Residents are increasingly becoming eligible for the prestigious Golden Visa residency in Dubai on the back of a rally witnessed in property prices after the pandemic.

Industry executives say that almost all the townhouse buyers are now eligible for the 10-year Golden Visa as prices have crossed Dh2 million, while the new townhouses are being launched at Dh2 million and above, making buyers eligible for the 10-year residency.

“Golden Visa has become one of the biggest attractions for overseas investors. We are getting inquiries from investors who are asking us to find a property which is Dh2 million to get the 10-year visa,” said Farooq Syed, CEO of Springfield Properties.

He said apartments in Downtown, Palm Jumeirah and Dubai Hills have seen massive growth in prices, hence, end-users who bought at Dh1.5-Dh1.8 million earlier have seen their assets’ prices surpassing the Dh2 million mark.

Property prices in the emirate have risen substantially in the past couple of years, driven by post-pandemic recovery as well surge in demand for residential units from residents and foreign investors.

According to real estate consultancy CBRE, in the 12 months to August 2023, average prices rose by 19.6 per cent, up from 18.1 per cent a month earlier. Over this period, average apartment prices rose by 20 per cent, and average villa prices rose by 17.3 per cent.

In addition, the government introduced multiple long-term residency visas for foreigners which attracted a lot of expatriate professionals and investors, especially in the real estate sector.

New townhouses priced at above Dh2 million
Farooq Syed revealed that townhouses which were below Dh2 million are now priced at Dh2.5-Dh3 million. “The entry-level prices of regular townhouses used to be Dh1.5 million and now they are Dh2.5-Dh3 million. The residents who had regular visas and are now able to get Golden Visa.”

Junaid Merchant, CEO of VA Properties, said more people are becoming eligible for the Golden Visa as prices go up.

“Secondly, the procedure for the long-term visa has been softened as well. The good news is that people are subscribing to that because they want to stay here for a long-term basis. Even if the golden visa is 5 years, people are opting for it because people want to be part of this city,” he said, adding that people whose assets’ value have crossed Dh2 million can apply for evaluation through the Land Department, which will issue an evaluation certificate for a fee and, based on that, people can apply for the Golden Visa.

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