Launch price is not a price. It’s an anchor the developer sets to create a reference point for the next three phases of sales.
Launch price is the headline per-sqft number at which a developer releases the first tranche of units in a new project. The first-phase launch is typically the cheapest you’ll ever see the project — developers follow a pricing ladder across phases, raising per-sqft by 3-8% per phase on well-received launches and sometimes holding the price if absorption disappoints. By the time Phase 3 opens on a hot project, prices can be 15-25% above Phase 1.
What buyers miss is that “launch price” at early-access stage sometimes already carries a discount the developer designed into the model — branded partners, bulk brokerages, and priority investors buy at launch price minus 3-5% through incentive structures. A Dubai Hills release earlier this year opened at AED 1,850/sqft publicly but large brokerages were placing units at the equivalent of AED 1,780/sqft once fee waivers and furniture packages were priced into the deal.
A client last year asked whether to wait for phase 2 because he “missed launch.” I ran him the ladder. Phase 2 was already priced 6% above phase 1. He bought phase 1 the following week.
Early phases price lowest. That’s the rule.
Related: Payment Plan, Launch Phase, Phases, Early Access.