On a AED 1.5M apartment, the sticker price is the smaller number to plan for. A resident buyer using an 80% mortgage needs roughly AED 415,000 in cash at completion, because a Central Bank rule that took effect on 1 February 2025 means the 4% transfer fee and the agency commission can no longer be folded into the loan.

The short answer: what buying really costs

Plan for the price plus another 6% to 7% in one-off transaction fees, and budget that 6% to 7% as cash rather than something a bank will lend against.

Most of it is a single line: the DLD transfer fee of 4% of the purchase price, paid to the Dubai Land Department to move the title into your name. By long-standing market convention the buyer pays it, though the split is legally negotiable. Around that sit smaller fixed charges (a registration trustee office fee, a title deed fee, a DLD admin fee) and, on a resale, the agency commission of 2% plus 5% VAT. With a mortgage you add a few financing charges on top.

The number that changed recently is not the rate but the funding. Until 2025 many buyers quietly borrowed these costs by letting the bank add them to the loan. From 1 February 2025 the Central Bank of the UAE stopped that: the 4% DLD fee and the 2% agency commission can no longer be financed and must be paid separately by the buyer (The National). So the practical question is no longer "what are the fees" but "how much liquid cash do I need on completion day".

The DLD transfer fee and registration costs

The DLD fees are fixed, published, and the same whoever you buy from, so this is the part you can budget to the dirham.

The headline charge is the 4% transfer fee on the purchase price, plus a DLD admin fee of AED 580 for an apartment or office. On a AED 1.5M apartment that is AED 60,000 plus AED 580. Registration itself happens at a DLD-approved trustee office, which charges AED 4,000 plus 5% VAT (AED 4,200) when the price is AED 500,000 or above, and AED 2,000 plus VAT below that. A title deed is then issued for AED 250, with a small property-map fee on top.

These are not negotiable and they are not financed. The 4% is the line that makes Dubai's "no property tax" headline more nuanced: there is no recurring tax, but there is a meaningful one-off transfer cost, and you meet it in full at registration.

Agency, NOC and the resale-specific costs

On a resale, the second real cost after the DLD fee is the agency commission: 2% of the purchase price plus 5% VAT, paid by the buyer by convention. On a AED 1.5M home that is AED 31,500.

A resale through a developer-managed community also needs a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the developer, confirming the seller has cleared service charges before the transfer. The NOC fee is set by the developer and typically runs AED 500 to AED 5,000, occasionally more for villa communities. It is a buyer-side line to budget for, not a charge you can skip: the trustee office will not complete the transfer without it.

None of these apply in the same way to a brand-new off-plan purchase from the developer, which is one reason the cost shape differs (covered below).

If you use a mortgage: the extra fees, and the cash rule

A mortgage adds a handful of charges and, since 2025, sharply raises the cash you need on day one.

First, how much you can borrow. Under Central Bank caps, an expatriate resident buying a first property under AED 5M can borrow up to 80% (a 20% down payment); above AED 5M the cap is 70% (CBUAE rulebook). A non-resident without a UAE visa is lent on tighter, bank-set terms, typically 50% to 65%, so plan for a 35% to 50% deposit. Our non-resident mortgage playbook walks the lenders and rates in detail.

On the fees, a mortgage adds: a mortgage registration fee of 0.25% of the loan plus AED 290 to the DLD; a property valuation of roughly AED 2,500 to AED 3,500 plus VAT; and a bank arrangement fee of up to 1% of the loan plus VAT. Life and property insurance are also required, billed annually.

Now the part that catches people. Because the 4% DLD fee and 2% agency fee can no longer be added to the loan, they come out of your own pocket in addition to the deposit. Walk the AED 1.5M apartment for a resident on an 80% mortgage:

That is close to 28% of the price in cash, against the 20% deposit most buyers anchor on. The fees did not rise; the financing route closed. Building the full cash figure, not the deposit, into your plan is the single most useful thing this changes.

Off-plan vs ready: how the fees differ

Off-plan changes when you pay and who pays the agent, not the 4% rate.

Buy off-plan from a developer and the 4% DLD registration is paid upfront, when the sale contract is registered on the Oqood system within 60 days of signing, plus a small Oqood admin fee of roughly AED 1,000. A common misconception is that the 4% waits until handover; it does not. What waits is only the AED 250 title deed issuance when the Oqood converts to a title at completion, so you do not pay the 4% twice.

Two things usually make off-plan lighter on upfront cash. The agency commission is typically paid by the developer, not the buyer, on a direct launch purchase. And instead of a deposit-plus-mortgage, you follow the developer's payment plan, often around 20% on booking with the balance staged to handover. So a AED 1M JVC one-bed off-plan can need roughly AED 241,000 to start (a 20% booking deposit plus the 4% Oqood), with the rest spread over the build. Off-plan made up about 70% of Q1 2026 transactions (Q1 2026 market data), and the staged cash profile is a large part of why.

The costs that never stop: service charges, housing fee, DEWA

Owning has a running cost, and it is the part that quietly shapes your net return.

The biggest line is the service charge, set per building and paid yearly into the Mollak escrow system that funds maintenance of shared areas. It typically runs AED 10 to AED 30 per sqft a year, depending on the tower's amenities and management. On a 900 sqft apartment at AED 15 per sqft that is AED 13,500 a year, which is exactly why a gross rental yield and a net yield can diverge by more than a point. If you are buying to let, this line belongs in the model from the start; our rental yield guide shows how much it moves the net.

On top sit a 5% housing fee on the property's annual rental value, billed in monthly instalments through your DEWA utility account, and a one-off DEWA security deposit of AED 2,000 for an apartment (AED 4,000 for a villa), refundable, plus a small activation fee.

The genuinely good news for an overseas buyer used to council tax or annual rates: Dubai has no annual property tax. The recurring cost is service charges, the housing fee and utilities, and nothing else.

Total cash needed, by buyer

The fees are similar; the cash you need on day one is not. For a AED 1.5M apartment:

The pattern is consistent: since 2025, plan around the all-in cash figure, not the deposit or the price. A buyer who budgets 20% and is surprised by another 7% in non-financeable fees is the most common avoidable mistake in the market right now.

Who pays the DLD transfer fee in Dubai?+

The buyer pays the 4% transfer fee by market convention, although the split is legally negotiable between buyer and seller. It is paid to the Dubai Land Department at registration.

Can I add the DLD and agency fees to my mortgage?+

No. Since 1 February 2025 the Central Bank of the UAE prohibits banks from financing the 4% DLD transfer fee and the 2% agency commission, so both must be paid in cash on top of your down payment.

Do you pay the 4% DLD fee on off-plan property?+

Yes, and upfront. The 4% is paid when the sale contract is registered on the Oqood system, within 60 days of signing, not at handover. At completion you pay only the AED 250 title deed fee.

Is there an annual property tax in Dubai?+

No. Dubai has no recurring property tax. The ongoing costs of ownership are the building service charges, a 5% housing fee on rental value billed through DEWA, and utilities.

How much cash do I need for a AED 1.5M apartment with a mortgage?+

About AED 415,000 at completion for a resident on an 80% mortgage: a 20% down payment of AED 300,000 plus roughly 7.7% in fees that can no longer be financed.