Dubai defies luxury property slowdown with 5.4 percent rise in prices

Dubai has defied a global slowdown in the luxury property market after witnessing a 5.4 percent rise in prices during the first quarter of this year, according to Knight Frank.

The emirate came fourth in a ranking of the world’s luxury property markets, behind only Jakarta, Bangkok and Miami in terms of price rises, the property consultancy said.

Prices of luxury villas and apartments in the emirate rose by 5.4 percent in the first quarter compared with the final three months of 2012, Knight Frank said. That represented an 18.3 percent increase on the first quarter of last year.

Globally, the luxury property market fell by 0.4 percent in the first three months of 2013, led by declines in Tokyo and Paris, where the most expensive properties declined in value by more than 10 percent.

On an annual basis, however, global luxury property prices edged up 3.6 percent, Knight Frank said. The consultancy tracked prime property prices in 29 cities globally.

Jakarta, Bangkok and Miami topped the Knight Frank ranking, recording annual price growth of 38.1 percent, 26.1 percent and 21.1 percent respectively, compared with the first quarter of 2012.

“The measures aimed at cooling residential price growth in Jakarta and Bangkok have been less stringent than those applied across many neighbouring Asian cities, allowing new middle class wealth to fuel demand and push prime prices higher,” Knight Frank said.

“In Miami’s case, Latin American wealth is a key driver of the luxury market, with the flow of capital from Brazil, Venezuela and Argentina proving influential.”