Ras Al Khaimah has not been spared the consequences of the Iran war, denting one of the UAE’s most dynamic property markets. A leading developer there is already adjusting to the new reality.
RAK Properties CEO Sameh Muhtadi has voiced optimism for the future, sharing with AGBI the steps being taken to insulate the business.
Sales values in the once-quiet emirate rose more than 150 percent between 2022 and 2025, fuelled in part by the government’s plan to develop a casino resort. Investors had been buying units sight unseen, but that all feels distant as uncertainty spreads across the Gulf.
“We haven’t been launching. We’ve mapped out a number of scenarios and decided that now is not the time to launch new projects,” he said. “It doesn’t make sense. We’ve postponed them until May, with the belief things are going to be clear by then.”
Off-plan developments used to sell out in hours. Just being in the same city as the country’s first legal casino was convincing enough for most buyers.
RAK Properties will open tenders for its Nikki Beach hotel and homes project next week, with the CEO saying awards are still going out, though selectively. Work on its plot in Marjan Beach is on hold, he said.
For 2025, sales at the state-backed real estate developer grew by 142 percent from the prior year to AED3.4 billion ($926 million).
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In the past month, the company’s share price has dropped 41 percent. Seventy percent of sales come from international investors, the CEO said.
“If there is a drop, most of the people familiar with the UAE realise this is a temporary glitch. The demand will continue from the local market,” he said.
One of the company’s biggest bets now is on a “huge” landbank earmarked for family homes for UAE residents. Until now, the emirate’s focus has been mainly on glamorous beachfront apartments that outside investors would snap up, with townhouses and villa developments “ignored”, according to Muhtadi.
“We’re diversifying. That’s a healthy direction. Our branded apartments will continue to be offered to an international market, but we’re also going to address the local market,” he said.
RAK’s population is about 400,000, according to official data, around a tenth of Dubai’s.
He clarified that the family homes project has been in discussion since before the Iran war, but that it is needed now more than ever.
As for prices in the emirate, Muhtadi said they “can’t be lower”, adding that a cocktail of rising construction costs and tight margins would force his hand. “I anticipate the growth of inflationary pressure on construction costs. We have to mitigate that. However temporary that might be, any tender we get today is going to be super-inflated by potential risks,” he said.
Lowering prices is undesirable since it would be hard to raise them again once the conflict subsides, the CEO said. He added that if other developers drop, his company would have to follow.
“If we see every developer in Ras Al Khaimah is pricing below us, we need to evaluate what premiums our properties can demand. We have no intent at this stage to start reducing prices.”
RAK on average is a cheaper market than Dubai. In 2025, overall apartment prices sat at AED1,128 per square foot, while villas reached AED1,166 per sq ft, according to data from CBRE last month.
Dubai’s average was AED1,510 per sq ft for an apartment and AED1,480 per sq ft for a villa last year, according to Dubai Land Department data collated by property analyst DXB Interact. At the high end, however, some RAK apartments are more costly than Dubai’s, particularly those near the upcoming casino.
At a time when potential inflation brings uncertainty, RAK Properties is laying out terms in which it decides the prices of materials, with contractors able to renegotiate down the line.
“Instead of the contractor making assumptions on prices, we will tell them. We will select the most favourable suppliers,” Muhtadi said.
“It’s not kicking the can down the road, but the timing now for contracting is not favourable at all. People don’t know what’s happening or the logistical complexities, so they will throw money at things. That is not beneficial for us.”

