Twenty districts, placed rather than promoted.

Waterfront high-rise district with a promenade, metro link and dense dining. One of the most liquid submarkets in the city: many transactions, many comparables, short time on market.

The centre around the Burj Khalifa and Dubai Mall. The highest price per square foot in the city, carried by international demand and short-term letting.

The artificial island, with villas on the fronds and apartments along the trunk. Supply is fixed and no further densification is possible, so prices sit well above the city average.

Mixed office and residential district on the canal, immediately south of Downtown. Heavy construction activity puts older towers under price pressure and gives buyers a choice.

Beachfront next to the Marina, with the busy pedestrian strip The Walk. Direct beach access carries short-term letting through the whole year.

A planned community around a golf course between Downtown and the Marina. Townhouses, villas and mid-market apartments, plenty of green, recent building stock.

A dense inland apartment district with comparatively low entry prices. Heavy new construction creates competition among landlords and negotiating room for buyers.

A cluster of towers around artificial lakes, facing the Marina, with its own free zone and a metro link. Older stock than the Marina, and a lower price per square foot for it.

A new district on the Creek with a view of the skyline. Almost exclusively recent towers from a single developer; the infrastructure is still filling in.

A technology park with a residential share, in the east of the city. Prices well below the waterfront districts, and steady demand from employees of the companies based here.

A growing apartment district beside the Miracle Garden and Butterfly Garden theme parks. A great deal of new build from smaller developers, with considerable quality differences between buildings.

An established residential area on the metro line towards the Expo site, mixing townhouses and apartments. It benefits from the development of the city’s south-west.

A planned suburban community in the south, with terraced houses and mid-market apartments. Low entry prices, and young families as the typical tenants.

The financial district with its own legal jurisdiction, between Downtown and Sheikh Zayed Road. A small residential stock and a well-paid tenant base drawn from the district itself.

One of the cheapest residential areas in the city, low-rise and laid out in country-themed clusters. High gross yields on paper, but the condition and management of the buildings vary a great deal.

A large development zone between Downtown and the desert, from lagoon projects to villa districts. Very different sub-locations under a single name.

An established inland villa community with mature gardens and its own schools. One of the most sought-after family districts in the city.

A golf-course community from a single developer, with villas, townhouses and apartments. Prices below comparable communities, and quality that differs from cluster to cluster.

The city’s classic beach district: low-rise, villas, settled neighbourhoods. Little supply, because almost nothing new is built.

An established residential area in the east, popular with resident families and — depending on the street — clear of the flight-path debate. Almost no short-stay business.