recent launch of several new projects, the Dubai real estate market continues to attract the attention of high net worth individuals and foreign investors, and poses stiff competition to other advanced metropolitan cities. I expect this upward trend to continue throughout the year, making it another record-breaking year for Dubai real estate."

According to Zoom Property Insights for February 2023, the top performing areas included Jumeirah Village Circle (with nearly 1,000 transactions worth Dh774 million), Business Bay (with 770 transactions worth Dh1,327 million) and Dubai Marina (with 767 transactions worth Dh2.727 billion), are the best areas to buy property in Dubai.

Madhav Dhar, co-founder and chief operating officer of ZaZEN Real Estate, said the UAE's real estate sector is driven by expatriates who want to stay in the country for the long term. Data shows that in February, 41 per cent were looking for one-bedroom units and 33 per cent were looking for two-bedroom units.

"We saw a similar trend in our flagship project ZaZEN One, launched last year, which sold out within six months, and in our recent project ZaZEN Gardens in Al Furjan, located near the Gardens metro, which has been well received."

According to ZaZEN, Dubai's residential market witnessed a 43.8% increase in demand last month with 9,020 sales transactions compared to 6,310 in February 2022. The off-plan market has been a driving factor in the growth of real estate in the UAE.

In February 2023, Dubai saw a 77.8% year-on-year increase in off-plan transactions. More than 4,500 transactions were registered, compared to 2,533 in the same period last year. The growth in this segment maintains its trend of supporting the strength of the overall real estate market in Dubai.