Abu Dhabi has been recognised as the world’s leading improver in JLL’s 2026 Global Real Estate Transparency Index (GRETI). Abu Dhabi rose eight places from 41st in 2024 to 33rd globally with a composite score of 2.42 and topping the list of 88 countries and 146 city markets evaluated across 260 distinct factors. The emirate’s strides in transparency reflect its sustained progress and growing competitiveness in governance, regulatory maturity and market institutionalisation.
This is driven by a strategic focus on economic diversification and the Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre’s (ADREC) comprehensive digital transformation. Key initiatives that have elevated the benchmark for clarity are the launch of publicly accessible dashboards for real-time property and market data, interactive maps detailing unit-level transactions and service charges, and open APIs enabling seamless data integration.
Combined with the government’s focus on strengthening regulatory frameworks to safeguard investor interests and digitising services as part of its long-term institutionalisation strategy, these measures have secured Abu Dhabi’s position among the Gulf region’s transparency leaders alongside Dubai and Saudi Arabia. Expanding this data availability and ensuring a secure, structured framework supports a more predictable investment journey, boosting the emirate’s appeal as a prime destination for global capital.
“Being recognised as the world’s leading improver in real estate transparency is an important achievement for Abu Dhabi and a measure of the progress made across the market. That progress has been built on stronger governance, investor protection and better access to trusted market information.
“The next phase will be defined by what markets can do with that information. The markets that lead in transparency will increasingly be those that can turn trusted data into earlier insight on demand, risk and performance.
“At ADREC, our focus is to use advanced analytics and AI to deepen that market intelligence and support better long-term decisions as we work to place Abu Dhabi among the world’s 25 most transparent real estate markets by 2030.”
Rashed Al Omaira, Director General, Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre
The next stage will continue to focus on access to trusted market information, digital real estate services and transactions, and the areas where Abu Dhabi can make further progress against the global benchmark. Abu Dhabi will seek to focus on deepening its competitive advantages through enhanced AI adoption and technology-driven analytics, which are a differentiating factor of highly transparent markets.
“Real estate transparency is crucial to attract foreign investment. Capital flows where there is clarity, strong digital infrastructure, and reliable data.
“Abu Dhabi’s rapid rise in global competitiveness and market maturity demonstrates the success of an economic vision built on institutional stability, giving global investors the confidence to deploy capital at scale.”
Mouhammad Takieddin, CEO – Middle East and Africa, JLL
By strengthening building performance standards and energy transparency frameworks, Abu Dhabi can further align with highly transparent global markets, where mandatory disclosures and resilience planning are standard.
GRETI 2026 highlighted a global flight to transparency, with two-thirds of surveyed markets improving their scores. Globally, investment is increasingly concentrated in transparent operating environments, with transaction volumes in the ‘Highly Transparent’ markets increasing 64% over the past two years, capturing over 80% of global direct real estate investment.
“Abu Dhabi’s progress in enforcing strict corporate governance and leveraging technology for reliable data provides the risk mitigation institutional investors require. This reflects ADREC’s commitment to building a more transparent ecosystem.
“By enhancing global trust and embracing the advanced tech adoption that defines highly transparent markets, Abu Dhabi’s achievement gives investors the confidence to assess opportunities and make long-term decisions in a rapidly maturing landscape.”
James Allan, Country CEO – UAE, Egypt & Africa, JLL
The report also highlights wider global shifts transforming commercial real estate, as over 90% of occupiers and investors now deploy AI tools to analyse vast and disparate datasets, bringing unprecedented levels of transparency to portfolio analysis, optimisation strategy and capital planning.
Produced jointly by JLL and LaSalle Investment Management, GRETI has been charting the evolution of global real estate transparency since 1999. Updated every two years, the 14th edition is based on a comprehensive survey of the availability and quality of performance benchmarks and market data, governance structures, regulatory and legal environments, transaction processes and sustainability instruments.
