Four deals with the full numbers: what Dubai property actually returned
Talk about Dubai yields is usually percentages without a denominator. Four transactions with every figure named, including costs — and one caveat that governs all of them.
Talk about returns on Dubai property is usually conducted in percentages without a denominator. It is more useful to look at broken-down transactions where all the figures are named, including costs.
A JBR apartment, 12.8 years held
Purchase September 2011: AED 1,069,182; 4% registration fee AED 42,767; total AED 1,111,949. Rent AED 130,000 a year, running costs AED 14,985 a year — net rental income over the period AED 1,475,792. Sale July 2024: AED 2,350,000, net profit AED 1,238,051.
Total AED 2,713,843, a return on invested capital of 473% over 12.83 years.
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An apartment, 10.7 years held
Purchase November 2013: AED 1,304,888 plus fee 52,196; total 1,357,084. Rent AED 135,000 a year less a service charge of 18,500 — 116,500 net, or 1,011,188 over the period. Sale July 2024: AED 2,930,000, net profit 1,572,916.
Total AED 2,584,104, ROIC 250%.
Bluewaters, 2.17 years held
Purchase April 2022: AED 4,750,000 plus fee 190,000; total 4,940,000. Area 1,641 ft². Rent AED 209,000 a year, service charge 26,125 — 182,875 net, or 397,519 over the period. Sale June 2024: AED 8,300,000, net profit 3,360,000.
Total AED 3,757,519, ROIC 146% in a little over two years.
An apartment at AED 449,000, 10 years held
Purchase June 2014: AED 449,000 plus fee 17,960; total 466,960. Rent AED 72,500 a year, costs 21,858 — AED 506,420 net over ten years. Sale July 2024: AED 1,850,000, net profit 1,383,040.
Total AED 1,889,460, ROIC 79%.
What the four of them say
First: holding period does not decide everything. Bluewaters gave 146% in two years while the AED 449,000 apartment gave 79% in ten. The difference is the phase of the cycle the purchase was made in.
Second: in long holds, rent contributes on a par with the resale. In the first case rental income actually exceeded the gain on sale.
Third and most important: all four sales fell in June and July 2024 — the peak of the market. This is a sample of successful exits, not an average market result. You cannot compute your own future return from them; read them as an illustration of how the calculation is structured.