CIS Buyers in the Dubai Market Are Turning From Buyers Into Sellers

One conclusion worth stating plainly: the behaviour of buyers from post-Soviet countries in the Dubai market has changed, and it's already visible in the pattern of agency enquiries.

What 2022–2024 looked like

Almost everything sold. Buyers moved easily into payment plans, bought on the expectation of growth, counted on a quick resale and an easy dollar-denominated return. The logic of the market supported that.

On top of it came a skewed set of expectations. Someone used to double-digit deposit rates at home carried the same bar over to a dollar asset — and wanted the same number, just in a different currency. The sell side adjusted: another "investment" project would turn up with similar promises. That dollar and local-currency returns follow different rules was usually left out of the conversation.

What changed

• Some buyers saw their income change, and a payment plan that was manageable in 2023 became heavy.
• Some aren't willing to keep paying amid the uncertainty.
• Some are trying to exit the obligation altogether — through an assignment or a sale.

The result is predictable: the same audience that was cited yesterday as proof of demand is now, more and more often, sitting on the seller's side of the table.

A mechanism worth understanding

A universal market pattern kicks in here: a deal between two investors almost always settles near the floor. Full price is paid by whoever is buying the unit to actually use — to live in it or occupy it. Selling to a fellow investor is a conversation about a discount, not a premium.

The practical takeaway cuts both ways. For a seller: don't count on an investor-buyer as a source of a good price. For a buyer: a segment of forced sellers has appeared on the market, and that's an opportunity — but only with careful verification of exactly what's being sold and why.

Based on observed patterns in Dubai real estate enquiries and public market commentary, 2026.