Bayut’s RAK Annual Market Report for 2023

• Buying Apartments
• Renting Apartments
• Buying and Renting Villas

It would be entirely accurate to term 2023 as a ”Year of Change” for Ras Al Khaimah – especially in terms of the emirate’s real estate market. With significant investment from both local and international developers, demand for properties in RAK is at an all-time high. Bayut’s RAK market report for 2023 utilises a range of insightful data to measure the impact of the increased demand on rent and sales prices within the Ras Al Khaimah real estate market.

Our RAK annual market report compares the sales prices and rents from 2023 to those of 2022, in order to identify property price trends in the emirate.

The data highlights general upward movement for both rental and sale properties: 

• Rental prices for villas in popular areas increased by up to 9.37% during 2023, with apartment rental costs increasing to 10.5%.

• The sales price of villas in RAK increased by 3.55% in 2023. The apartment sale prices, on the other hand, surged by up to 18.5%.  

For a more in-depth study of the market, continue reading Bayut’s Ras Al Khaimah Annual Market Report.

RAK MARKET REPORT FOR 2023

Demand for properties in RAK has undoubtedly increased, which has predictably led to a surge in prices. The increased demand is a further indication that, by many, Ras Al Khaimah is now seen as a viable alternative to buying properties in the UAE.

The government’s friendly policies towards investors, the robust state of the economy, infrastructure development, along with the likelihood of future profits, are just some of the reasons why more local and global developers are now favouring RAK.

As per Bayut’s data analysis for 2023, properties in the following areas were the most in demand:

• Al Hamra Village
• Al Marjan Island
• Mina Al Arab
• Al Nakheel
• Al Dhait

In this Ras Al Khaimah annual market report, we analyse the consumer search patterns and advertised prices observed on Bayut during 2023.

AL HAMRA VILLAGE IS THE MOST POPULAR AREA TO BUY APARTMENTS IN THE EMIRATE

POPULAR AREAS	ROI	PRICE PER SQ.FT Avg. Price/sq.ftChange from 2022	1-BED	2-BED	3-BED
Al Hamra Village	ROI 6.95%	PRICE PER SQ.FT Avg. Price/sq.ftChange from 2022 633 7.84%	1-Bed 533,000	2-BED 848,000	3-BED 1,582,000
Al Marjan Island	ROI 5.75%	PRICE PER SQ.FT Avg. Price/sq.ftChange from 2022 867 4.88%	1-Bed 804,000	2-BED 1,143,000	3-BED 2,164,000
Mina Al Arab	ROI 5.04%	PRICE PER SQ.FT Avg. Price/sq.ftChange from 2022 948 18.5%	1-Bed 762,000	2-Bed 1,463,000	3-BED 2,059,000
Yasmin Village	ROI 11.8%	PRICE PER SQ.FT Avg. Price/sq.ftChange from 2022 259 -4.23%	1-Bed 266,000	2-BED 292,000	3-BED 420,000
Al Seer	ROI 9.44%	PRICE PER SQ.FT Avg. Price/sq.ftChange from 2022 365  N/A	1-Bed N/A	2-BED 335,000	3-BED N/A
Not available due to low/no historical inventory or influx of off-plan properties

As per the search data, Al Hamra Village was the area that generated the most interest amongst those searching for apartments for sale in RAK:

• The price-per-square-foot in the area surged by 7.84%, going from AED 587 in 2022 to AED 633 in 2023.

• To buy a 1-bed apartment in Al Hamra Village, buyers paid AED 533k on average. The cost of 2 and 3-bed units stood at AED 848k and AED 1.58M, respectively.

Our data analysis for RAK market report for 2023 also highlighted Al Marjan Island as a preferred choice for investors:

• In a year-on-year comparison, the price-per-square-foot rose by 4.88%; from AED 827 in 2022 to AED 867 in 2023.

• During the past year, sales price for a 1-bed flat in Al Marjan averaged at AED 804k. Larger 2 and 3-bed units averaged at AED 1.14M and AED 2.16M, respectively.  

Three more areas that garnered considerable attention from investors were:  

• Mina Al Arab
• Yasmin Village
• Al Seer

The average price-per-square-foot rose significantly by 18.5% for apartments in Mina Al Arab, a surge most likely driven by properties being listed at higher price points. There was a small dip of 4.23% in the asking price of Yasmin Village properties, whilst prices of 2-bed apartments in Al Seer rose by 8.06% to stand at AED 335k.

RAK MARKET REPORT FOR 2023: YASMIN VILLAGE TOPS THE LIST OF ROI FOR APARTMENTS

The following communities/areas offered promising ROIs on buy-to-let apartments during 2023:

• The projected ROI of Yasmin Village stood at 11.8%.
• Al Seer’s ROI was slightly lower at 9.44%.
• Al Hamra’s ROI was recorded at 6.95%.

AL HAMRA VILLAGE IS THE MOST POPULAR AREA TO RENT APARTMENTS IN RAK

POPULAR AREAS	STUDIO Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022	1-BED Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022	2-BED Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022
Al Hamra Village	STUDIO Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 26,000 10.5%	1-BED Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 37,000 6.38%	2-BED Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 53,000 1.24%
Al Marjan Island	STUDIO Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 26,000 4.94%	1-BED Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 41,000 7.78%	2-BED Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 59,000 8.18%
Mina Al Arab	STUDIO Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 20,000 7.81%	1-BED Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 38,000 -1.68%	2-BED Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 65,000 10.3%
Al Nakheel	STUDIO Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 15,000 0.00%	1-Bed Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 23,000  N/A	2-BED Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 30,000
Al Seer	STUDIO Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 17,000 0.00%	1-Bed Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 23,000 0.00%	2-BED Avg. Yearly RentChange from 2022 31,000
Not available due to low/no historical inventory or influx of off-plan properties

The data analysis for the RAK annual real estate market report showed that Al Hamra Village was the top choice for those looking to rent apartments in RAK:

• The average rent for flats in Al Hamra Village went up from between 1% and 11% in 2023.

• Studios in Al Hamra Village were available for an average rent of AED 26k. The rental costs averaged at AED 37k and AED 53k for 1 and 2-bed units, respectively.

Al Marjan Island is another area that tenants found suitable to rent flats:

• Due to the higher demand for rental apartments in Al Marjan Island, upticks of 4% to 8% were recorded in asking rents.

• Average rent for studios in the area was AED 26k, with tenants paying an average of AED 41k and AED 59k for 1 and 2-bed units, respectively.

A study of the rental trends as part of our RAK market report for 2023 showed that these three areas also garnered interest from people in search of a rental flat in RAK:

• Mina Al Arab
• Al Nakheel
• Al Seer

The average rent for studios and 2-bed flats in Mina Al Arab increased by 7% and 10%, respectively. Conversely, rents for 1-bed units in the area dipped slightly during 2023. Al Seer and Al Nakheel didn’t see any significant changes in average rental prices.

THE MOST POPULAR AREAS TO BUY AND RENT VILLAS IN RAK

BUYING VILLAS	RENTING VILLAS
BUYING VILLAS Al Hamra Village	RENTING VILLAS Al Hamra Village
BUYING VILLAS Mina Al Arab	RENTING VILLAS Al Dhait

During the course of the past year, villas in Al Hamra Village and Mina Al Arab saw growing interest from local and international investors:

• Villas for sale in Al Hamra Village were in high demand and that was reflected in their price-per-square-foot rising from AED 618 in 2022 to AED 640 in 2023.

• On average, investors paid AED 1.57M for a 3-bed villa in the area. Those who opted to buy 4 or 5-bed units had to pay around AED 2.32M and AED 8.13M, respectively.

Those in search of villas in Ras Al Khaimah also showed preference for Mina Al Arab:

• There was a drop recorded in the price-per-square-foot for villas in Mina Al Arab, sliding from AED 933 in 2022 to AED 909 in 2023.

• In 2023, the cost of a 3-bed villa in Mina Al Arab stood at AED 2.27M, on average. For 4 and 5-bed villas, the average financial outlay was AED 5.26M and AED 6.74M, respectively.

AL HAMRA VILLAGE OFFERS THE HIGHEST ROI ON VILLAS IN RAK

As per the data collected for Ras Al Khaimah’s annual market report:

• Al Hamra Village’s ROI stood at 5.87%.
• For Mina Al Arab, the ROI was 4.43%.

SOUGHT-AFTER AREAS TO RENT VILLAS IN RAK: AL HAMRA VILLAGE TOPS THE CHARTS

Rental trends analysis conducted for Ras Al Khaimah annual market report highlight that Al Hamra Village retained its popularity as the top choice for tenants in the villas segment:

• The average rent for a 3-bed villa in Al Hamra Village stood at AED 100k.

• Those interested in larger 4-bed units paid an average of AED 122k whilst the 5-bed homes were rented out for circa AED 358k.

Our RAK property market report for 2023 revealed Al Dhait as the next most searched for area for renting villas in Ras Al Khaimah:

• To rent a 3-bed villa in Al Dhait, tenants paid an average of AED 55k.

• For 4 and 5-bed units, the rent surged up to AED 71k and AED 89k, respectively.

Other areas that drew significant attention in terms of rental villas included:

• Mina Al Arab
• Khuzam
• Al Refaa

That concludes Bayut’s RAK market report for 2023. In many ways, the year was transformative for the RAK property market. With growing interest from big players in the UAE real estate industry, things are definitely moving in the right direction. This might be an opportune moment to consider investing in a property in this rapidly progressing emirate.

If you’re considering purchasing a property in one of the bigger emirates, read Dubai’s annual sales report to gain key insights about the Dubai property market.

Disclaimer: The above report (MKTRPTYE2023) is based on prices advertised by real estate agencies on behalf of their clients on Bayut and does not represent actual real estate transactions conducted in Ras Al Khaimah.