DAMAC vs Emaar

DAMAC is the cheaper book per sqft, at AED 1,580 against AED 2,068 for Emaar, so Emaar is 31% dearer per sqft. On the typical unit that reads as AED 2.67M for a median 1,423 sqft home from DAMAC, against AED 3.19M for a median 1,554 sqft home from Emaar. Part of that gap is product, not premium: the two are not selling the same mix of unit.

DAMAC sells mostly 1 BR units, 584 priced records at a median AED 1,671 per sqft and AED 1.56M a unit. Emaar leans to 2 BR units, 501 records at AED 2,241 per sqft and AED 2.84M a unit.

Entry pricing: the lowest published starting price is AED 536K from DAMAC and AED 660K from Emaar.

Across 204 published plans from DAMAC, the median asks 75% before handover, with 3% carrying instalments that run past the keys. Emaar publishes 272 plans, a median of 80% before handover and 11% with a post-handover tail.

The heavy end matters more than the median when the plan is the reason to buy. Both sides land in the same place: 89% of plans on either side want 60% or more before keys. At the light end, 11% of DAMAC plans and 10% of Emaar plans ask 50% or less.

DAMAC builds in Dubai, Ras Al Khaimah, across 23 communities, most of it in DAMAC Lagoons, Dubai Investments Park, DAMAC Hills. Emaar builds in Dubai, Ras Al Khaimah, across 28 communities, concentrated in The Valley, Dubai Creek Harbour, Dubai Hills Estate.

DAMAC peaks in 2027, when 52 of its 174 tracked projects are scheduled to hand over. Emaar peaks in 2029 with 82 of 240. Published handover dates move, so read them as developer intent rather than a delivered date.

35% of the DAMAC projects tracked are listed as sold out or out of stock, against 54% for Emaar. That is the share of each book no longer taking new bookings at listed prices, which reads as demand on the way in and as scarcity on the way out.