Luis Santos
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Real estate · Dubai

The short-term rental market, from the operator’s side.

I run 600+ homes in the UAE and hold the highest review score of any short-term rental operator in the Middle East, recognised with awards from both Airbnb and Booking.com. That operating vantage is also an investment thesis. Through First Class, I help a small number of investors buy the right Dubai property, reposition it, and run it as a short-term rental that actually performs.

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Luis Santos, Dubai
600+
Homes under management
$570M+
Property under management
No. 1
Review score in the Middle East
90%+
Average occupancy
The case

Dubai keeps breaking its own records.

Dubai isn’t a bet on tourism recovering, it’s a market that keeps setting records, with the returns to prove it. Across 2020 to 2025 it delivered the best total return of any major property market in the world: capital growth plus rental yield of 17.4% a year, more than double London or New York.

Luis Santos at the window, Dubai
Dubai delivered the world's best total return, 2020 to 2025: capital growth plus short-term rental yield of 17.4% per year, ahead of Toronto, Miami, Tokyo, Amsterdam, London, Paris, New York, Singapore and Hong Kong.
The economics

The highest yields in global real estate, and none of the tax.

Dubai combines gross short-term rental yields of 6 to 10%, the best of any major city, with something no European or US market offers: zero income tax, zero capital gains tax, zero annual property tax, zero inheritance tax, zero wealth tax. What the asset earns, you keep.

Dubai is the global yield champion: 19.59M international visitors in 2025, 80.7% hotel occupancy, 6 to 10% gross short-term rental yield, and roughly 30% more income than long-term rentals in tourism hubs.
0%Income tax
0%Capital gains tax
0%Property tax (annual)
0%Inheritance tax
0%Wealth tax
The fundamentals

A widening housing gap underneath it all.

Beneath the headlines is a structural shortage. Dubai added 231,000 residents and a world-record 9,800 millionaires in 2025, and needs 800,000 new homes by 2033, while completions keep falling short of demand. Persistent undersupply in one of the world’s most in-demand cities is the quiet floor under both prices and rents.

Dubai's structural housing deficit: planned completions, actual completions, and demand from 2025 to 2028. The gap between demand and delivery widens each year.
231,000
New residents, UAE 2025 (net)
9,800
New millionaires, 2025 (world record)
800,000
Homes needed by 2033 (D33)
~55,000
Supply shortfall in 2025 alone
The model

Acquire, transform, operate, compound.

01

Strategy

We set your objectives, risk tolerance and budget, and agree a clear brief before looking at a single property.

02

Business case

We identify the units with the highest realistic return and put the numbers in front of you, not a pitch.

03

Sourcing

We use our network to find and negotiate the property, on and off market. We recently closed a 45-unit portfolio in five days.

04

Transformation

We reconfigure, renovate and furnish the unit to lift both guest appeal and value.

05

Management

First Class runs the property end to end: pricing, listings, guests and maintenance.

06

Income

You hold an appreciating asset generating passive short-term rental income, run by the highest-rated operator in the region.

Proof

Real units, worked properly.

Downtown · 3-bed · Burj Khalifa & Fountain view

Bought at $1.50M, revalued at $2.04M.

$1.50M
Acquisition
6.2%
Net rental yield p.a.
+38%
Repositioning uplift (one-time)
~$99k
Annual net income to owner
JBR · 1-bed → 2-bed · Sea & Palm view

A one-bed reconfigured into a two-bed.

$528k
Acquisition
10%
Net rental yield p.a.
+12%
Repositioning uplift (one-time)
~$69k
Annual net income to owner
Bahar, JBR · 3-bed · Ain Dubai & Bluewaters view

A prime three-bed, brought up to standard.

$937k
Acquisition
9.3%
Net rental yield p.a.
+15.2%
Repositioning uplift (one-time)
~$96k
Annual net income to owner

Figures are actual outcomes on specific properties. The repositioning uplift is a one-time gain from the transformation, shown separately from annual rental yield. Past performance is not a guarantee of future returns.

The operation

The reviews aren’t luck. They’re a machine.

The highest review score of any short-term rental operator in the Middle East isn’t a lucky streak across a few listings, it’s held across 600+ homes and 280,000+ guest nights, run by a 155-person team across pricing, housekeeping, maintenance and guest experience. That standard is the entire investment case: it’s what makes a well-chosen Dubai unit outperform the ones next to it.

The First Class operation at work

Airbnb, Highest Review Score for the Industry

Officially recognised as the top-rated operator, invited to present at the Airbnb Prohost Summit.

Booking.com, World’s Best Property Management Company

The only operator to receive the award. The company score stands at 9.5 today.

4.9★ · 9.5/10 · 15,000+ reviews

Across Airbnb and Booking.com, the best guest reviews in Dubai, by far.

Superhost since 2020

World-leading multi-property manager by review score, every year since launch.

155
People on the team
3
Emirates: Dubai, Abu Dhabi, RAK
280k+
Guest nights hosted
160+
Guest nationalities
In their words

What owners say.

“The team works incredibly fast and ensures everything is perfect. Their expertise and dedication have maximised my rental income beyond my expectations.”

Ahmed K., First Class owner

“From day one, they demonstrated real expertise and a commitment to excellence. Their detail-oriented management has meant exceptional guest reviews and higher revenue.”

Sarah L., First Class owner
Recognition

Covered, rated, and on stage.

Featured across regional and industry press, and on stage at the Airbnb Prohost Summit and the Hostaway User Conference in London.

Press → Speaking →
For investors

Put Dubai property to work.

I take a limited number of investors at a time, so the operation stays as good as the reviews say it is. Typically from $500,000. If you’re weighing Dubai short-term rental, start with a conversation, not a sales call, a look at the actual numbers on the kind of unit that fits you.

Start a conversation First Class Investments →