What it actually costs to buy off-plan

The price on the brochure is not the cash you need. Change any figure below — every default is editable, because in Dubai almost all of them vary by developer, by building, and by whatever promotion is running that month.

Purchase price

AED

Developer DLD waiver

Time-boxed promotions where the developer pays part of the 4% for you. It is not a reduction in the government fee.

Admin / Oqood fee

AED

Left at 0 on purpose. The AED 580 / 430 / 40 figures repeated across agency blogs appear nowhere in DLD's published fee schedule, so this asks for the number on your own quote rather than guessing.

Trustee office fee (before VAT)

AED

On a first off-plan sale the developer usually registers the unit and this is not charged — set it to 0. Tiered at AED 2,000 below AED 500,000, AED 4,000 at or above.

Agency commission

Usually 0 when buying directly from the developer.

Mortgage amount

AED

Leave at 0 for a cash purchase. Registration costs 0.25% of the loan plus AED 290.

Other costs

AED

NOC, conveyancing, valuation — anything quoted to you that is not above.

On top of the price

DLD registration fee (4%)

AED 80,000

Trustee office feeincluding 5% VAT

AED 4,200

Fees totalAED 84,200

4.21% of the purchase price

Total cash requiredAED 2,084,200

An estimate, not a quotation. Government fees and developer terms change, and the defaults here come from published secondary sources rather than a live Dubai Land Department feed — last checked 2026-08-26. Confirm every figure against your SPA and the DLD before you transfer money. Nothing here is financial advice, and no return is guaranteed.

Payment schedule

Two units at the same price can demand very different cash at very different moments. That is the part worth comparing, so it is laid out in full rather than reduced to a headline split.

Payment plan

A starting structure, not a quote. The split for any specific unit is whatever its SPA says — overwrite these against the actual contract.

Months to handover

Expected completion, from the SPA. It sets when service charges begin.

Annual service charge after handover

AED

No default: this runs from AED 3/sqft in JVC to AED 65+ in Burj Khalifa. Use the building's own Mollak figure.

When	Milestone	Share	Amount	Paid to date
At signing	Down payment	20%	AED 400,000	AED 400,000
Month 12	During construction	40%	AED 800,000	AED 1,200,000
Month 24	On handover	40%	AED 800,000	AED 2,000,000

Nothing yet — service charges start at handover, expected 24 months after purchase.