- Home
- Investor guide
Investor guide
Buying off-plan in the UAE,
step by step.
Plain-English guides to buying off-plan in the UAE: the process, the full costs, payment plans and mortgages, buying from abroad and selling before handover.
Buying off-plan in the UAE means committing to a home before it is built, so the details matter more than the brochure. These guides cover the questions most off-plan buyers have: how the purchase works step by step, what it really costs, how payment plans and mortgages fit together, how to buy from abroad, and how to sell before handover.
Each guide sticks to general information. Where a rule, fee or threshold comes from a government source, we name and link it, and flag it to be re-checked before you rely on it.
How to buy off-plan in the UAE, step by step
From shortlist to keys: how an off-plan purchase works, how your payments are protected, and where Abu Dhabi, Ras Al Khaimah and the other emirates do things differently.
Read the guide 02The true cost of buying off-plan
Every fee between booking and keys, who sets it and when it falls due, with a worked example so you can budget beyond the headline price.
Read the guide 03Payment plans explained, and where a mortgage fits
What falls due at booking, during construction and at handover, how post-handover plans work, and how to fund the balance with a mortgage.
Read the guide 04Buying off-plan from abroad
How to reserve, sign, pay and register a UAE off-plan purchase while living overseas, when you need a power of attorney, and how the property route to a Golden Visa works.
Read the guide 05Selling before handover: assignment explained
How an off-plan resale works, what the developer must approve, which costs fall on whom, and how to work out what you would actually take away.
Read the guideGeneral information, checked against official UAE and Dubai government sources where marked. Not legal, tax or financial advice; rules change, so confirm the position for your purchase before you commit.
Speak to us
Prefer to ask
a person?
Send your question or leave a short brief. Tell us your preferred language when you write.