The full cost of buying property in Dubai, beyond the price

On top of the price, budget for the Dubai Land Department (DLD) registration fee of 4%, a trustee office fee of AED 4,000 plus VAT and a few hundred dirhams in DLD admin charges. If you borrow, DLD adds 0.25% of the loan. Then come the costs set by private firms: broker commission, the developer's no objection certificate (NOC), bank fees and, once you own the property, service charges.

The government and trustee amounts below are taken from DLD's published fee schedules, as of October 2026. Commission, NOC, valuation and bank fees are set by the firms that charge them, so get those in writing. Our practical guide to buying property in Dubai covers the buying process itself. This is general information, not investment advice.

What DLD charges on a ready property

For a completed apartment or villa bought from its current owner, the transfer is registered at one of DLD's licensed Real Estate Registration Trustee offices. These are the charges that apply:

You pay at the trustee office by electronic payment or manager's cheque. The registration fee is calculated on the sale value recorded in the contract.

Who pays the 4%?

DLD's fee schedule splits the registration fee equally, 2% from the seller and 2% from the buyer. DLD's own investor guide adds three important words: unless agreed otherwise. The sale contract can move the whole fee to one side, so who pays is part of the deal you negotiate.

So read the fee clause in DLD's standard sale contract, Form F, often called the MOU, before you sign it, and budget for the full 4% unless the contract says the seller pays half. Assuming a split that was never written down is an expensive mistake: on a AED 2 million property, half the fee is AED 40,000.

A worked example

Say you agree to buy a ready apartment for AED 1,500,000, the contract puts the full 4% on you, and you borrow AED 1,000,000. Using DLD's published fees:

1. Registration fee: 4% of AED 1,500,000 is AED 60,000.
2. Title deed, map, knowledge and innovation fees: AED 520.
3. Trustee office fee: AED 4,000 plus 5% VAT, so AED 4,200.
4. Mortgage registration: 0.25% of AED 1,000,000 is AED 2,500, plus a few hundred dirhams in fixed fees.

That comes to AED 67,220 in government and trustee charges before the mortgage's fixed fees, about 4.5% of the price. Without the mortgage it would be AED 64,720. If the seller pays half the registration fee, take AED 30,000 off either figure.

The example leaves out the costs that vary: commission and the VAT on it, the developer's NOC fee, and the bank's arrangement fee, valuation fee and required insurance. It also leaves out your deposit. Under Central Bank rules, an expat can borrow at most 80% of the value of a first home worth under AED 5 million, and the deposit must come from your own money, not from a personal loan or credit card. Our guide to mortgages for expats explains the lending limits.

Costs that depend on how you buy

• Broker commission. There is no fixed legal rate. Under Bylaw No. 85 of 2006, the commission is whatever the brokerage contract says, and custom applies only if the contract is silent. Agree the rate, who pays it and when it is due in writing before viewings start. VAT is added on top.
• Developer NOC. For a resale in a freehold area, DLD needs an electronic NOC from the developer, requested through the Dubai REST app. It confirms that the service charges on the unit have been paid. The developer charges its own fee for it.
• The seller's mortgage. If the seller still owes a bank, the transfer is registered as a sale of a mortgaged property. The bank issues a liability letter, your payment is split by manager's cheques so that the bank is paid off, and registration completes once the bank releases its mortgage. Allow extra time.
• Bank fees. If you borrow, the bank charges an arrangement fee and a valuation fee and usually requires life and property insurance. These vary by bank and must appear in the Key Facts Statement the bank gives you before you sign.
• Same-day mortgage registration. DLD's fee schedule for sales involving a mortgage waives the trustee's fee for registering the mortgage when it is done on the same day as the transfer. Registered the next day, it costs AED 4,000 plus VAT (as of October 2026). Book both for one appointment and confirm the fee with the trustee office.

Off-plan: the same fee, paid earlier

Off-plan purchases carry the same 4% registration fee, but it is due when the developer registers your contract on DLD's Oqood system, which DLD requires within 90 days of signing, not at handover. DLD charges the developer a fixed AED 1,000 for that registration (as of October 2026), so ask what any extra admin fee in your contract is for. When the project is finished, converting the Oqood record into a title deed costs only the title deed and map fees, because the registration fee was paid at the start. Our guide to buying off-plan property in Dubai covers the process.

If residency is part of the plan, note that DLD's Golden Visa service looks at a property purchase value of at least AED 2 million. Our guide to the Golden Visa through property explains how that route works.

Running costs once you own it

Owning in a building or community means annual service charges for the common areas. RERA approves them, and you can look up the approved charges for a project in DLD's Service Charge Index, on the DLD website or in Dubai REST. Ask for the current figure, and confirm there are no arrears on the unit, before you agree a price.

If you plan to rent the property out, factor in the costs of letting: Ejari registration for long-term tenancies, or a Department of Economy and Tourism permit and Tourism Dirham collection for short stays. Our guide to holiday home permits in Dubai sets out those fees.

Mistakes that make the bill bigger

• Assuming the seller pays half the registration fee when the contract does not say so.
• Agreeing commission verbally, or signing with several brokers without being clear who earns the fee.
• Forgetting that a bank lends against its valuation, not your price. If the valuation is lower, you fund the gap in cash.
• Registering the mortgage a day after the transfer and paying an extra trustee fee.
• Discovering the service charges, or unpaid ones, after the deposit is paid.

Our real estate team can prepare a written cost breakdown for a specific property before you pay a deposit.

Sources

• Dubai Land Department: property sale registration fees
• Dubai Land Department: registering the sale of a mortgaged property
• Dubai Land Department: mortgage registration fees
• Dubai Land Department: Know Your Rights guide for real estate investors (PDF)
• Dubai Land Department: First-Time Home Buyer Programme
• Central Bank of the UAE Rulebook: Regulations Regarding Mortgage Loans