Real estate trading value declined by 11.4% in the second quarter

Real estate transaction values reached 907.5 million Kuwaiti dinars during the second quarter of 2026, according to data and indicators from the Registration and Documentation Department, which are compiled on a monthly basis by the Kuwaiti Ministry of Justice. This represents an 11.4 percent decline from the high level recorded in the first quarter of the year, while remaining significantly higher by 15 percent on a year-on-year basis.

According to a report issued by Kuwait Finance House, private residential transactions accounted for 47.0 percent of total real estate transactions, a notable increase from the 38.5 percent share in the previous quarter. This placed private housing in first place in the second quarter of 2026. Investment real estate remained in second place among real estate sectors, capturing a 31.6 percent share of transactions in the second quarter of 2026, up from 28.5 percent in the first quarter of the year. Commercial real estate followed in third place, with its share declining to 12.4 percent in the second quarter, compared to 21.0 percent of total transactions in the first quarter of 2026. Transactions in other real estate categories accounted for 8.9 percent of total activity, driven by trading in the agricultural nurseries category, which alone represented 3.2 percent of total transactions. This was followed by warehouse transactions, which accounted for 3.0 percent of real estate transactions, while coastal strip transactions accounted for approximately 2.6 percent. Meanwhile, artisanal real estate transactions accounted for just 0.1 percent of the total value of real estate transactions in the second quarter of 2026.

The average price per square meter for private housing in the Capital Governorate reached 1,318 dinars by the end of the second quarter of 2026. In the investment sector, it reached 2,738 dinars, and was higher in commercial real estate within the governorate, where the average price per square meter reached 9,188 dinars by the end of the second quarter of 2026. In Hawalli Governorate, the average price per square meter for private housing stood at around 1,028 dinars, while it rose in the investment sector to 1,978 dinars, and reached 4,061 dinars for commercial real estate. In Farwaniya Governorate, the average price was 693 dinars for private housing, while the average price for investment real estate in the governorate reached 1,716 dinars, and for commercial real estate, it reached 2,813 dinars.

The index for the average total value of real estate deals stood at 607,000 dinars by the end of the second quarter of 2026, representing a 21.5 percent decline from the first quarter of the year, and a 16.1 percent increase on a year-on-year basis.

The total number of transactions compiled on a monthly basis reached 1,494 deals in the second quarter of 2026, marking a 12.8 percent increase from the first quarter of the year, and a 2.1 percent rise on a year-on-year basis. This growth was driven by a year-on-year increase in the number of transactions in private housing and the commercial real estate category. Conversely, the number of registered transactions in investment real estate declined, and demand for the coastal strip category decreased on a year-on-year basis. However, there was notable activity in the warehouse category, along with a limited number of transactions in the agricultural nurseries category during the second quarter of the year.

Real estate transactions in the private housing category amounted to 426.6 million dinars in the second quarter of 2026, an increase of 8.2 percent from its value in the previous quarter, while remaining up by 2.0 percent on a year-on-year basis.

The average transaction value in the private housing category was 385,700 dinars, down by 12.2 percent from the first quarter of 2026, which had recorded a high level. This indicator is 2.3 percent lower on a year-on-year basis.

The number of transactions in private housing reached 1,106 in the second quarter of 2026, representing a 23.3 percent increase from the low of 897 transactions recorded in the first quarter, while remaining 4.4 percent higher on a year-on-year basis.

The value of investment property transactions amounted to 287.1 million dinars in the second quarter of 2026, a 1.6 percent decline from its high level in the first quarter of the year, and significantly lower by 40.5 percent on a year-on-year basis.

The average transaction value in the investment property category improved, reaching 875.3 dinars in the second quarter of 2026, a slight increase of 0.2 percent compared to the first quarter of the year, which had been the lowest level in approximately two years. Meanwhile, the average transaction value index fell by 36.3 percent on a year-on-year basis.

The number of transactions recorded for investment properties stood at 328 in the second quarter of 2026, a 1.8 percent decrease from the first quarter of the year, and a 6.6 percent drop on a year-on-year basis.

The value of commercial property transactions reached 112.9 million dinars, down 47.4 percent from its level in the first quarter of the year, and also declining by 2.3 percent on a year-on-year basis.

The average transaction value in the commercial property category fell to approximately 2.5 million dinars in the second quarter of the year, a 50.9 percent decrease compared to around 5.1 million dinars in the first quarter. This indicator also dropped significantly from its high level in the second quarter of the previous year, which had exceeded 5 million dinars.

Demand for commercial property recorded 45 transactions in the second quarter of the year, a 7.1 percent increase from the low of 42 transactions in the first quarter. Furthermore, the number of transactions in the commercial property category doubled the 23 transactions recorded in the second quarter of 2025.