GCC Property Market · Insights
The Gulf property market, read through verified data.
Field notes and analysis on real estate across Doha, Dubai, Riyadh, and Jeddah, grounded in government transaction records, satellite construction data, and macroeconomic indicators.
Written for investors, banks, family offices, and developers underwriting Gulf real estate exposure in 2026.
Tokenised Title: Dubai's Real-Estate Tokenization Goes Live
Phase II of the Dubai Land Department tokenization project opened secondary trading on 20 February 2026, making roughly 7.8 million tokens tied to 10 properties tradable on-chain. Each token pairs with a DLD-issued ownership certificate representing native legal title.
Read →Saudi Arabia Opens to Foreign Property Buyers: What the 21 January 2026 Law Means
The Law of Real Estate Ownership and Investment by Non-Saudis took effect on 21 January 2026, letting foreigners own residential and commercial property in designated zones for the first time. But the law alone does not make a market: zone maps, a roughly 10% combined cost, and advisory infrastructure all arrive in phases.
Read →Dubai 2026: Will the 120,000-Unit Supply Wave Trigger a Correction?
Dubai closed 2025 with about 205,100 residential sales worth AED 539.9 billion, a fifth straight record. Now roughly 120,000 units are scheduled for 2026 handover. The forecasts span from Fitch's up-to-15% correction to ValuStrat's 10% growth, and the truth sits in the gap between prime and mid-market.
Read →Soft Landing or Correction? The 2026 GCC Forecast Range
The regional consensus is a soft landing, not a crash. Dubai forecasts span from a 15% correction to 10% growth; Abu Dhabi looks set for 8 to 12%; Saudi Arabia and Oman keep rising. Supply, affordability, and geopolitics are the risks; population, zero tax, and HNWI inflows are the supports.
Read →Abu Dhabi: The Steadier Bet in a Cooling UAE Market
Abu Dhabi logged 21,279 residential sales in 2025, up 47% year on year, with its price index up 31.59%. With only about 6,500 new units forecast for 2026, a fraction of Dubai's pipeline, Cushman & Wakefield Core sees a further 8 to 12% growth.
Read →Riyadh's Housing Engine and the Great Giga-Project Recalibration
Riyadh residential sales surged 63% to SR65.7bn in H1 2025 across 35,600 transactions. Meanwhile the giga-projects are recalibrating: NEOM's The Line is now expected to house fewer than 300,000 by 2030, and officials describe 2026 as a maturation phase.
Read →Qatar After the World Cup: Reading the Post-Tournament Floor
Qatar's ValuStrat index recorded a marginal 0.3% quarterly decline entering 2026, the profile of a market that has finished correcting. 2025 sales reached about QAR 26 billion, roughly 45% above 2024, and Law No. 5 of 2024 has modernized title registration.
Read →Bahrain: The GCC's Most Open Property Market
Bahrain is the most foreign-investor-accessible GCC market: 100% freehold in designated zones, gross yields averaging 7.9% and reaching 11%, and a golden-residency threshold cut 35% to BHD 130,000 in late 2025.
Read →Oman: Where 18.7% Growth Meets Restricted Access
Oman's residential price index rose 18.7% year on year in Q3 2025, the fastest in the Gulf, yet foreign ownership remains restricted to Integrated Tourism Complexes. A relaunched golden residency at OMR 200,000 and limited new supply define the setup.
Read →Kuwait's Record Year and the Mortgage Law That Could Unlock $65bn
Kuwait recorded all-time-high real estate sales of about KD 4.4 billion in 2025, and the long-awaited mortgage law is in its final stages, potentially opening a $65 billion market. A housing backlog exceeds 100,000 applications.
Read →The GCC Golden-Visa and Foreign-Ownership Map for 2026
Every GCC state now offers a property-linked residency, but the thresholds and ownership rules differ sharply: AED 2m in the UAE, SAR 4m in Saudi Arabia, BHD 130k in Bahrain, OMR 200k in Oman, and QAR 730k in Qatar. Here is how they compare.
Read →Where the Money Comes From: GCC Capital Flows and Wealth Migration in 2026
The Gulf has shifted from exporting institutional capital to importing it. India is the number one foreign buyer of Dubai property at an estimated $10 to 11 billion in 2025, and the UAE ranked first globally for millionaire migration with a net inflow of 9,800 HNWIs.
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