Dubai recorded 86 sales of homes worth more than $10 million in the third quarter and 525 over the past 12 months, leading all global markets despite a sharp slowdown in activity, according to Knight Frank.
Dubai remained the world’s busiest super-prime residential property market in the third quarter of 2026, retaining its top position by the number of homes sold for more than $10 million, despite a sharp slowdown in activity, according to Knight Frank.
The property consultancy’s Global Super-Prime Intelligence report shows that Dubai recorded 86 sales worth a combined $1.57 billion in Q3, ahead of Hong Kong’s 78 transactions and New York’s 62.
In the 12 months to September, Dubai registered 525 transactions worth $9.25 billion, comfortably ahead of all other markets tracked in the report. Hong Kong ranked second, with 346 sales valued at $6.65 billion.
However, the latest quarter showed signs of cooling. Dubai’s super-prime sales fell 34 per cent in volume and 28 per cent in value compared with the second quarter, bringing activity to its lowest level since Q3 2024. Year on year, the number of transactions declined 16 per cent, while their combined value dropped 21 per cent.
Knight Frank said the second consecutive quarterly decline confirmed that the exceptional pace recorded in early 2026 had begun to moderate.
Dubai’s luxury property market has enjoyed strong growth in recent years, supported by an influx of millionaires and high-net-worth individuals.
Real estate consultancy CBRE also noted in its latest report that prime and luxury neighbourhoods are outperforming lower-priced residential communities.
Hong Kong overtakes Dubai in total sales value
Hong Kong narrowly surpassed Dubai in the combined value of super-prime transactions, recording $1.58 billion in sales against Dubai’s $1.57 billion. This marked the first time Hong Kong had led the ranking by value since Q2 2022.
Although Hong Kong’s transaction volume fell 16 per cent from the second quarter, sales were 39 per cent higher than a year earlier, while their total value rose 52 per cent.
“Super-prime activity slowed in the third quarter, but the more significant story is a shift in leadership. Hong Kong edged past Dubai on value for the first time in four years, and Sydney posted a record quarter,” said Liam Bailey, global head of research at Knight Frank.
Global super-prime property market
Across the 12 markets monitored by Knight Frank, there were 470 super-prime transactions in Q3, down 19 per cent from the revised second-quarter total and 2 per cent from a year earlier.
The combined value of these sales reached $8.7 billion, representing an 18 per cent quarterly decline but a 1 per cent increase year on year.
Sydney delivered the strongest performance, with transactions more than doubling to a record 57. Total sales value climbed 77 per cent to $724 million.
New York was among the few major markets to record an improvement, with 62 transactions worth $1.08 billion. These figures were up 9 per cent and 11 per cent, respectively, from Q2.
London recorded 42 sales, but the combined value fell by half to $722 million as the large transactions seen in the previous quarter were not repeated.
Los Angeles registered just 18 transactions, its lowest total since the series began.
Asia-Pacific markets accounted for 38 per cent of all Q3 transactions, up from 29 per cent in the second quarter, while sales volumes across the US declined by 30 per cent.
Globally, the 12 months to September saw 2,240 super-prime transactions worth a combined $41 billion, broadly matching the figures recorded in the 12 months to June.
Knight Frank identified the strength and sustainability of Hong Kong’s recovery as one of the key trends to watch in 2027.
