Off-plan guides
Dubai off-plan payment plans: what "interest-free" leaves out
The contracts state no interest rate. That is not the same as deferral being free. Here is the present-value arithmetic no developer page runs.
Insight
UAE off-plan and real estate guides
Research-led explainers on buying, financing and owning property in the UAE, written by the team that tracks every launch.
Featured
How buying before completion works in the UAE, step by step.
View all 5 articlesOff-plan guides
- Off-plan guides
Buying a Dubai off-plan unit near completion: which of the three arguments holds up
Near-handover buyers get direct snagging and the one-year warranty, but the developer-customer, discount and financing advantages hold only under conditions.
- Off-plan guides
Dubai off-plan payment plans: what "interest-free" leaves out
The contracts state no interest rate. That is not the same as deferral being free. Here is the present-value arithmetic no developer page runs.
- Off-plan guides
Selling an off-plan unit before handover: how assignment works
The 30-40% paid-in threshold is a developer term, not a RERA rule. What the NOC requires, what an exit costs and what can block it.
- Off-plan guides
Dubai service charges: nothing is payable until RERA approves the budget
Article 27 of Law No. 6 of 2019 bars collection before RERA signs off the budget. And why no honest AED-per-square-foot table exists.
- Off-plan guides
Off-plan vs ready property in Dubai: what the data actually supports
Off-plan was 56.9% of Q2 2025 transactions by volume and 37.3% by value. Both figures are right, and most commentary quotes only the first.
Yields, financing and the fees that decide your real return.
View all 9 articlesInvesting
- Investing
What a Dubai seller actually pays: commission, NOC, DLD fee and net proceeds
Seller costs run from 2% commission to the DLD fee and mortgage settlement. A worked AED 2 million sale shows what is left in net proceeds.
- Investing
Dubai rent vs buy: why an AED 1.5m flat does not break even in five years
A full cost model of a AED 1,500,000 flat shows owning costing AED 218,694 more than renting over five years unless prices rise about 2.8% a year.
- Investing
Refinancing a Dubai mortgage: what switching costs and when it breaks even
Switching lenders means an early-settlement charge, two Land Department fees and new bank costs. A worked example puts break-even at roughly 17 months.
- Investing
Dubai mortgage valuations: the bank picks the valuer, and the loan follows the appraisal
Circular 31/2013 caps the loan as a share of appraised value, not price. The bank chooses the valuer, and a DLD certificate will not replace its report.
- Investing
Missing a Dubai mortgage payment: the notice, court and auction steps a bank must follow
A missed payment starts a notice, court and auction process under Law No. (14) of 2008, not instant repossession. A surplus after sale goes to the borrower.
- Investing
Dubai home insurance: who insures what, and what the law actually requires
Building cover in a jointly owned tower is a statutory duty of the management entity. Contents, villas, tenants and mortgages each follow different rules.
- Investing
Buying a tenanted Dubai property: the lease transfers, vacant possession takes 12 months
A sale does not end the tenancy. A buyer inherits the lease, rent and deposit, and needs 12 months' notice by notary or registered mail to move in.
- Investing
Dubai holiday homes: the licence, the costs and the 35% yield claim
One widely repeated licence fee is wrong, and the headline yield premium compares a gross short-let number against a net long-let one.
DLD, RERA and the rules that govern buying, owning, renting and residence.
View all 15 articlesLaws and regulations
- Laws and regulations
Dubai inheritance for non-Muslims: the civil default, wills and property transfer
Since 1 February 2023 a non-Muslim who dies without a will gets a civil split, not Sharia succession, though real estate is unsettled. Wills and DLD fees.
- Laws and regulations
Subletting in Dubai: written consent, eviction risk and the shared-housing fines
Subletting needs the landlord's written consent, and the statutory remedy is eviction, not a fine. The AED 500,000 penalties belong to shared-housing law.
- Laws and regulations
Dubai security deposits and early exit: what the law says versus what the lease says
Dubai law sets no deposit percentage and no early-exit penalty. The 5%/10% deposit and two-month fee are market custom, not statute.
- Laws and regulations
Buying a Dubai resale home: Form F defaults, the developer NOC and mortgaged-sale timing
A resale runs through Form F, the developer NOC and DLD registration. The 10% deposit is custom, not law, and a seller's mortgage can add weeks.
- Laws and regulations
Renovating a Dubai home: which NOC, permit and contractor rules apply where
A renovation can need a developer NOC, a permit from Dubai Municipality, DDA or Trakhees by zone, and a registered contractor under Law No. 7 of 2025.
- Laws and regulations
Dubai property scams: the official checks to run before you pay anyone
Dubai Police cases show money moving before anyone checks the listing. The Land Department's own tools let you verify permit, broker, title and developer first.
- Laws and regulations
Dubai property power of attorney: why a generic POA no longer clears the trustee office
Per commentary on DLD Circular 29/R/2025, a sale needs a special POA naming the property and the deal, with a full attestation chain if signed abroad.
- Laws and regulations
Joint property ownership in Dubai: shares, joint mortgages and exit routes
Co-owners are presumed to hold equal shares unless the title deed says otherwise. How joint mortgages, selling a share, pre-emption and partition work.
Prices, launches and transaction data across the seven Emirates.
View all 1 articlesMarket insights
- Market insights
How to find what a Dubai unit really sold for, and why portal averages mislead
Portal averages are cleaned and blended. DLD transaction data shows registered sales but omits floor, view and condition, so comparables need adjusting.
