Sharjah · Analysis · Who bought in January to September 2026

Sharjah property drew 9,891 new investors from 130 nationalities in January to September 2026; GCC citizens traded 1,451 properties worth AED 2.5 billion, the Real Estate Registration Department says

The Sharjah Real Estate Registration Department, in figures published by the Emirates News Agency WAM on 14 October 2026, says investors from 130 nationalities traded 46,125 properties in Sharjah between January and September 2026, and 9,891 of them entered the market for the first time. UAE citizens remained the largest group with AED 22.4 billion across 31,250 properties; investors from outside the Arab world added AED 14.1 billion, Arab investors AED 7.8 billion and citizens of other GCC states, the group that includes Kuwaitis, AED 2.5 billion across 1,451 properties. The department has approved 52 projects for freehold ownership by non-citizens since Executive Council Resolution No. 30 of 2022, eight of them this year to the end of September.

Al Mithaq news desk · Published 22 October 2026 · Source: WAM (Emirates News Agency)

Residential towers in Sharjah under a blue sky, with palm trees in front. Picture: Gulf Today

9,891new investors who entered the Sharjah market for the first time, January to September 2026

130nationalities of investors, trading 46,125 properties

AED 2.5bntraded by citizens of other GCC states, across 1,451 properties

Who the new investors are

The department counted 9,891 investors who bought in Sharjah for the first time between January and September 2026. Investors from countries outside the Arab world were the largest group of newcomers, 4,526, followed by investors from Arab countries, 2,494, UAE citizens, 2,453, and citizens of other GCC states, 418. The Director General of the department, Abdul Aziz Ahmed Al Shamsi, said that attracting nearly 10,000 new investors from 130 nationalities in nine months was, in his words, clear proof of the strength of Sharjah's investment environment, and he attributed the growth to regulatory reforms, wider ownership opportunities, economic stability and an attractive investment environment.

Trading value by group of buyers

Across all investors, UAE citizens traded 31,250 properties worth AED 22.4 billion between January and September, the largest share by far. Investors from countries outside the Arab world traded 6,732 properties worth AED 14.1 billion, investors from Arab countries 6,692 properties worth AED 7.8 billion, and citizens of other GCC states 1,451 properties worth AED 2.5 billion. The four groups add up to 46,125 properties and AED 46.8 billion, the same total value of transactions the department reported for the nine months on 13 October (our arithmetic). By nationality, Indian investors were the largest group after UAE citizens, with more than AED 6.8 billion across 2,914 properties, followed by Syrians with close to AED 2 billion across 1,738 properties, then Pakistanis with AED 1.56 billion, Jordanians with AED 1.21 billion across 1,005 properties and Iraqis with AED 1.17 billion across 1,001 properties; Egyptians traded 997 properties.

Freehold projects open to non-citizens

The department says 52 real estate projects have been approved for freehold ownership by non-citizens and foreign investors since Executive Council Resolution No. 30 of 2022 was issued, and eight new projects were approved in 2026 up to the end of September. This is a different count from the 22 new projects the department said it registered in the nine months in its 13 October release: one counts projects opened to non-citizen freehold ownership, the other counts all newly registered projects. The release does not list the 52 projects by name, and it gives no price index and no breakdown by emirate area for the nationality figures.

Why it mattersOur view for a Kuwaiti buyer: this release is the first in the series to show where buyers from other GCC states stand in Sharjah, and the answer is a small but expensive group. Citizens of other GCC states traded 1,451 of the 46,125 properties, about 3% by number, but AED 2.5 billion of the AED 46.8 billion, about 5% by value, which works out at about AED 1.7 million per property (our calculations). That average is well above the roughly AED 720,000 per property for UAE citizens and the AED 1.2 million for Arab nationals, and close to the AED 2.1 million for buyers from outside the Arab world (our calculations from the same table). In other words, Gulf buyers in Sharjah are buying villas and larger apartments rather than studios. Three cautions. The department does not publish a Kuwaiti figure on its own, so we cannot say how many of the 418 new GCC investors were Kuwaiti. Trading value covers every registered transaction, not sales alone, and it is not a price index, so it says nothing about whether a square foot in Sharjah costs more or less than a year ago. And 130 nationalities and 9,891 new investors tell you that the market is liquid, which matters when you come to sell, but they do not tell you which building will hold its value; for that, ask for the recent transaction history of the building and the phase before you pay a deposit.

What Al Mithaq adds

We are an authorised broker for Arada in Sharjah and offer its Aljada and Masaar communities to buyers from Kuwait. Our Aljada page shows the one- to four-bedroom apartments at Jenna, Safa and The Gate, and our Masaar pages show the villas and townhouses among the trees at Masaar; the department's figures are for the whole emirate, so they tell you about Sharjah, not about any one project. For the rules on who may own what in Sharjah, and which UAE residency a purchase can open, read our UAE residency guide, and read our 16 October report on the department's nine-month transaction figures. Tell our team in Kuwait your budget and whether the home is to live in, to let or to hold, and we will send the current prices and payment plans and the recent recorded sales in the phase you are considering.

Sources

Key facts

Source: Sharjah Real Estate Registration Department, via WAM, 14 October 2026
Period: January to September 2026
Properties traded: 46,125, by investors from 130 nationalities
New investors: 9,891: 4,526 from outside the Arab world, 2,494 from Arab countries, 2,453 UAE citizens, 418 GCC citizens
UAE citizens: 31,250 properties, AED 22.4 billion
Other foreign nationals: 6,732 properties, AED 14.1 billion
Arab nationals: 6,692 properties, AED 7.8 billion
Other GCC citizens: 1,451 properties, AED 2.5 billion (about AED 1.7 million per property, our calculation)
Largest expatriate nationality: India: more than AED 6.8 billion, 2,914 properties
Freehold projects for non-citizens: 52 approved since Executive Council Resolution No. 30 of 2022; 8 in 2026 to end of September