Dubai's real estate sector experienced a stronger investor sentiment in the first quarter 2021 with an increased number of first-time buyers entering the scene lured by prices that “remained affordable but slowly on the rise.”

Allsopp & Allsopp's Real Estate Q1 property market report shows an 82 per cent increase in sales transactions and a 237 per cent increase in tenants paying their rent in multiple cheques since Q1 2019.

“The first quarter of 2021 has been incredible for the Dubai real estate market as a whole. Buyers are jumping at the chance to purchase a home while they still can with the city coming out of lockdown so quickly on the back of investment in vaccines and testing," the report said.

“This has encouraged many expats already residing in the city to buy homes here and invest in their future and also encouraged many overseas investors,” said Lewis Allsopp, CEO of Allsopp & Allsopp.

The leading brokerage reported that it had generated 50 per cent of its 2020 annual revenue generation in Q1 of 2021. “Despite the pandemic starting to take effect in 2020, the revenue generated for the full year was itself an impressive 19 per cent higher than that of 2019.”

The brokerage also reported an increase in activity across all departments of the business.

“I believe there will be many people moving to Dubai over the next few years as they leave their home countries. I can see the city continuing its drive to be a leading destination in the world,” said Allsopp.

“The buyer sentiment has never been higher. The leadership of the UAE has shown such forward thinking and have executed plans quickly and precisely for the betterment of the city. New visas rules have been implemented, making it easier for expats to call the UAE their home while the groundbreaking decision to introduce dual citizenship is adding a huge amount of confidence among the expat community,” he said.

He said the market is seeing the effects of the increase in loan to value (LTV) and low interest rates.

Apart from a rise in end-user buyers, there is also an increase in residents buying second properties for investment purposes as they can see the opportunity that is arising in certain communities across the city, he said. “We also witness a lot of interest from overseas buyers who are looking to make the move to the UAE or have been encouraged by the UAE’s resilience throughout the pandemic and its plans to continue to grow and advance with the launch of the Dubai 2040 master plan,” said Allsopp.

Allsopp said his firm is expanding its developer sales team as a result of more buyers enquiring on off-plan and newly ready units from developers as they face limited stock in the secondary market. “I predict we will see this trend to continue throughout the year with several new developments being launched and the attractive payment options available.”

“Pre-Covid-19, we were seeing more of a trend to increase cheque payments and the lockdown accelerated that. Some owners are now asking for fewer cheques again but overall more owners are appreciating that they need to offer increased cheque payments to keep up with the trends across the city - the increased competition among landlords and more short-term lettings options in the market,” said Allsopp.

Gone are the days when companies pay for rent in one cheque. The brokerage reported an emerging tenant trend of short-term, month by month rental enquiries as a result of job losses or financial strains.