Cavendish Maxwell’s figures for the first half of 2026 put Ras Al Khaimah apartment prices up 6.5 per cent on the same period a year earlier, with villas up about 6 per cent and rents up 7 to 8 per cent. Those are emirate-wide numbers, so they smooth over a market that is moving at very different speeds in different communities.
What the numbers say
- Apartments, up 6.5 per cent year on year. The growth is concentrated on the waterfront. An older inland apartment has not moved anything like that much.
- Villas, up about 6 per cent. Supply is the constraint. Very few new villas completed in the first half of the year, and the buyers who want one are competing for stock built ten or fifteen years ago.
- Rents, up 7 to 8 per cent. Rents have moved faster than prices, which is unusual and is what has kept gross yields where they are rather than compressing them.
- About 13,800 homes announced for delivery by 2028. That is a large number against the size of the existing stock, and it is the main reason to be careful about assuming today’s growth rate continues.
Why it is happening
Wynn Al Marjan Island is due to open in 2027, and the announcement has pulled forward both developer launches and buyer interest on Al Marjan Island in particular. The tourism authority reported a record first half for visitors, with more than 670,000 overnight stays and domestic arrivals up 47 per cent, which supports the short-let market and, through it, apartment prices in the communities that allow it.
The other half of the story is Dubai. Buyers priced out of comparable Dubai waterfront stock are looking an hour up the coast, and they are arriving with Dubai expectations about process and about yields.
What it means if you are buying
A 6.5 per cent annual move is healthy rather than frantic. It does not justify paying an off-plan premium on the assumption that the same rate continues to handover. Check what the specific building has done, not what the emirate has done, and put the service charge into the sum before you decide anything.
What it means if you already own
Rents rising faster than prices is a good position for a landlord and a reason to look hard at a renewal rather than accept last year’s figure. If your unit sits in a community that permits short letting, it is also worth modelling both options properly before you sign another twelve-month tenancy.
Source
Price and rent movements: Cavendish Maxwell, first half of 2026. Delivery pipeline and project timing: developer announcements and RAK Properties. Visitor numbers: Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority, first half of 2026.