Dubai South home sales pass all of 2025 in eight months, with 38,116 homes due by 2029

Those eight months of sales were worth AED 15.9 billion, about 81% of the AED 19.6 billion total for 2025. If the pace holds, Anarock puts full-year 2026 sales at roughly AED 23.9 billion, which it presents as a direction of travel rather than a forecast.

Anarock, Dubai South Residential Micro-Market Report, as reported by Khaleej Times on 26 October 2026.

Off-plan homes made up 94% of sales this year, leaving resales at under 6%. Apartments accounted for 94.5% of sales, against 31% in 2020, when villas and townhouses led the market.

Studios alone made up 45% of sales from January to August, up from 19.5% in 2025, and one-bedroom homes another 31%. That shift explains why the average deal fell to about AED 1.28 million, from a peak of AED 2.57 million in 2023.

Anarock says the lower ticket size reflects the mix of smaller units, not falling prices. The average price per sq ft has risen about two and a half times since 2020.

Anarock counts 38,116 homes due for handover in Dubai South between 2027 and 2029. That is more than three and a half times the 10,813 homes delivered in the district since 2016.

Handovers are expected to peak at 16,094 homes in 2028. Apartments make up 85% of the homes under construction, against 59% of the ready stock today.

Anarock expects that concentrated delivery period to test how quickly new homes are taken up by buyers and tenants.

Average annual rents have risen from AED 34,534 in 2020 to AED 82,063 this year, and the number of leases signed is about four times the 2020 level. Gross yields averaged 3.9% in 2025: 4.3% for apartments, 3.4% for townhouses and 3% for villas, before service charges and vacancy.

Anarock notes yields could narrow in 2026 and 2027 if prices keep rising faster than rents.

Much of the interest rests on Al Maktoum International Airport. Its AED 128 billion expansion, approved in April 2024, is designed for 260 million passengers a year, with the first phase targeted for 2032.

Dubai South covers about 145 sq km and is planned for around one million residents and 500,000 jobs. Developers bought AED 2 billion of land in the district from January to August 2026, a sign that more launches are on the way.

Choose a handover date with care. Many of the district's off-plan buildings complete in 2028, the peak year. If you plan to rent out your home, expect other new owners to be looking for tenants at the same time.

Look closely at the building, not just the district. With so many similar studios and one-bedroom homes coming, layout, finish, amenities and distance to the airport, Expo City and main roads will set one building apart from the next.

Work out the yield on your own numbers. Use the expected rent for your unit type, then deduct the service charge per sq ft and allow for a few empty weeks. Check the payment plan and that every payment goes to the project's escrow account.

Off-plan apartment buildings in the district include Marquis Horizon, Arché Residence, Coventry 49 and Cresswell Homes. Villa and townhouse buyers can look at the HAYAT homes by Dubai South Properties, including Hayat 7.

For the wider picture, read our stories on Dubai off-plan sales in the third quarter and Dubai's AED 2.1 trillion project pipeline to 2030.