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Dubai set for highest annual home deliveries since 2008 as new launches slow
Around 32,000 new residential units are expected to be handed over in Dubai in the second half of 2026, says new report published by Cushman & Wakefield Core
- PUBLISHED: Thu 20 Aug 2026, 11:21 AM
Dubai’s residential market is on track to record its highest annual handover volume in nearly two decades, even as a growing gap between planned supply and actual construction progress points to a slower pace of deliveries ahead, according to Cushman & Wakefield Core's H1 2026 report.
More than 13,218 residential units were delivered in the second quarter of 2026, keeping completions broadly on track, the report said.
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Key handovers during the quarter included Crest Grande at Sobha Hartland with 965 apartments, Skyhills Residences 1 in Dubai Science Park with 635 apartments, and City Tower on Sheikh Zayed Road with 608 apartments.
Villa completions were led by Malta 1 and Costa Brava 1 at Damac Lagoons, comprising 760 and 555 units respectively, alongside Jebel Ali Village Townhouses Phases 1-3 with 614 villas and Elora at The Valley with 430 villas.
Around 32,000 residential units are expected to be handed over in the second half of 2026, bringing total deliveries for the year to approximately 55,600 units – the highest annual completion volume since 2008. A further 60,000-plus units are projected to be delivered in 2027.
Construction pipeline lags
While handovers have largely stayed on track through the year, the report cautioned that supply chain constraints, contractor capacity pressures and softer market conditions are likely to slow future deliveries.
Although developers have a substantial pipeline scheduled through 2030, only around 186,000 of the nearly 525,000 planned units have surpassed 20 per cent construction progress, the report noted, suggesting actual completions will fall well short of scheduled targets. This is expected to stagger the arrival of new supply, supporting a more balanced market and healthier absorption levels going forward.
New launches slow sharply
According to Cushman & Wakefield Core's H1 2026 report, residential launch activity slowed significantly in the first half of 2026, with the number of apartment units launched falling by around 58 per cent year-on-year and villa launches dropping by approximately 78 per cent, according to the report.
Launch activity had already begun moderating in the first quarter as the market entered a more measured phase, but geopolitical uncertainty in the second quarter prompted many developers to defer planned launches, the report said.
Projects that did come to market were largely concentrated in the mid-market and end-user segments, reflecting what the report described as a more disciplined approach to aligning new supply with underlying demand. While pricing has held largely steady, the report pointed to a shift in payment plan structures, along with DLD fee waivers, bulk discounts and higher broker commissions being used to support sales absorption.
Although the slowdown in launches is expected to weigh on off-plan transaction volumes in the near term, the report said it also supports a more balanced supply pipeline and should improve market take-up over the medium term.
