6 Global Branded Residence Markets to Watch in 2026

A Sector Crossing a Global Threshold

The global branded residences market is entering a defining moment in 2026. According to Knight Frank's Global Branded Residence Survey 2026, the number of schemes worldwide has grown from 354 in 2015 to 903 at the end of last year. The market is projected to pass the 1,000-development milestone during 2026, reaching approximately 1,088 schemes and more than 170,000 units by year end. Looking further ahead, Knight Frank forecasts 60% growth over the next five years, approaching 1,800 schemes and over 300,000 units by 2031.

A striking trend within this expansion is diversification. Non-hotel brands, from fashion houses to automotive manufacturers and media companies, are set to account for nearly 40% of the pipeline. Development is also pushing beyond traditional gateway cities into coastal, island, and mountain lifestyle destinations. The six markets we track here each illustrate a different facet of this evolution.

---

Spain: Marbella's Fashion-House Boom

Spain continues to cement its position as one of Europe's most dynamic branded residence markets, with Marbella at the epicentre. The Costa del Sol city is now attracting multiple fashion-house branded projects that are reshaping its luxury offering.

Armani Residences Marbella emerged as one of the year's headline developments. The Armani Group, in collaboration with tennis legend Rafa Nadal, is planning 33 luxury branded homes on the Golden Mile. This marks Armani's first residential project in Spain, bringing the brand's signature design philosophy of restraint and precision to the Mediterranean coast. The residences are positioned in the ultra-prime tier, with architecture that treats Mediterranean light as a design material and every surface as a study in calibrated simplicity.

Not far away, Dolce & Gabbana's Design Hills Marbella is advancing as the Italian fashion house's first European residential development. The project will deliver 92 large-format residences on a nearly 90,000 square metre plot, with homes ranging from 280 to 900 square metres and starting at approximately EUR 4.5 million. Five main buildings will house 94 homes, each designed by Dolce & Gabbana in collaboration with developer Sierra Blanca Estates, integrating fashion, art, and architecture into a lifestyle destination.

Beyond individual projects, the macro picture is equally strong. Spanish real estate investment reached EUR 6.394 billion in Q1 2026, up 45.4% compared to the 2025 average, significantly outperforming the broader European market. Prime properties in Spain are poised for 10% growth across 2026, and Madrid is increasingly drawing Middle Eastern capital as a stable, lifestyle-rich European haven.

Marbella East is also undergoing a luxury makeover, with several major projects set to reshape the Costa del Sol coastline, further broadening the city's branded residence footprint.

---

Dubai: Media Brands and Serviced-Apartment Pioneers

Dubai remains the world's most active branded residences market, and 2026 has added new categories of brand to the mix. The most notable launch is ELLE Residences Dubai Islands, developed by ANAX Developments under a licensing agreement with Lagardere News. Following the success of ELLE Residences Miami, this marks the fashion and lifestyle media brand's first Middle East residential project.

Valued at AED 451 million and slated for completion by Q3 2027, the development comprises 91 apartments and 7 townhouses, ranging from one-bedroom residences to four-bedroom townhouses of up to 4,592 square feet. Priced between AED 3,200 and AED 3,600 per square foot, the project broke ground in May 2026 and features designs by The One Atelier and ARQUINAUT. Amenities include rooftop pools, private spas, yoga decks, landscaped gardens, and a 24-hour concierge. Interiors draw on ELLE's five pillars of fashion, beauty, culture, lifestyle, and society.

Also on Dubai Islands, Cheval Residences Dubai Islands brings the UK's Cheval Collection into the branded residences space for the first time. Partnering with AVENEW Development and Wadeen Developers, the project will deliver 99 one- to three-bedroom apartments with hotel-style support services, opening in 2029. The move is a natural extension for Cheval, originally a London serviced-apartment brand that has built a significant UAE presence with Cheval Maison Dubai The Palm (2023) and Cheval Maison Expo City Dubai (2025), plus two Saudi projects in its pipeline.

Dubai-based Grovy Developers also reported no unusual cost escalation for its branded residential project on Dubai Islands, signalling stable construction economics in a market where supply chains remain robust.

---

Mexico: Aman Arrives in Los Cabos

Mexico's branded residences story in 2026 is dominated by the arrival of Aman and a broader luxury transformation of Los Cabos.

Amanvari, Aman's first resort in Mexico, officially opened on August 1, 2026, on Baja California's untouched East Cape within the Costa Palmas master-planned community. The resort combines contemporary design with the dramatic convergence of desert, sea, and estuary landscapes, offering private casitas and residences that bring Aman's minimalist luxury philosophy to the Baja peninsula. It joins Aman's North American portfolio alongside Amangiri in Utah and the reopened Aman Sveti Stefan in Montenegro.

Los Cabos more broadly is entering what observers call a new era of luxury. A growing pipeline includes St. Regis, Grand Hyatt, Soho House, and championship golf courses, all contributing to a branded residences ecosystem that is rapidly expanding. Property analysts note that Los Cabos is seeing its biggest wave of luxury branded residence openings ever in 2026.

On the Caribbean coast, Mondrian Cancun opened as the Mondrian brand's first all-inclusive resort, marking Ennismore's debut in the all-inclusive segment and adding another branded hospitality flag to Mexico's portfolio.

At the regional level, Latin America's hotel construction pipeline grew 6% year over year in Q1 2026, with early-planning projects up 12%, indicating sustained developer confidence in the region's luxury hospitality and branded residence sectors.

---

Portugal: Karl Lagerfeld Arrives in Lisbon

Portugal's luxury property market is rising on the back of broader market trends, and 2026 brought a landmark branded residence announcement.

KARL LAGERFELD Residences Lisboa was unveiled in July 2026 as the Maison's first residential development in Portugal and Lisbon's first luxury branded residence. The project marks the House of KARL LAGERFELD's entry into real estate, translating the brand's design DNA into a residential format in one of Europe's most talked-about property markets.

The timing aligns with Portugal's broader luxury momentum. Luxury property demand in Portugal is expected to grow further in 2026, driven by increasing international interest and ongoing market trends. The country was also represented at the Resort & Residential Hospitality Forum 2026 in Athens in September, where Portuguese firms accessed global hospitality investment networks.

Lisbon's emergence as a branded residences destination is notable because it moves the concept beyond the Algarve's traditional resort areas, reflecting the same urban-to-lifestyle diversification that Knight Frank identifies globally.

---

Montenegro: The Adriatic's Quiet Luxury Revival

Montenegro is quietly positioning itself as one of the Mediterranean's most intriguing branded residence frontiers, and 2026 brought two significant developments.

Nammos Resort Montenegro was announced in July 2026 as a partnership between Nammos Hotels & Resorts and Smokva Bay, to be developed on Montenegro's Budva Riviera. Scheduled to open in 2029, the project comprises 117 keys split across 47 hotel suites, 61 branded residences, and 9 branded villas. Located ten minutes from the iconic island of Sveti Stefan, the development is designed around Mediterranean and Cycladic architectural traditions, using sculpted forms and natural materials that connect indoor and outdoor living spaces.

The resort will feature four food and beverage venues, including the flagship Nammos Restaurant, an all-day dining concept called Nalu, Ilios Lounge bar, and a rooftop pool bar. Amenities extend to spa and fitness facilities, swimming pools, private dining venues, beachfront access, and hiking and mountain biking trails. At the centre of the site, Nammos Village will house retail, art, and wellbeing spaces. Ahead of the 2029 opening, Nammos Restaurant is running a pop-up at Sveti Stefan throughout the 2026 season.

Meanwhile, Aman Sveti Stefan reopened in May 2026, returning one of the Adriatic's most celebrated luxury properties to the market. The fortified island village resort on Montenegro's coast near Budva has been described as quiet luxury's poster child, and its return reinforces Montenegro's positioning as a serious ultra-prime destination.

---

Dominican Republic: Gran Coson and the Caribbean's Rise

The Dominican Republic is emerging as one of the Caribbean's most compelling branded residence markets, powered by two decades of deliberate economic and tourism development.

Gran Coson is the development drawing the most attention. A luxury beachfront resort community on the pristine sands of Playa Coson near Las Terrenas in Samana, the project will deliver 147 residences enriched with private gardens, rooftop terraces, plunge pools, and full accessibility features. Developed by the Galvan family, who have owned the land since the 1960s, Gran Coson positions itself at the intersection of luxury lifestyle and natural beauty.

The project's sales and marketing efforts gained significant exposure in July 2026, when The Agency One Rock hosted a New York event introducing Gran Coson to stateside real estate professionals. Christie's International Real Estate Dominican Republic is handling sales, with the development described as bringing something new and different to the Caribbean, mixing lifestyle with a luxury element. Amenities include a beach club, wellness and spa facilities, a surf club, racquet and paddle courts, and pools.

Gran Coson is perfectly timed to capitalise on the Dominican Republic's economic and tourism momentum. The island is home to some of the world's top-ranked golf courses, ultra-luxury amenities, and stunning beaches, all reachable from New York in under four hours. The DR has spent two decades cultivating an environment suitable for growth, tourism, and real estate, and has become the largest economy in the Caribbean region.

At the regional level, hotel investment in the Caribbean and Central America continues to grow, with multi-billion-dollar investments in luxury tourism driving major changes across the region in 2026.

---

What unites these six markets

These six destinations illustrate the full spectrum of branded residence evolution. Spain shows fashion-house branding at its most mature. Dubai demonstrates how media and serviced-apartment brands are entering the space. Mexico and the Dominican Republic represent lifestyle destinations reaching a tipping point of critical mass. Portugal reveals new urban markets entering the conversation. And Montenegro proves that even small Adriatic nations can attract world-class brands when the setting and ambition align.

The common thread across all six is that branded residences are no longer just a hotel-brand play. They are becoming a platform where fashion, media, hospitality, and lifestyle brands translate their identity into physical space, and where buyers are willing to pay a premium for the combination of brand authority, professional management, and design authorship that branded living delivers.

With the global market set to cross 1,000 developments this year and approach 1,800 by 2031, the question is no longer whether branded residences will continue to expand, but which markets and which brands will define the next chapter.

---

This report is published weekly by Branded Residences, monitoring the latest developments across Spain, Dubai, Mexico, Portugal, Montenegro, and the Dominican Republic.