The Full Cost of Buying a Home in Dubai: Deposit, Fees and Cash Budget

The cash you need to buy a home in Dubai is the part of the price the bank does not finance, plus the transaction costs you agree or are required to pay. Keep those two amounts separate. A mortgage deposit calculation alone does not tell you whether you can complete a purchase.

Start with a written budget covering the property price, approved loan, allocation of buyer and seller costs, bank fees and property-specific charges. A percentage estimate can help you plan initially, but it should not replace a transaction quote.

1. Your contribution towards the property price

For an expatriate's qualifying first house for owner occupation at or below AED 5 million, the CBUAE maximum LTV is 80%. That corresponds to at least 20% of the property value outside the mortgage at the regulatory ceiling. Investment, subsequent-property and non-resident financing can require more cash; the lender's actual offer can also be lower.

The valuation matters. Suppose you agree a price of AED 2 million and expect an AED 1.6 million loan. If the bank accepts a value of AED 1.85 million and lends 80% of that amount, the loan would be AED 1.48 million. Your contribution towards the agreed price rises from AED 400,000 to AED 520,000, before fees. This is an illustration, subject to the bank's valuation and lending basis.

Use documented own resources for the deposit. The CBUAE mortgage rules do not permit the required down payment to be funded through other borrowing.

2. DLD sale registration and transfer charges

The Dubai Land Department sale-registration schedule lists 2% of the sale value payable by the seller and 2% payable by the buyer: 4% in total. Your sale agreement may allocate the seller's share to you. Confirm the allocation before signing; do not assume the statutory schedule itself assigns all 4% to the buyer.

The same DLD service lists a service-partner fee of AED 4,000 plus VAT for a sale of AED 500,000 or more, and AED 2,000 plus VAT below AED 500,000. Title, map and knowledge/innovation charges are listed separately and depend on the documents and transaction.

Ask for the applicable itemised transfer quote. A single universal “DLD administration fee” is not an adequate description of every transaction.

3. Mortgage registration

The DLD mortgage-registration fee is 0.25% of the mortgage value. It is calculated on the registered mortgage, not automatically on the property's full purchase price. For an AED 1.6 million mortgage, the percentage charge is AED 4,000.

Additional registration, title and service-partner charges may apply. DLD lists different service charges for ordinary and provisional registrations. Request a consolidated quote for your purchase and mortgage so the same service is not counted twice or accidentally omitted.

Budget transaction fees separately from the mortgage. Do not assume the bank will add them to the advance or that a general mortgage estimate includes them; confirm the current written arrangement for your application.

4. Bank arrangement and valuation fees

These are lender-specific charges. Read the Key Facts Statement and fee schedule, including the calculation base, VAT, when payment is required and what happens if the purchase does not complete.

As a published bank example, Emirates NBD’s application guidance lists a processing fee of 1.05% including VAT and a completed-property valuation fee of AED 3,150 including VAT. A different product, promotion or lender can produce a different bill. Do not add VAT again to a fee already quoted as VAT-inclusive.

A valuation supports the bank's collateral assessment. It is not a promise that the final mortgage will match your expected amount or a substitute for checking the property's condition.

5. Estate-agent and mortgage-adviser charges

Confirm the estate-agent commission in the signed service agreement, including its calculation base, VAT and payment trigger. A 2% commission is often used in budget examples, but it should not be presented as a compulsory government fee or a universal contractual rate.

Separately establish whether a mortgage broker or adviser charges you, receives a lender commission, or both. Ask about application, cancellation and completion charges. A bank processing fee, estate-agent commission and mortgage-adviser fee pay for different services.

6. Property and transaction-specific costs

Ask the conveyancing or transfer contact to identify the additional items that apply to your transaction:

• Developer NOC charges, who pays them, and any prerequisites for issue.
• Service-charge adjustments between buyer and seller, and any outstanding amounts that must be cleared.
• Seller mortgage settlement, liability or release requirements where the property is already financed.
• Title or map issuance and any additional registration service charges.
• Agreed conveyancing, power-of-attorney, translation or other professional services.
• Insurance or takaful required by the chosen lender, and when premiums fall due.

The DLD sale-registration service requires the relevant developer e-NOC for freehold transactions. A developer document and a seller-bank mortgage release serve different purposes; identify both when applicable.

Worked example: buying for AED 2 million

This example assumes a ready Dubai home, an eligible owner-occupier expatriate, an approved 80% mortgage and a valuation that supports the price. It also assumes the contract makes the buyer pay the full 4% sale-registration fee, and an agreed estate-agent fee of 2% plus 5% VAT. Bank charges use the published Emirates NBD example above. These assumptions are not a lender offer or a complete transfer quote.

Budget item	Assumed calculation	AED
Buyer contribution to price	2,000,000 less 1,600,000 mortgage	400,000
Sale registration allocated to buyer	4% of 2,000,000	80,000
Sale service-partner fee	4,000 plus 5% VAT	4,200
Estate-agent commission	2% of 2,000,000 plus 5% VAT	42,000
Bank processing	1.05% of 1,600,000, VAT included	16,800
Completed-property valuation	Bank example, VAT included	3,150
Mortgage percentage registration charge	0.25% of 1,600,000	4,000
Subtotal for the listed items	Contribution plus listed fees	550,150

AED 550,150 is the subtotal for these assumptions, not the minimum cash needed for every AED 2 million purchase. Add the actual title/map and other registration charges, any separate mortgage service charge that applies, NOC or professional costs allocated to you, insurance and settlement adjustments. Allow separately for moving, utility deposits, repairs and a household reserve.

If the seller pays their own 2% registration share, this example's buyer subtotal falls by AED 40,000. If the bank advances less than AED 1.6 million, the buyer contribution rises by the difference. Both changes can matter more than negotiating a small administrative fee.

Turn the estimate into a completion budget

For each item, record the payee, amount, VAT treatment, due date and refund terms. Separate fees payable before final approval from amounts needed on transfer day. Confirm how payments must be made and independently verify payment instructions with the responsible organisation.

Ask the lender or adviser for the final loan amount and a dated cost breakdown before committing all of your savings. For the approval sequence, see the first-time buyer mortgage process.

Sources and review

Reviewed 12 October 2026. Official rules and published lender information were checked for this update. Examples are illustrative; the lender must confirm the terms for your application.

• CBUAE: 2020 amendment to mortgage LTV limits
• CBUAE: Article 2, Risk Management Requirements
• Dubai Land Department: Property Sale Registration
• Dubai Land Department: Mortgage Registration
• Emirates NBD: Applying for a Home Loan