Dubai has emerged as one of the most affordable cities in the world to buy a home among 23 major markets surveyed by UBS, with buyers needing only around five years of average income to purchase a 60 sqm apartment.

By contrast, buyers in Hong Kong - the least affordable market in the study - need around 15 years of average income to purchase a similar-sized home, while those in London require 11 years. Buyers in Tokyo, Paris and Seoul all need more than a decade.

Dubai also ranks among the cheapest cities on a price-to-rent basis, with UBS estimating that an apartment there would need to be rented out for just 16 years to cover its purchase price - again the shortest period recorded, alongside Miami and São Paulo. Zurich sits at the opposite extreme, where it would take 46 years of rental income to pay off a home, followed by Geneva at 40 years.

Following an over-five-year-long rally, Dubai property prices have softened over the past few months, reflecting the maturity of the local property market. However, despite the regional geopolitical conflict, the local property market has proved resilient.

Real house prices have since fallen back to mid-2025 levels, while real rents now sit below their year-earlier level. Despite some easing since March, UBS said bubble risk "remains elevated."

However, some industry executives argue that the Dubai property market is still much more affordable than other major cities around the globe, hence ruling out the possibility of a bubble in the local property market.

Annual figures show Dubai's real home prices rose a modest 0.4 per cent in the year to the second quarter of 2026, while real rents fell 4 per cent over the same period.

(Source: Khaleej Times)