By Staff Reporter
Dubai: Sharjah apartment rents went up 15%-25% during 2024 – even then, the emirate continues to offer some of the most affordable lease rates as landlords show a willingness to work closely with tenants for a win-win situation.
Rental increases on a majority of renewals were accepted by the tenants, even in instances where landlords effected double-digit hikes. Plus, the higher rental demand was clearly communicated to tenants, leaving them enough time to decide whether to renew or shift, estate agents say. (Recently, Dubai made it mandatory for landlords to inform of any home rent increases a good 90 days or earlier. This was after the real-time digital rental index went live in Dubai at the start of the year.)
“Sharjah apartment rents have risen gradually under the emirate’s recently introduced changed to the rental rules,” said an estate agent, who handles multiple residential towers in the emirate.
“Tenants were concerned they would be called upon to pay higher rents as landlords tried to match what new buildings were charging. That’s not happened.”
As has been the case since last year, these ‘gradual’ rent increases have proved a magnet for a significant number of newly installed residents in the UAE, who might be working in Dubai but commute to and from their residences in Sharjah.
Occupancy rates across old and new buildings are at ‘all-time highs’, and the time an empty apartment stays in the market has come down ‘to a week or two’, estate agents add.
Sharjah too could introduce its version of a rental index at some point this year.
How have Sharjah rents fared?
In its 2024 review of the UAE property market, Asteco finds that one-bedroom apartments in Sharjah had risen by 24% on average, while those for two-bedroom units are at 25%. The increases in both categories had been 12% and 10% in 2023. Three-bedroom rent increases were pegged at 17% during 2024 from 9% a year before.
Individual Sharjah neighborhoods
Someone scouting for a one-bedroom apartment in Al Majaz or the Al Nahda area in Sharjah would typically get asking rents of Dh29,500 and Dh30,500 on average. The Al Khan area in Al Mamzar would be about Dh35,000 while a Rolla one-bed would typically be Dh21,000.
If the intent is to lease a two-bedroom unit in these areas, current annual rents would average Dh40,500, Dh38,500 and Dh26,500 respectively.
“Tenant migration from Dubai to the Northern Emirates (particularly Sharjah, RAK and Ajman) rose throughout the year, driven by lower rental rates, improved development standards, enhanced infrastructure and flexible work arrangements,” says the Asteco report. “This trend mirrors previous cycles associated with rising rental rates in Dubai.”
No rush in closing rent gap
“The best part for tenants is that landlords have not been in a rush to close the gap between new and older building rental rates,” said an agent. “Even in those buildings that have gone through substantial upgrades, Sharjah landlords have for the most part kept their new rent increases at a tenant-friendly level.
“There will always be those tenants who feel they are being charged more than the market average in an area, but these are still the rare cases.”
