Aldar Launches Sei Saadiyat: 778 Wellness Residences in Six Buildings in Saadiyat Cultural District, First Phase of 265 Apartments and Lofts on Sale From 16 September 2026

2026-09-07

On Monday 7 September 2026 Aldar Properties, the largest listed developer in Abu Dhabi, announced Sei Saadiyat, a residential development of 778 homes in six buildings in Saadiyat Cultural District. The first phase of 265 homes in two buildings goes on sale on Wednesday 16 September 2026 through Aldar’s sales centres on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi and on Jumeirah Beach Road in Dubai. The collection consists of one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments and two-bedroom lofts, a double-height format that is new to Aldar’s portfolio. The name Sei means stillness and calm in Japanese, and the shared amenities are built around that idea: garden pools with hot and cold water, a Zen garden with a serenity pool, outdoor yoga decks, three indoor gyms, outdoor fitness areas, sports courts and a specialist clinic for health, physiotherapy and recovery. The project targets Estidama Pearl 3, the Abu Dhabi sustainability rating. Aldar has not published prices, unit sizes, the payment plan or the handover date. The launch comes with the developer’s development backlog at AED 71.6 billion (about USD 19.5 billion) at the end of June 2026, of which AED 59.9 billion is in the UAE.

Sei Saadiyat in figures

What Aldar is building: wellness as the brief

Aldar describes Sei Saadiyat as a community “designed around wellness, relaxation, fitness, and social connection”. The list of shared facilities is unusually long for a six-building scheme. Alongside the hot and cold garden pools and the Zen garden with its serenity pool, residents get outdoor yoga decks and a pod garden, three indoor gyms, outdoor fitness areas and sports courts. A specialist clinic dedicated to health, physiotherapy and recovery is part of the development, together with a library and gaming lounge, cinema rooms, co-working spaces, an indoor kids’ club and outdoor children’s play areas. Landscaped courtyards between the buildings will have walking paths, layered planting, art and quiet spaces, and the retail and food and beverage units inside the development are meant to cover everyday services.

The interiors follow the same idea. Aldar names stone, wood and textured plaster as the main materials and speaks of a design philosophy “that finds beauty in imperfection”, with natural variation in texture and tone. The six buildings have contrasting heights; from the upper floors, selected residences will look across the museums of the district, including the future Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, the Arabian Gulf and the Abu Dhabi skyline. Guggenheim Abu Dhabi opens on 11 December 2026, so buyers in the first phase will see the district complete long before their own building is finished.

The loft format: a first for Aldar

With Sei Saadiyat, Aldar introduces a loft-style home to its residential portfolio for the first time. The two-bedroom lofts have double-height, open-plan living areas with the bedrooms raised above and overlooking the main space, large windows and a dedicated flexible working area. In a market where most new apartment stock in Abu Dhabi follows a standard layout, the loft gives Aldar a product for buyers who work from home or want a studio-like volume without moving to a villa. The developer has not said how many of the 778 homes will be lofts or how they will be priced relative to the standard apartments.

Where it sits: Saadiyat Cultural District

Saadiyat Cultural District is the museum quarter of Saadiyat Island. Aldar lists Louvre Abu Dhabi, Zayed National Museum, Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi and teamLab Phenomena Abu Dhabi as the established institutions within reach of the development, with Guggenheim Abu Dhabi still to open. On the leisure side the release names Saadiyat Grove, Mamsha Beach and Marsa Al Saadiyat. The last of these is the largest project on the island: Marsa Al Saadiyat, a waterfront district with a gross development value of AED 100 billion, of which Aldar will develop AED 60 billion, with the first launches scheduled for the second half of 2026 according to the developer’s H1 2026 results. Sei Saadiyat is therefore one of several Aldar launches expected on the island in the coming months, not a standalone project.

The numbers behind the launch: Aldar’s H1 2026 results

Aldar published its half-year results on 29 July 2026. Group revenue reached AED 16.8 billion, up 8% year on year, and net profit after tax AED 4.9 billion, up 18%. In the second quarter alone revenue was AED 8.1 billion (up 5%) and net profit after tax AED 2.6 billion (up 17%). Group development sales in the first half fell 34% to AED 12.1 billion, and UAE sales fell 46% to AED 9.4 billion; the company called this “a measured approach to new launches in the UAE in response to market conditions” and launched three UAE projects in the second quarter: Yas Park Place on Yas Island, Al Ghadeer Gardens between Abu Dhabi and Dubai, and The Orchids at Yas Acres. Two figures matter most for Sei Saadiyat. First, the development backlog of AED 71.6 billion, including AED 59.9 billion in the UAE, which Aldar expects to convert into revenue over the next two to three years. Second, the buyer mix: sales to overseas and expatriate resident buyers came to AED 7.6 billion in the first half, or 80% of all UAE sales, and that is the audience a wellness-led apartment scheme next to the museums is aimed at.

The corporate backdrop has also shifted since the results. In August 2026 Mubadala raised its stake in Aldar from 27.01% to 28.03% through its subsidiary Mamoura Diversified Global Holding, and The National reported on 7 September that Aldar plans further launches in the second half of the year in the luxury and middle-income segments, as the company said in July.

The Abu Dhabi market Sei Saadiyat enters

The launch lands in the strongest residential market Abu Dhabi has recorded. In the first half of 2026 the emirate registered 15,500 residential transactions worth AED 67.8 billion, according to Cavendish Maxwell, with off-plan sales of AED 60.3 billion making up 89% of the value. The Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre (ADREC) expects about 71,000 new homes to be delivered by 2030, and the secondary market for off-plan units grew 56% in the second quarter as buyers looked for projects closer to handover, a trend we covered in our article on Abu Dhabi off-plan resales. Saadiyat is one of the premium addresses in that market, and a six-building apartment scheme with a wellness clinic and lofts is priced and positioned differently from the family villa communities Aldar launched in the second quarter.

What it means for foreign buyers and companies

Three practical points follow from the announcement for buyers who are not UAE nationals, including companies.

Ownership. Saadiyat Island is one of Abu Dhabi’s designated investment zones. Since Law No. 13 of 2019 amended the emirate’s real estate law, non-nationals, whether individuals or legal entities, may own freehold title to property in investment zones. Aldar’s release does not state the tenure of Sei Saadiyat units, so the title type should be confirmed in the sale and purchase agreement before any payment is made.

Payment and financing. The homes are sold off-plan. Off-plan sales in Abu Dhabi are governed by Law No. 3 of 2015, which requires escrow accounts for buyers’ payments and registration of the unit in ADREC’s Initial Real Estate Register. On 4 September 2026 ADREC, Aldar and ADCB registered the first mortgage on an off-plan property in the emirate: a buyer who has paid 50% of the price can mortgage the remaining instalments before handover, within the UAE Central Bank’s 50% loan-to-value cap for off-plan purchases. Whether Sei Saadiyat units are eligible for that route has not been published, but the mechanism now exists in Abu Dhabi and Aldar runs its own free mortgage advisory service, Home Finance by Aldar.

Residency. A property investment of at least AED 2 million supports an application for the 10-year UAE Golden Visa. The conditions for off-plan and mortgaged property differ from those for completed, fully paid units, so the visa route should be checked against the actual contract; our Golden Visa UAE guide sets out the current requirements. Buyers who purchase through a company should decide on the holding structure before the reservation, because the buyer named in the agreement is the one registered with ADREC.

Checklist before reserving a unit on 16 September

• Confirm the tenure (freehold or otherwise) and the exact unit, floor and view in the reservation form and the sale and purchase agreement.
• Request the full payment plan, the estimated service charge and the target handover date in writing; none of them is in the launch materials.
• Check the escrow account details and that the unit is registered in ADREC’s Initial Real Estate Register.
• If financing is needed, ask about the off-plan mortgage route after 50% is paid and the banks connected to Home Finance by Aldar.
• Decide whether to buy personally or through a UAE company, and if through a company, set it up before the purchase.
• Open a UAE bank account for the instalments if you do not have one; a transfer from abroad on each instalment is slower and more expensive.
• If you sign remotely, prepare a power of attorney and any legalised documents in advance.
• Match the purchase to the Golden Visa criteria if residency is part of the plan.

How Atlant Capital can help

Atlant Capital works with foreign investors and entrepreneurs who buy property in Abu Dhabi and Dubai and need the corporate and residency side handled. We register companies in the UAE for holding property and running a business, open corporate and personal bank accounts, process residence visas and Golden Visa applications, and arrange legalisation of documents and powers of attorney for clients who sign from abroad. Accounting, audit and tax filing are provided by licensed accounting firms from our partner network.

Conclusion

Sei Saadiyat is a 778-home, six-building apartment scheme that Aldar has positioned on wellness and on a new loft product, in the one part of Abu Dhabi where the surroundings are museums rather than towers. The first 265 homes go on sale on 16 September 2026; prices, sizes and handover are still to come. For a foreign buyer the checklist is the same as for any Abu Dhabi off-plan purchase: confirm the tenure, read the payment plan, check the escrow and registration, and decide early whether the purchase is personal or corporate and whether it should carry a Golden Visa.

FAQ

When do sales of Sei Saadiyat start and where?

The first phase of Sei Saadiyat, 265 homes in two buildings, goes on sale on 16 September 2026 through Aldar’s sales centres on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi and on Jumeirah Beach Road in Dubai, by email to customermanagement@aldar.com or by phone on 800-ALDAR (800-25327). Prices and the payment plan had not been published as of 7 September 2026.

What homes are on offer in Sei Saadiyat?

The full development has 778 homes in six residential buildings: one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments and two-bedroom lofts. The lofts are new to Aldar’s portfolio and have double-height, open-plan living areas with bedrooms raised above the main space, large windows and a flexible working area.

What wellness facilities does Sei Saadiyat include?

Garden pools with hot and cold water, a Zen garden with a serenity pool, outdoor yoga decks and a pod garden, three indoor gyms, outdoor fitness areas, sports courts and a specialist clinic for health, physiotherapy and recovery, plus a library, gaming lounge, cinema rooms, co-working spaces, a kids’ club and landscaped courtyards. The project targets the Estidama Pearl 3 sustainability rating.

Can foreigners buy an apartment in Sei Saadiyat and does it qualify for a Golden Visa?

Saadiyat Island is a designated investment zone in Abu Dhabi, where non-UAE nationals and foreign companies may hold freehold title under Law No. 13 of 2019; the tenure of each unit should be confirmed in the sale agreement. A property investment of at least AED 2 million can support a 10-year Golden Visa application, with separate conditions for off-plan and mortgaged units.