Dubai property price indexes compared: August 2026 methods and samples
Lida MoghaddamDisclaimer: This article is for general informational purposes only. It is based on cited public data and published under Lida Moghaddam's RERA-licensed masthead. It is not financial, legal, or investment advice. Dubai's property market moves quickly, so figures, yields, and rules may change or become outdated by the time you read this. Verify current information with the relevant authority or a qualified professional before acting. Read the full disclaimer.
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REIDIN's Dubai Residential Property Sales Price Index was 142.69 in August 2026, on a January 2014 base of 100. Dubai property-price publications cannot be read as one series because their periods, samples, units and methods differ.
The concordance: five publications, four underlying series
The five named publications do not provide five equivalent index readings. Property Monitor, REIDIN and ValuStrat publish distinct series. CBRE presents quarterly residential changes using REIDIN and Macrobond among its sources. DLD's public RPPI page exposes an official hedonic series, but the visible monthly reading remains dated November 2022.
Neutral read: the period, unit and construction differ before any headline movement is compared.
The earlier Dubai house price index guide follows the level question. This concordance answers the separate citation question: what exactly does each published number measure?
Transaction and valuation measures answer different questions
A transaction measure records or summarises prices attached to sales, while a valuation measure estimates changes in the value of a controlled basket. A listing measure would track asking prices. Asking prices are offers, not registered transfers, and none of the verified headline readings in this concordance is described by its publisher as a listing-only index.
Neutral read: transaction and valuation measures can report different signed changes for the same month without either being a substitute for the other.
Property Monitor and REIDIN are both monthly but not interchangeable
Property Monitor and REIDIN both use median-based monthly methods, but their coverage statements, base periods, price units and revision disclosures differ. Property Monitor's May 2022 DPI method note describes a moving-average median algorithm combined with the Dutot price-index formula, with extreme values and outliers cleansed. It also states that the series can be revised backward when new datapoints become available.
Neutral read: the shared word “monthly” does not make the two samples, bases or outputs equivalent.
Property Monitor's public archive lists December 2025 as its latest monthly report as of 18 September 2026, while REIDIN published its August 2026 report on 11 September 2026. That age difference belongs beside every comparison.
ValuStrat and CBRE answer different questions
ValuStrat publishes a weighted fixed-basket index, while CBRE's Q2 2026 paper presents a quarterly view sourced to REIDIN and Macrobond. Counting both as independent transaction indices would overstate the number of separate underlying measures.
Neutral read: ValuStrat supplies an underlying valuation index, while CBRE supplies a period-specific research interpretation of cited data.
CBRE's all-property figure was +1.9% year on year in Q2 2026. The same page splits that into +1.3% for apartments and +5.7% for villas. Those segment numbers belong to the Q2 2026 CBRE frame, not to ValuStrat's August 2026 basket and not to Property Monitor's December 2025 AED-per-square-foot level.
The official DLD RPPI is a November 2022 historical benchmark
The DLD RPPI page is official, but its visible monthly observation is November 2022. The page gives an overall monthly index of 1.387 and an index price of AED 1,334,010, while its displayed quarterly reference is Q3 2022. Its method note says the series uses hedonic regression, which controls for property attributes in estimating price change.
Neutral read: the DLD row documents the official method and a dated benchmark, not the September 2026 market.
The page footer date does not replace the observation date printed in the index content. A search result can therefore look current while the series displayed on the page is not. For citation, write “November 2022” in the same sentence as 1.387.
Period mismatch changes the interpretation
The period can change the sign before the methodology changes. CBRE reported +1.9% year on year for Q2 2026 using REIDIN and Macrobond among its sources. REIDIN's own August 2026 report later printed -0.77% year on year. These are different observation windows, not two interchangeable statements about one date.
Neutral read: Q2 2026, December 2025 and August 2026 must remain separate labels even when they appear in one market story.
The H1 2026 property scorecard is the matching internal reference for a half-year frame. The May 2026 market report is a separate monthly snapshot. Neither period should be silently carried into an August index comparison.
Which publication fits which use
The useful source depends on the question being asked. A citywide index is evidence about its defined market series, not a valuation of one apartment or villa.
Neutral read: the best-fit citation keeps the publisher, observation period, unit and method in the same sentence.
For an individual property, the index is a context layer. A unit-level conclusion needs comparable completed transactions, the property's attributes and a valuation date. Property Monitor's platform describes a comparative market analysis as an examination of similar properties marketed or recently sold in the same area, which is a different task from quoting a citywide index.
Source record and limits
Every headline number above is attached to a publisher page or PDF and an access date of 18 September 2026. Where a publisher states a current reading but not a revision policy, the table leaves that policy unstated.
Neutral read: an unstated base or revision policy remains unstated; it is not inferred from another publisher's method.
Are Dubai real estate prices dropping?
For August 2026, REIDIN published a -0.77% year-on-year change and ValuStrat published -3.1% year on year. Those are separate series with different construction, so cite the publisher and period instead of turning them into one market number.
How do I check my property value in Dubai?
A citywide index does not value one unit. Use recent completed comparables for the same property type and location, adjust for the unit's attributes, and use a dated professional valuation where the decision requires one; the index supplies market context only.
Is this a good time to invest in Dubai real estate?
An index cannot settle that decision. The current series provide dated evidence about defined samples, while financing, fees, rent, service charges, intended holding period and property-specific documents are separate inputs.
Why do Dubai property price indexes disagree?
They use different observation periods, samples, units, base dates, weighting methods and revision rules. August 2026 REIDIN and ValuStrat already differ despite sharing the month, while CBRE's Q2 2026 figure and Property Monitor's December 2025 figure add period mismatch.
Lida MoghaddamArchitect-turned-real-estate-specialist based in Dubai. She helps buyers, sellers, and investors read property with a designer's eye — structure, location, and long-term value.
