Report: Dubai leads Middle East cities in real estate projects with international brands

The concept of branded residential projects has grown rapidly over the last two decades, cementing the concept in the EMEA region.

The segment has expanded from seven projects in the region in 2005 to now include 209 existing projects and is expected to expand by 83% by 2030, according to Savills' latest reports on residential projects belonging to international brands.

The locations with the highest percentage of these projects are located across the EMEA region, including well-known locations such as Dubai and London, as well as emerging hubs including Cairo, the coast of Montenegro and Manama in Bahrain, where residential projects from luxury brands are strengthening their presence in the regions as well as reaching new markets.

Dubai has the highest number of completed projects and the highest number of future projects among all EMEA markets, with the emirate's sector expected to grow by 72 per cent by 2030. A strong domestic and international increase in the number of buyers seeking valuable real estate assets, which can represent prime or secondary residential properties, has contributed to the growth of branded residential projects in Dubai over the past decade.

Rico Piknoni, Director of Global Residential Development at Savills, said: "Our home development consultancy team tracks residential projects belonging to developers and brands alike, and we have not found another market like Dubai.

The emirate jumped to the forefront of branded residential projects in the decade following 2010. During the forecast period, Dubai is expected to show growth that makes it almost 30% more active than the second most active market, South Florida. This global city has shown compound annual growth of more than 16% over the past twenty years, while other markets with a high profile have shown compound annual growth of only 5%, which is remarkable."

London ranks second in terms of completed and future projects in the EMEA region. It is followed by Cairo, which has more than 15 projects currently under planning, which represents a relatively new sector in Egypt. Markets with fewer projects, such as Bahrain and Montenegro, are showing impressive three-digit growth, although they have started with a low number of projects, and many emerging markets in the region are expected to see an increase in supply of 50% or more over the planned period.

Rico added, "We expect the brands' residential properties to continue their exceptional growth as part of the residential real estate sector in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The increase in the number of globally wealthy individuals could create a new market for ambitious, high-net-worth individuals seeking secondary or primary housing.

The proportion of high-net-worth individuals in the EMEA region has increased by 27% over the past five years, expanding the customer base of residential brands, with some estimates suggesting that the number of such individuals will increase by 18% in Dubai only during the first half of 2022."

Globally mobile individuals, able to live and work from any location, are contributing to the continued growing demand for branded residential projects. One of Savills' recent research, which ranks 15 destinations for individuals who rely on long-term remote work, points to Dubai's ranking as one of the top three cities for executives, ranking destinations according to their performance in terms of internet speed, quality of life, climate, air connectivity and luxury property rentals.