What it actually costs to buy.
Most calculators give you a monthly payment and stop there. In Dubai the transfer fees, agency commission and bank charges add roughly 7% on top of your deposit — so we show you the cash you need on the day, not just the instalment.
Where these numbers come from.
Borrowing limits
Set by the UAE Central Bank and applied by every bank. Individual banks may lend less, never more.
| First property | |
| Resident expat — under AED 5M | 80% |
| Resident expat — over AED 5M | 70% |
| UAE / GCC national — under AED 5M | 85% |
| UAE / GCC national — over AED 5M | 75% |
| Non-resident | 65% |
| Second or subsequent property | |
| Resident expat — any value | 60% |
| UAE / GCC national — any value | 65% |
| Non-resident — any value | 60% |
| Off-plan — overrides everything above | |
| Any buyer | 50% |
A second or subsequent property is fully mortgageable — the cap is simply lower and does not vary with price. Debt burden ratio is capped at 50% of gross monthly income including existing commitments, which in practice is the binding constraint for most portfolio buyers. Many banks limit non-residents further, to 50–60%.
Purchase costs
Dubai transaction costs. These are the ones buyers routinely forget to budget for.
| DLD transfer fee | 4% of price |
| DLD admin fee | AED 580 |
| Mortgage registration | 0.25% of loan |
| Trustee office fee | AED 4,000 |
| Title deed issuance | AED 250 |
| Agency fee | 2% of price + VAT |
| Bank arrangement fee | 1% of loan + VAT |
| Valuation | AED 3,000 |
VAT at 5% applies to service fees, not to government charges.
Know the number? Let’s find the property.
Tell us the budget you have modelled and we will send what is available — including off-market stock that is not on the portals.