The annual house price growth in Dubai softened 6.8 per cent in November, with prices declining 1.4 per cent month-on-month – a fall of 1.3 per cent compared to the same period last year, according to Cavendish Maxwell, one of UAE's leading property consultancies.

The annual decline in house prices were more pronounced in communities such as Arabian Ranches, Emirates Living, Jumeirah Islands and Discovery Gardens, where prices declined by more than 7 per cent on average, said the expert in its leading real estate intelligence platform, Property Monitor.

In October, secondary market transfers for villas outpaced off-plan activity, as has been seen from November 2017 onwards. However, for apartments, off-plan transfers continued to dominate, though the volume of transfers for under-construction apartments declined by 17 per cent year-on-year, it stated.

The annual change in house prices registered a drop of 6.8 per cent in November, compared to a 5.6 per cent decline the previous month, said Property Monitor in its Dubai House Price Index which tracks the prices of a selection of apartment and villa/townhouse properties since September 2015.

House prices in the three months to November were 4.4 per cent lower than the previous quarter, it added.

According to the House Price Index, apartment and villa/townhouse prices declined by 12 per cent and 14 per cent respectively, since September 2015.

The average apartment was Dh1.9 million, with the average villa/townhouse price Dh4.8 million in November 2018, compared to prices of Dh2.1 million and Dh5.6 million in September 2015, it added.-TradeArabia News Service