How to Buy Property in the UAE: Step by Step

Cost calculator

The calculator uses only the fees the registries publish. Sharjah, Umm Al Quwain and Fujairah publish no complete fee schedule, so ask the registry for a written quote there.^2,3,12,14

The steps in every emirate

• Check that you may own there. Foreigners may buy only in the areas or projects each emirate designates; see who can buy and freehold areas.
• Set your budget. Add the registration, agency and mortgage fees to the price; the calculator above works them out.
• Get mortgage pre-approval if you borrow. The Central Bank caps an expatriate’s loan at 80% of a first home up to AED 5 million, 70% above that, 60% for a second home and 50% off-plan, and repayments may not exceed 50% of income.
• Use a licensed broker. In Dubai, check the broker’s card in the Dubai REST app; in Abu Dhabi, verify the broker and the advertising permit on the Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre site.
• Agree the price and sign the sale contract. It sets the deposit, the transfer date and who pays which fee; in Dubai the broker draws up Contract F in the Dubai Brokers app.
• Buying off-plan? Pay only into the project’s escrow account. Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah require off-plan payments to go into an escrow account for the project.
• Get the developer’s no-objection certificate when you buy a resale home in a freehold project.
• Register the sale and pay the fees. Ownership passes only when the registry records the sale.
• Receive the title deed. Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Ajman issue it electronically.
• Connect the utilities and, if you qualify, apply for a Golden Visa, which needs property worth at least AED 2 million.

Source: UAE Government Portal: Expatriates buying a property in the UAE; Central Bank of the UAE Rulebook: Regulations regarding mortgage loans; Dubai Land Department: E-card verification; Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre: Verify a document; Dubai Land Department: Broker’s journey to create Contract F; Dubai Legislation: Law No. 8 of 2007 Concerning Escrow Accounts for Real Estate Development; RAK Municipality: Law No. 12 of 2023 on Regulating Real Estate Development in Ras Al Khaimah; Dubai Land Department: Property sale registration; Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre: Real estate registration rules; DARI: Registration of sale and purchase of land and real estate; Ajman Government: Real estate sale registration; ICP: UAE Golden Residency^{1,5,6,7,8,9,10,2,11,3,12,4}

The seven emirates compared

Source: UAE Government Portal: Expatriates buying a property in the UAE; Dubai Land Department: Property sale registration; DARI: Registration of sale and purchase of land and real estate; Sharjah Official Gazette: Executive Council Decision No. 30 of 2022 on real estate ownership by non-UAE and non-GCC nationals; Ajman Government: Real estate sale registration; AjmanRE: Laws and legislation; RAK Municipality: Real estate sale service (ZL13); WAM: UAQ Ruler issues resolution on foreign freehold real estate ownership; Fujairah Municipality: Issuing ownership under a sale contract; WAM: Fujairah Ruler issues laws on joint property ownership and real estate development^{1,2,3,13,12,15,14,16,17,18}

The Golden Visa through property is federal: it is issued for property worth at least AED 2 million, whichever emirate it is in.⁴

Buying from abroad

You do not need to live in the UAE to buy. In Dubai a non-resident registers with a valid passport, and the parties or their legally authorised representatives can complete the transfer. Ras Al Khaimah accepts a power of attorney when a representative acts for the buyer or seller. Ask the registry in advance which form of power of attorney it accepts and how it must be attested.^1,2,14

Who can help

• Real estate agents: to find and negotiate the property. Check the licence first.
• Property lawyers: to review the sale contract, an off-plan agreement or a power of attorney.
• Mortgage lenders: for pre-approval, the valuation and the loan.

Source: Dubai Land Department: E-card verification; Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre: Verify a document^6,7