Dubai Adds Around 830 Residents A Day As Its Housing Market Rides Out A Softer Quarter, Finds Betterhomes Q3 2026 Report

The city’s population reached 4,807,185 on 29 September, up 226,885 since 1 January. Over the same period, 39,670 new homes were completed.

That growth has held up through a period of regional uncertainty. It also continued after preliminary national accounts, published on 9 October, showed a softer second quarter for the UAE economy.

Demand rooted in people, not sentiment

The Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre attributed the softer Q2 reading to regional developments and travel disruption affecting tourism, transport and trade. The wider picture is steadier: the UAE economy grew 0.4% across the first half of 2026, the non-oil economy grew 1.8%, and Dubai’s economy grew 2.4% year-on-year in Q1.

Housing demand followed the population, not the quarter. betterhomes completed leases reached their highest monthly level on record, and by September median apartment rents were within 0.6% of their level a year earlier. Ownership is widening too: as at 8 June, more than 3,200 buyers had purchased properties worth over AED 5 billion through Dubai’s First-Time Home Buyer Programme.

A steady flow of new homes, with location deciding value

A further 25,477 homes are scheduled for completion in the rest of 2026. The pipeline then builds to 136,815 homes scheduled for 2027 and 153,221 for 2028, with apartments accounting for 91% and 85% of those years respectively. These are scheduled completions, not forecasts, and delivery dates can move.

With a growing population and new supply concentrated in apartments, performance will be decided locally. For buyers and investors, the projects completing nearby, their property type and their delivery dates are a better guide than the citywide total.

“A softer quarter for the economy hasn’t changed the basics of Dubai’s housing market. The city keeps growing, people keep choosing to live here, and new homes keep coming to market to meet that demand. The pipeline is significant, so the questions buyers and investors should ask are local ones: what’s being built nearby, when it completes and who it’s for. Look at the evidence on the ground, not just the headlines.”
Richard Waind, CEO, betterhomes

Dubai enters Q4 with its fundamentals in place: a population that keeps growing, a steady flow of new homes and people choosing to make the city home. With 40 years in the market and through every cycle, betterhomes will keep helping clients read the local evidence that decides value.

The full betterhomes Q3 2026 Dubai residential market report is available at www.bhomes.com.