New tenants to pay higher rents in Dubai

New tenants to pay higher rents in Dubai

UAE - Tenants will continue to pay higher rents on new contracts in Dubai but hike on renewals will be capped by Real Estate Regulatory Authority (Rera) despite rising demand for apartments and villas in second half of 2022, experts say.

Analysts and executives said rents continued to notch double-digit jump in first half as landlords increased prices in the face of greater demand and a lack of available inventory, especially in popular villa communities. They expect rental rates to remain elevated in the second half of the year, however, rental growth is expected to slow eventually.

Haider Tuaima, director and head of Real Estate Research at ValuStrat, said Dubai’s residential rents were on average 20 per cent higher than last year.

"This rise is only applicable to new rentals, as renewed contract amounts are capped by the Rera rental calculator," Tuaima told Khaleej Times.

He said the current trend has already seen a slowdown in pace, particularly villa segment as apartments were up 4.2 per cent while villas rose 3.3 per cent on quarterly basis. This moderation in rental growth is expected to continue in second half," he said.

Swapnil Pillai, associate director, Middle East Research at Savills, sees a positive trend for rental