UAE’s real estate buyers should make a quick decision as mortgage rates are looming

UAE residents who want to buy real estate have another reason to make a purchase decision as soon as possible, since if they intend to finance a housing deal with a mortgage, they expect a significantly higher payout compared to what would have been last year. Mortgage rates are expected to reach 4.75-5.25% during 2022, compared with 3-3.5% average available now.

The upcoming increase in mortgage rates will be accompanied by a steady increase in real estate prices in Dubai, which will make it even more expensive for the end user to enter the market. According to market sources, the number of mortgage-backed real estate transactions has been steadily increasing since the second half of 2021. If 2021 began with the sale of real estate only for cash, which accounted for 70% of transactions, then by the end of the year this figure had dropped to 50%. In the last three months of 2021, mortgage-related sales increased significantly as developers returned to launching off-plan real estate.