As Dubai booms, residents grapple with traffic congestion, high property prices

Dubai's rapid growth strains residents with soaring real estate prices, traffic congestion, and demographic shifts.

Skyscraper-studded Dubai has been on a hot streak for the past five years — and some residents are starting to feel burned.

The city-state has seen record-breaking real estate transactions and as more and more people come to live there, and its state-owned airline Emirates is booking record earnings. But all that growth comes with strains for the city’s population.

Traffic feels worse than ever on Dubai’s roads. The price of housing continues to spike even with new real estate projects being announced almost daily. Caught in the middle are both its Emirati citizens and the vast population of foreigners who power its economy — sparking rare public expressions of concern.

“Dubai is on steroids but affordability risks are increasing,” warned Hasnain Malik in a starkly titled report he wrote for the global data firm Tellimer, where he is a managing director.

Under Dubai’s current plans, the city aims to have 5.8 million residents by 2040, adding more than half its current estimated population in just 15 years. Since 1980, its population has already soared from around 2,55,000 to around 3.8 million.

Real estate lit the fire in Dubai’s growth in 2002, when the desert sheikdom began allowing foreigners to own property. After sharp falls during both the 2008-09 financial crisis and coronavirus lockdown, prices have been soaring.

Today, average prices per square foot are at all-time highs, according to Property Monitor. Rental prices increased as much as 20% in key neighbourhoods last year, with further rises likely this year, with some residents moving to communities further out in the desert, the real estate firm Engel & Völkers said.