Here is how the week to Friday 16 October looked in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, based on registered sales. These are official registrations, so they trail the date a deal was agreed, and the latest days can still be revised.
Dubai at a glance
Dubai's figures cover Monday to Friday 12 to 16 October, compared with the whole of the previous week (5 to 11 October).
| Measure | 12 to 16 Oct | Previous week | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registered sales | 2,431 | 2,329 | +4.4% |
| Off-plan registrations | 1,620 | 1,486 | +9.0% |
| Ready homes (title deed) | 811 | 843 | −3.8% |
| Median sale price | AED 1,337,362 | AED 1,245,649 | +7.4% |
| Median price per sq ft, all sales | AED 1,618.5 | AED 1,647.3 | −1.7% |
Two thirds of the week's registrations (66.6%) were off-plan. A blended median mixes off-plan and resale homes, so it moves with the mix as much as with prices: the median price rose because bigger homes made up more of the week, while the price per sq ft eased slightly.
Which homes sold
Four and five-bedroom homes had the biggest jump in registrations, while studios fell back.
| Bedrooms | Sales | Previous week | Median price this week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | 605 | 713 | AED 655,000 |
| 1 | 828 | 762 | AED 1,184,849 |
| 2 | 435 | 410 | AED 2,042,344 |
| 3 | 222 | 196 | AED 2,975,000 |
| 4 | 217 | 148 | AED 3,900,000 |
| 5 | 89 | 69 | AED 6,270,000 |
By price band, the upper end was busier than the week before:
| Price band | Sales | Previous week |
|---|---|---|
| Under AED 1,000,000 | 772 | 860 |
| AED 1,000,000 to 1,999,999 | 824 | 724 |
| AED 2,000,000 to 4,999,999 | 600 | 536 |
| AED 5,000,000 to 9,999,999 | 149 | 144 |
| AED 10,000,000 and above | 85 | 65 |
One registration with an obviously mis-keyed price was set aside from the top band.
The biggest Dubai sales of the week
| Date | Community | Project | Home | Price | Sold by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 Oct | Palm Jumeirah | Signature Villas, Frond N | 7-bedroom villa | AED 67,592,595 | Resale |
| 15 Oct | Palm Jumeirah | W Residences, The Alef | 4-bedroom apartment | AED 53,700,555 | Resale |
| 13 Oct | Palm Jebel Ali | The Beach and Coral Collection Villas, Frond F | 7-bedroom villa | AED 51,122,000 | Developer, off-plan |
| 13 Oct | District Eleven | Fleur De Jardin Villas | 6-bedroom villa | AED 49,484,953 | Developer, off-plan |
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi's figures cover the five days to 16 October, compared with the five days before (7 to 11 October).
| Measure | 12 to 16 Oct | Previous five days | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registered sales | 469 | 363 | +29.2% |
| Total value | AED 1,855,135,969 | AED 1,340,709,891 | +38.4% |
| Resale deals | 165 | 154 | +7.1% |
| Off-plan deals | 304 | 209 | +45.5% |
| Resale median price | AED 2,500,000 | AED 2,408,152 | +3.8% |
| Resale median price per sq ft | AED 1,552 | AED 1,563 | −0.7% |
| Off-plan median price per sq ft | AED 2,164 | AED 2,320 | −6.7% |
Off-plan homes made up 304 of the 469 deals. The median off-plan price fell sharply (about 46%) only because the earlier window included more large villa sales, so the price per sq ft is the fairer comparison.
- Busiest districts: Yas Island (135 deals), Al Reem Island (79), Al Layyan (64), Al Saadiyat Island (54) and Al Hidayriyyat (38). One project, The Canopies at Yas Point, accounted for 108 deals.
- Largest deals: an off-plan villa at Nawayef West A on Al Hidayriyyat Island for AED 73,540,000; a resale villa at Jubail Island Phase 3 for AED 32,000,000; and an off-plan villa at Bayn, Views 3 in Ghantout for AED 26,597,200.
- Year to date: January to September 2026 saw AED 103,082,460,621 across 22,698 sales, which is 110.6% more in value and 51.5% more in volume than the same months of 2025 (about AED 48.9 billion over 14,944 deals).
The bigger picture in Dubai
- Resale prices have cooled a little. The 3-month median resale price per sq ft was AED 1,500 in September: 1.3% below August, 6.3% below March, and 1.4% above a year earlier.
- Activity is well below last year's pace. Dubai registered 10,636 sales in September 2026, compared with 19,486 in September 2025 (45.4% fewer), even though last week was firmer than the week before.
What to take from it
- Off-plan still drives most of Dubai's volume, and Abu Dhabi off-plan deals grew fastest last week.
- Resale price per sq ft is soft rather than falling sharply, which may leave buyers more room to negotiate on well-priced resale homes. It varies by community and building, so check the recent sales of the exact building.
- Larger and higher-priced homes drew more registrations this week; studios cooled.
- Averages hide a lot. Two homes in the same tower can sell at very different prices depending on view, floor and condition.
If you are working out a budget for a purchase, these tools are a good place to start:
Open the buying cost calculator
Want to know what this means for a specific home or area? Book a consultation and I will go through the recent sales with you.
Sources: Dubai Land Department sales registrations and Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre (ADREC) registered sales, data to 16 October 2026. Counts are registrations, not agreements, and the latest days may be revised.
