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About UAE Price Index

An independent property price observatory for the Gulf region

Our Mission

UAE Price Index is an independent property price observatory dedicated to providing transparent, data-driven market estimates for real estate across the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia. We aim to help researchers, potential buyers, renters, and market watchers understand broad pricing trends across the Gulf Cooperation Council region.

The GCC property market can be opaque, with pricing information scattered across multiple sources and varying in quality and recency. Our mission is to aggregate, cross-reference, and present this data in a clear, accessible format, while being transparent about our methodology and the limitations of our estimates.

We are not a real estate agency, brokerage, or investment firm. We do not sell property, arrange transactions, or provide investment advice. Our role is purely informational: to provide estimated market data that can serve as a starting point for further research and professional consultation.

About the Author

Mottalib Radif

Mottalib Radif

MBA INSEAD | Real Estate Market Enthusiast

Mottalib Radif is a market analyst with experience across the GCC region. With an MBA from INSEAD, one of the world's leading business schools, Mottalib brings analytical rigour to real estate market research. His work focuses on making property market data accessible and understandable for a broad audience.

Mottalib also operates taxfreesalaries.com, a salary and employment resource for the Gulf, arabiaexpat.com, an expat relocation guide, and thedubaisetup.com, a guide to business setup in the Gulf region. This network of sites provides comprehensive information for anyone considering living, working, or investing in the GCC.

Methodology

Our property price estimates are compiled using a multi-source approach:

Data Sources

  1. Government transaction registries: Where available, we use official transaction data from bodies such as the Dubai Land Department (DLD/Dubai REST), Abu Dhabi Department of Municipalities and Transport (DMT), and Saudi Arabia's REGA. Government data provides the most reliable transaction-based pricing information.
  2. Real estate portals: We collect asking price data from major listing platforms (Bayut, Property Finder, Dubizzle, and equivalent platforms in Qatar and Saudi Arabia). Asking prices are adjusted to reflect typical negotiation margins, as actual transaction prices are generally lower than list prices.
  3. Industry reports: We reference published reports from international consultancies including JLL, Knight Frank, CBRE, ValuStrat, and Savills. These reports provide benchmark pricing, yield analysis, and market trend data.
  4. Developer price lists: For newer developments, we reference published developer price lists, which provide direct pricing for new units.

Estimation Process

We cross-reference data from multiple sources to produce area-level price estimates. Where sources conflict (which is common, as different data sets may cover different time periods or property types), we apply judgment to determine a reasonable estimate, generally weighted towards transaction data where available. Our estimates represent approximate average prices per square metre for a typical property in each area and are not specific to any individual unit.

Limitations

Our estimates have important limitations that users should understand:

  • They are averages and do not reflect the price of any specific property. Individual unit prices vary based on floor, view, condition, furnishing, and exact location.
  • They may be time-lagged, reflecting data that may be weeks or months old by the time of publication.
  • They have varying accuracy by country: UAE estimates (particularly Dubai) are the most reliable due to superior data availability; Saudi estimates carry the widest uncertainty.
  • They should not be used for transactions. Anyone buying or selling property should obtain a professional valuation from a licensed valuer.

Editorial Independence

UAE Price Index is editorially independent. We do not accept payment from developers, agents, or any market participants in exchange for favourable coverage or data manipulation. Our estimates are produced solely on the basis of available data and our analytical methodology.

We may earn revenue through advertising, affiliate relationships, or other commercial arrangements, but these do not influence our data, analysis, or editorial content. Any commercial relationships will be clearly disclosed.

Data Sources

Sister Sites

Contact

For data corrections, methodological questions, or general enquiries, please reach out through our contact channels. We welcome feedback from market participants, industry experts, and users of our data.