One real estate research company says that a large portion of current property owners in Dubai are now millionaires—without having planned for it in advance. This conclusion comes from tracking the value of each home in the emirate as property prices have increased over time.
Main takeaways:
- Millionaire Boom: 1 in 5 Dubai homes now worth over $1M (≈AED 4M).
- Price Surge: In JVC, price per sq ft jumped from AED 800–900 (2020) to AED 1,500+ (2024).
- High Returns: A 1,000 sq ft home bought for AED 900K in 2020 is now worth AED 1.5M+.
- Resilient Market: Dubai real estate stays strong long-term due to flexible laws and fast adaptation.
Property owners who bought homes years ago for less than a million dollars now find that their properties are worth much more than that today. This is due to global economic inflation, which has driven a rapid rise in prices of Dubai real estate market. In its study, the company found that nearly one in every five homes in Dubai is now worth more than one million dollars, which is approximately four million dirhams.
This is where the mystery lies—how property in Dubai has turned ordinary buyers into wealthy individuals, often without them even realizing it. Here’s a very simple example: the price of a property in Jumeirah Village Circle (JVC) in 2020 versus its price today. In 2020, the average price per square foot in JVC ranged between AED 800 and AED 900. Today, the average price exceeds AED 1,500 per square foot.
For example, someone who purchased a 1,000-square-foot property in 2020 for AED 900,000 would now find its value no less than AED 1.5 million. This example doesn’t only apply to that area—other locations have followed the same trend, such as Dubai Marina, Dubai Hills Estate, Palm Jumeirah, and Jumeirah area, among others.
The core idea I want to convey through this topic is that real estate tends to increase in value over time, especially if the property is located in highly desirable residential areas. Of course, there are exceptions, as real estate markets are volatile and subject to sudden global and local economic shifts, as well as geopolitical conditions. However, properties tend to retain their value over the long term—particularly in Dubai real estate market, which has consistently demonstrated resilience and growth through various crises over the years. This strength is due to the flexibility of its regulations, and its ability to quickly adapt and respond to new developments to preserve its gains.
The fascinating aspect of Dubai real estate market is the creation of silent, cumulative wealth. Anyone who started small and continued to invest wisely has genuinely transformed from a “limited buyer” into a “successful investor”—even a property tycoon. Dubai is a city that never stops. With new projects, global exhibitions, smart transportation systems, and progressive laws, anyone who owns property today could become wealthy in the near future.
