Cityscape Global 2021: After villas, the rich turn their attention to Dubai’s luxury penthouses

Dubai’s villas have been enjoying the limelight for a good 12 months now, picking up record deals as owners put their down payments on bigger living - and outdoor – spaces. There was a point in time earlier this year when out of 10 property deals struck in a week, six or even seven would have been for villas and townhouses.

Of late, apartments – luxury ones, to be precise – are joining in the fun. Recent penthouse sales have hit some serious numbers and more could be on the way.

At the Dorchester by Omniyat, a 17,000 square feet plus ‘triplex’ penthouse had a buyer interested for Dh75 million. And the deal was sealed.

Just recently, the 118 tower at the Downtown sold a penthouse for Dh50 million all told. The developer is not short of confidence that he will soon be repeating the same with the second penthouses at the super-luxury high-rise.

“Villas alone would not have kept meeting the demand for luxury homes in Dubai,” said an estate agent. “Much of the available stock of villas have already changed hands in these 12 months. This is why you see some of the more recent super-premium deals happening for penthouses.”

For Omniyat Properties, picking up eye-watering deals on penthouses is nothing new. There were the records set by it One Palm project, where a unit sold for Dh102 million in 2017, and has been the benchmark ever since.

So, the Dh75 million deal on the Dorchester is just about keeping in practice. George Azar, Chairman of Luxhabitat Sotheby’s, which brokered the deal, says bespoke is what luxury homeowners want quite a bit of.

“Given the high price tags of the higher end luxury properties, investors and buyers want to get the most value for their money,” said Azar. “What makes a luxury property even more impressive? When it is like nobody else’s.”

There are more coming, for sure. The most expensive penthouse listed in Dubai right now is for Dh180 million, for a whopping 25,000 square feet unit at the Atlantis The Royal resort & Residences on the Palm.

For those willing to wait a bit longer to take delivery, ‘The S’ high-rise from Sobha Realty on Shaikh Zayed Road could have one or two that ticks – or even exceeds – the needs of the discerning buyer.

According to market sources, given the demand that’s been generated, some existing super-luxury penthouses could be placed in the secondary market. “We had seen villa owners do that in recent months, because they were getting some never before heard offers,” said an estate agent. “The same will happen for penthouses too.”

One new developer is testing the waters for the kind of demand penthouses can generate. The Mr. C Residences on the Dubai Water Canal is listing its unit for Dh86 million. Clearly, developers in Dubai, whether established players or brand new entrants, are confident that the right degree of luxury delivered is one easy way to sign on a buyer.

As developers ramp up offplan launches, expect more villas and penthouses to vie for attention.

For prospective buyers, a word of advice – Prices are on the up… and getting higher. Penthouse values in Dubai are reaching for the skies.

As and when that Dh180m unit sells, that will be the new marker.