New betterhomes data shows Dubai now leads London in the AED 36.7 million-plus property bracket, evidence, the brokerage says, of a market maturing into one of the world’s most compelling destinations for capital.
DUBAI — betterhomes, one of Dubai’s largest real estate brokerages, says its latest Q2 2026 market report shows the emirate has moved decisively ahead of London in the ultra-high-net-worth property bracket, a signal of where global capital is increasingly choosing to sit.
The scorecard: Dubai vs London
Dubai recorded 296 property transactions above AED 36.7 million ($10 million) in Q1 2026. London, long regarded as the natural home for this bracket, recorded just 16 over the same period, according to Harry Martin, Director of Off-Plan & Capital Markets at betterhomes.
Those 296 Dubai deals were worth a combined AED 18.7 billion ($5.1 billion). London’s 16 transactions totalled roughly £250 million, around $337 million at current exchange rates. That puts Dubai ahead of London by more than eighteen times on volume and more than fifteen times on value.
The outlook through H1:
Full H1 figures for Dubai aren’t out yet, but Martin says the emirate is tracking towards close to 300 transactions at the AED 36.7 million-plus level for the period. A London-only projection for H1 isn’t available; on a UK-wide basis, the entire country is forecast to record under 40 transactions in that bracket over the same period, a small number even against a much larger base than London alone.
Dubai’s own luxury segment AED 15 million and above wasn’t immune to the wider market pullback: transactions fell 59 per cent year-on-year in Q2, steeper than the market-wide 31 per cent decline. Even so, in absolute terms, Dubai’s lead over London in ultra-high-net-worth transactions remains substantial.
“It’s a striking metric: real evidence of where ultra-high-net-worth individuals are choosing to put their capital,” said Martin.
About betterhomes:
betterhomes is Dubai’s longest-standing independent real estate brokerage, part of Cencorp, a group spanning sixteen companies across residential, commercial and professional real estate services. Since 1986, betterhomes has supported buyers, sellers, landlords and tenants across Dubai with data-led market insight and end-to-end property services.
