New tenancy contracts above AED1 million jump 27% in value over first five months of 2026
Dubai, UAE, 15th June, 2026: Dubai’s luxury villa rental market has grown sharply in value over the first five months of the year, with a decisive shift toward ultra-luxury price brackets, and Palm Jumeirah emerging as the standout location.
A fäm Properties market analysis issued today reveals that the annualised value of new rental contracts above AED1 million increased by 27% year-on-year to AED509 million from AED400 million between January and May 2026.
The report also shows that the annualised value of renewed tenancy contracts for villas above AED1 million rose by 28% to AED114 million from AED89 million over the same period.
Data from DXBinteract reveals that while luxury rental transaction volumes remained steady, the upward shift in value was driven by more activity in higher price brackets. This trend was most visible in the AED2-3 million range, where new contracts rose 21% and renewals 17%.
At the ultra-luxury end, nine new annual tenancy contracts were recorded in the AED5-10 million band, with a further seven exceeding AED10 million. Overall, 67.3% of all contracts signed between January and May 2026 were for a 12-month duration.
Palm Jumeirah dominated both transaction volumes and annualised rental value, recording the highest number of new and renewed contracts above AED1 million across all villa communities.
Firas Al Msaddi, CEO of fäm Properties, said: “Demand at the luxury and ultra-luxury end of the rental market has remained resilient over the last few months. Tenants at this level are not only choosing Dubai, they are prepared to pay significantly more to live here, and that sends a clear signal about the sustained confidence in this market.”
The value of new contracts above AED1 million on Palm Jumeirah reached AED113 million between January and May, up 14% from AED99 million in 2025, while renewed contracts rose 15% to AED37 million from AED32 million.
The strongest growth in new contract values was recorded at Dubai Hills Estate, where annualised rental value rose 37% to AED87 million from AED63 million.
The highest volume of new rental contracts above AED1 million was 36 at Palm Jumeirah, ahead of Dubai Hills Estate at 35 and District One Mohammed Bin Rashid City at 22. Palm Jumeirah also led with 16 renewed rental contracts above AED1 million.
In each case, the majority of rental contracts above AED1 million were new agreements – 69% at Palm Jumeirah, 85% at Dubai Hills Estate and 63% at District One MBR City.