The real estate market in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi have witnessed mixed trends in February with the rental prices registering a steep decline in most areas while the sale prices at most prime properties remaining steady, said a report by UAE property portal Bayut.

The report gauges user interest in popular areas across the capital and compiles lists of top areas for renting and buying property in Abu Dhabi and the percentage change in prices compared to January 2018.

Based on its search volumes in February, Bayut said Al Khalidiyah retained its lead position from January as the most searched-for area over the last month as well.

Its proximity to the corniche and a large variety of affordable housing and property types garnered the most user interest on Bayut, it stated.

Rents for one-bedroom apartments in Al Khalidiyah dropped to Dh70,000, the steepest decline in rents from last month. This is bound to further contribute to its increasing popularity among those looking to rent apartments in Abu Dhabi. Rents for two-bedroom flats in Al Khalidiyah remained stable at Dh95,000.

Popular waterfront community, Al Reem Island, ranked second amongst the top areas to rent apartments in Abu Dhabi. Average rent for studio apartments in Al Reem Island reported no significant fluctuations from January, remaining stable at Dh55,000. The only drop in rents was seen in two-bedroom apartments, where rents decreased from Dh110,000 in January to Dh107,000 last month.

Hamdan Street, Corniche Area and Khalifa City A were also among the most popular areas to rent apartments in the capital. These also reported slightly mixed trends, with a lot of the rent increases seen in these areas marginally offsetting the drops.

In February 2018, Khalifa City A ranked as the most popular area to rent villas in Abu Dhabi. The rents in this locality reported only slight drops with three-bedroom villas drawing an average annual rent of Dh135,000, only an Dh10,000 decrease from January 2018.

Five-bedroom houses also declined marginally, from Dh180,000 in January to Dh170,000 last month.

Mohammed Bin Zayed City (MBZ City) was the second most searched-for area in terms of renting villas in Abu Dhabi. The community's spacious units and affordable housing make it a prime choice for larger families.

The only major dip seen in MBZ was a steep decline in studio apartment rents, with a 3.7% increase in rents for one-bedroom apartments. Al Reef remains the third most popular area among users looking to rent villas.

The average asking rents in this area reported no change from January. Three-bedroom villas in Al Reef posted annual rent of Dh120k, while larger four- and five-bedroom units were at Dh150,000 and Dh160,000, respectively.

The most popular area in terms of buying apartments in Abu Dhabi, Al Reem Island reported only a minor drop in prices. Studio and one-bedroom configurations reported no change from January 2018, remaining stable at average property prices of Dh630,000 and Dh1,000 respectively. Asking price for two-bedroom apartments dropped only slightly by 1.3 per cent bringing it to Dh1.5 million.

Al Raha Beach, Al Ghadeer, Masdar City and Yas Island were also top contenders in areas for property investments in Abu Dhabi. Apartments in these areas reported marginal decreases, with the only significant drop (4.6 per cent) seen in Al Ghadeer’s two-bedroom apartments.

Villas in Al Raha Gardens generated the most number of searches on Bayut. The buying price of three-bedroom villas in the area increased by 5.45 per cent to Dh2.9 million while five-bedroom houses in Al Raha Gardens also reported a 4.38 per cent hike, going up to Dh4.2 million in February 2018.

Four-bedroom units reported no change in average sale price, remaining stable at Dh3.4 million.

The second most popular area for buying villas in Abu Dhabi, Al Reef also reported a similar trend with minor increases in prices of three- and five-bedroom villas, going for Dh1.65 million and Dh2.45 million, respectively.

Four-bedroom villas in Al Reef also remained unchanged, posting a buying price of Dh2.15 million in February.

Saadiyat Island and Yas Island rounded off the list of popular areas to buy villas in Abu Dhabi. Property prices in these areas reported a net increase, with only a slight drop in buying price of four-bedroom villas in Saadiyat Island.

Based on these trends reported across the capital, it is safe to say that the Abu Dhabi real estate market will remain a sound investment choice for property buyers, said the UAE property portal in a statement.

While there have been some increases, rents and sale prices have remained quite stable. This trend will likely through the first quarter of 2018, with drastic changes surfacing only after the influx of off-plan properties in popular areas, it added.-TradeArabia News Service