Driven | Forbes Global Properties and their investment partners have completed the AED 725 million (US $197M) sale of Emaar Square Building 3, marking approximately 44% gross, asset-level capital uplift and more than 60% IRR on an equity basis over their 21-month hold of the property. The sale follows the partners’ AED 505 million (US $137M) acquisition of the asset in November 2024 and represents one of the largest real estate transactions recorded in Downtown Dubai in 2026 to date.

“This transaction reflects the way we approach real estate investment: acquiring assets where we see upside that is not fully reflected in the market pricing, actively improving their positioning and income profile, and remaining disciplined on both entry and exit,” said Abdullah Alajaji, Founder and CEO of Driven | Forbes Global Properties. “That discipline is backed by a track record of nearly AED 4 billion in realised investments generating equity IRRs of 30% to 70%, and it is the foundation for how we intend to grow. Dubai continues to offer exceptional opportunities for investors who read the market at a granular level and act on value others overlook.”

Located within Emaar Square in Downtown Dubai, Building 3 is a prime institutional-grade commercial asset spanning approximately 243,000 sq ft of Gross Leasable Area, positioned adjacent to the Dubai International Financial Centre and within one of the city’s most established corporate districts.

Driven Properties and their partners acquired the full building off-market in 2024, as part of a broader strategy that targets proprietary sourcing of assets before they reach the open market, and active management to unlock outsized, risk-adjusted returns. During the ownership period, the partners pursued an active asset-management strategy to strengthen the building’s income profile, while benefiting from the structural undersupply of Grade A commercial assets across the Dubai market.

Q2 2026 market analysis reveals an average increase of 13 per cent year-on-year in Dubai office rents, while prime office rents rose 16 per cent, with occupancy approaching 94 per cent. Within this context, the partners’ investment thesis centred on acquiring scarce, income-producing prime commercial stock in established locations and actively managing the asset to capture rental and valuation upside.

The transaction further reflects a wider investment approach that reflects Driven Properties’ integrated institutional model, utilising proprietary research, development capability and in-house asset management to deploy capital into opportunities where value can be actively created and, at the right point in the market cycle, realised and recycled into new investments. As Dubai attracts growing volumes of institutional, family office and private capital, competition for such assets in established locations continues to intensify, placing greater emphasis on proprietary sourcing, disciplined underwriting and active asset management.

A Track Record of Disciplined Investment

The Emaar Square exit adds to a broader track record of principal real estate investments by the firm and its various investment partners. Across the portfolio, realised investments amounting to nearly AED 4 billion (US $1.1BN) have generated equity IRRs ranging from 30% to 70%, spanning development, value-add and opportunistic acquisition strategies, while over AED 10 billion (US $2.7BN) gross development value worth of asset portfolio is still in holdings being developed. The wider portfolio exhibits deployment of capital at scale, including investments across Jumeirah Bay Island, Port de La Mer, City Walk, Downtown Dubai, DIFC and the Dubai Water Canal.

In 2023, the firm and its partners acquired City Walk Building 17 for AED 94 million (US $26M), exiting the asset for more than AED 120 million (US $33M) within approximately one year. They have since executed similar strategies across their portfolio alongside the selective renovation and repositioning of individual units to capture additional upside, ultimately completing approximately AED 300 million (US $82M) of acquisitions across more than 106,000 sq ft of residential assets in April 2026.

Following the AED 725 million exit of Emaar Square Building 3, Driven Properties and their investment partners intend to continue recycling capital into lesser recognised opportunities across Dubai, targeting attractive risk-adjusted returns through proprietary sourcing, evidence-led underwriting and active asset management.