Few residential buildings are as prominent a global symbol for their city as the Burj Khalifa is for Dubai. 

But as it turns 15, the world’s tallest tower is showing signs of ageing and may require a facelift as other swanky highrises spring up across the emirate.

“As newer developments raise the bar for high-end interiors and amenities across Dubai, the Burj Khalifa is under pressure to reinvest and upgrade,” says Lewis Allsopp, chairman of real estate brokerage Allsopp & Allsopp. 

The Burj Khalifa opened its doors on January 4, 2010, six years after construction began and after barely surviving Dubai’s real estate slump of 2008-09.

The prices of units have since followed the ups and downs of the citywide property market, according to Haider Tuaima, director and head of real estate research for consultancy ValuStrat.

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Nevertheless, the building has consistently performed as a “premium” property with “long-term value” thanks to its “iconic status” and appeal for uber-wealthy foreign investors, Tuaima says.

An initial surge in interest lasted about four years, leading average prices to a record-high AED4,750 ($1,293) per square foot in October 2014, according to research ValuStrat shared with AGBI.

Annual rents for studio apartments hovered around AED110,000 by that year.

Demand slowed between 2015 and 2019 in line with trends seen across Dubai, as the emirate’s property market suffered from a “doubling” of sales transaction fees, worries about oversupply, sliding oil prices and wider global economic concerns. 

Allsopp & Allsopp

Tuaima says that during that period, the same apartments lost 39 percent of their capital value to reach a maximum of AED 2,895 per square foot. Annual rentals for studio apartments reached a high of AED140,000 per annum at the start of 2015, then declined 32 percent to AED95,000 by the fourth quarter of 2019.

The pandemic further impacted Burj Khalifa’s performance as international investors pulled back from the luxury market amid extensive travel restrictions, while Dubai residents abandoned apartment towers in favour of villas with a larger footprint and distance from neighbours.

Prices fell 15 percent in one year, to a record low of AED2,470 per square foot according to ValuStrat, while rents crashed to AED75,000 annually by mid-2020.

But as in the rest of Dubai, things at the tallest building in the world have been looking up since. 

Tuaima says that as of October 2024 Burj Khalifa’s apartment capital values reached AED3,930 per square foot, a 60 percent gain since 2021, though still 17 percent lower than the previous price peaks witnessed a decade ago.

Meanwhile, rents rose 100 percent in four years with studio apartments going for AED150,000 a year on average in the autumn of 2024.

According to research from Knight Frank, a real estate consultancy which publishes a report on the celebrated tower every year on its birthday, there were 1,756 sales in the Burj Khalifa in the 14 years through to 2023, for a total value of nearly AED10 billion. That equates to 8 percent of all transactions in Downtown Dubai.

Annual sales volumes, however, peaked early in 2010 when there were more than 500 purchases in the supertower for a combined AED2 billion, according to figures shared with AGBI by Betterhomes.

Rents reached their high point a few years later, in 2015–16, when one-bedroom units went for AED180,000 or more a year and are only now approaching those levels again, Betterhomes found.

Occupancy has remained strong and steady through market cycles, in the 85 to 90 percent range, according to the real estate agency.

“The Burj Khalifa is a true global real estate icon and has achieved that status in a fraction of the time of some of its global, centuries old, peers,” says Louis Harding, Betterhomes’ managing director.

“Properties in this building always gain a lot of interest, be that from very fortunate end users or high-net-worth-individuals looking for a trophy asset.”

Burj Khalifa has set several sales records over the years. 

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In November a two-storey, 21,000sq ft unit on the 108th floor went on the market for AED180 million. Aptly named the Sky Palace, the unit is unfinished and is said to require an additional AED20 million to fit out.

The supertower also helped launch the branded residences trend in Dubai by forming a partnership with Italian fashion celebrity Giorgio Armani to design all units over a block of multiple floors from its launch.

Burj Khalifa has also uplifted the surrounding area, boosting prices for all the apartment buildings that followed and could offer residents spectacular views of its unparalleled heights.  

But ageing amenities and high fees risk deterring buyers and plenty of alternative luxurious and distinctive properties are now available on the Dubai market, says Lewis Allsopp. 

“While demand remains strong, unit prices haven’t kept pace with comparable global properties, such as 432 Park Avenue in New York and One Hyde Park in London,” he says. 

“To remain competitive, the Burj Khalifa must focus on enhancing its offering by upgrading amenities or reviewing service charge structures.”