RAK Central: Ras Al Khaimah’s first business district — Marjan’s 4 000 apartments and Grade A offices by 2027

Most talk about Ras Al Khaimah these days centres on Al Marjan Island and the Wynn resort. But Marjan, the state developer that owns the island, is also running a second large project that gets far less attention: RAK Central, a business district built on a different bet — not just tourists, but companies that will operate here year-round.

The project was announced in early 2024. By autumn 2025, according to Marjan chief executive Abdulla Al Abdouli, every plot in the district had been sold to developers within 15 months, construction contracts for the office core were signed, and piling was under way.

What is being built

Component	Scale
Housing	more than 4 000 apartments
Offices	5 connected Grade A towers (LEED Gold)
Jobs	over 6 000 staff
Hotels	more than 1 000 keys across city and business hotels
Total built-up area	about 8.3m sq ft
Timeline	RAK Central HQ around 2027, the full district by 2030

The district sits on Sheikh Mohammed bin Salem Al Qasimi Street with access to the E11, next to the RAKEZ free zone and Al Hamra Mall, and overlooks the Al Hamra golf course and the creek. Al Marjan Island is a few minutes' drive away.

The logic: offices first, then housing

Marjan's management is direct about the order: offices are the anchor, they bring people in, and housing demand follows roughly a year later. That is a real pivot for Ras Al Khaimah. The company itself estimates the emirate needs about 45 000 extra apartments over the next seven years, and the Wynn Al Marjan resort — now expected to open in September 2027, which we covered in a separate piece — will on its own create around 7 500 jobs.

Resort real estate on the island runs on the tourist season and short-term lets. Apartments in the business district are aimed at long-term tenants — staff of local companies, resort employees and free-zone workers: lower yield in peak months, but steadier through the year.

What a buyer should factor in

Different developers bought the plots inside RAK Central, so quality and delivery pace will vary building by building. Look at who is building the specific tower, not the masterplan's name. And weigh the sequencing: until the office core opens, rental demand here is a forecast, not a fact. Homes that hand over before the offices can sit empty or rent at a discount at first.

The 15–20% yield figures circulating around the project come from the developer itself; we would budget for the emirate's ordinary rental yield and treat price growth as the upside, not the baseline.

How the emirate changes by 2030 is in our piece on Ras Al Khaimah's plans, and the island's resort and branded stock is covered in our Al Marjan roundup.