Sold: Dubai’s most expensive penthouse

A penthouse currently under construction has set a new sales record in Dubai. The full floor property at Bvlgari Resorts & Residences on Jumeirah Bay was sold for Dh60 million, which according to REIDIN records is the most expensive penthouse transaction to date. Currently being developed by Meraas, the property will be completed by year end.

The Bvlgari penthouse eclipsed the Dh42 million sales price of a penthouse on The Fairmont Palm Residences in December 2012.

“This penthouse is very special because it has 270-degree views of Downtown Dubai and the sea. It’s the largest penthouse I’ve ever come across for a branded development in Dubai,” says Alexander Von Sayn Wittgenstein, luxury sales director of Luxhabitat, which brokered the deal.

Branded developments can demand premiums of up to 46 per cent, according to a Luxhabitat research in 2015, which also found that branded residences have an inelastic price and higher returns. Other branded developments in Dubai that offer penthouses include Armani Residences, Kempinski Hotels & Resorts and Palazzo Versace.

“Luxhabitat is proud to have closed a transaction of this magnitude,” says Oriol Font, CEO of Luxhabitat. “Alexander has been with the company since our foundation in 2009 and has been a strong team member since then. He is one of the few agents in town specialising in the penthouse market, has access to all quality-driven penthouses in town, both from the secondary market and also from the most prestigious developers.”

Bvlgari Resorts & Residences is a 157,935m² (1.7 million sq ft) complex framed by landscaped gardens. It will have 100 rooms and suites, 20 residential villas and a marina.

Designed by Italian architectural firm Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel and Partners, the project offers amenities such as swimming pools, gyms and dining and sporting options. The Bulgari Marina will have over 50 berths and can accommodate boats from 9 metres to 36 metres (30ft to 120 ft.).

Some of the other most expensive transactions in Dubai include a penthouses in Le Reve Tower, which sold for Dh38 million in 2013, and a penthouse in Volante, which sold for Dh36 million in March this year.