Off-plan property in the UAE

How off-plan works

1. Choose. Compare projects by price, payment plan, handover date and location, and ask for the unit's current price in writing.
2. Reserve. A booking payment holds the unit while the sale agreement is prepared.
3. Sign and register. The sale is registered with the emirate's land authority, which charges a registration fee.
4. Pay as it is built. Installments go into the project's escrow account and are released to the developer as construction progresses.
5. Take handover. Pay what is due, inspect the home, get the keys and the title.

Step by step, with what to prepare: the buying process.

Payment plans

A plan is written as shares of the price, such as 20 / 40 / 40: booking, during construction, on handover. Of the 1,116 projects we list, 1,062 have a published plan; the median plan asks for 60% before handover, and 175 projects let part of the price be paid after handover. The most common plans are 20 / 40 / 40, 10 / 40 / 50 and 10 / 50 / 40. The best plan for most buyers asks for the least before handover: see those first, or try the payment plan calculator.

How your payments are protected

In every emirate, off-plan payments go into an escrow account opened for the project and supervised by the regulator, and are released to the developer as the building goes up. Pay only into the escrow account named in your sale agreement, and ask for the project's registration with the regulator before you pay.

Before you pay

• The project is registered. Ask for the project's registration with the emirate's land authority and its escrow account number, and pay only into that account.
• The developer's record. Look at what the developer has already handed over, and how close to the promised dates. Each developer page here lists its projects and handover years.
• The handover clause. The sale agreement sets the expected completion date and what happens if it slips. Read that clause before you sign, and ask us if it is unclear.
• Selling before handover. Whether and when you can resell before completion is set by the developer, often only after a minimum share has been paid. It is in your sale agreement.
• The full cost. Add the registration fee and the developer's and authority's admin fees to the price. The purchase cost calculator works it out.

Off-plan or ready?

Off-plan spreads the price over the build and gets you a brand-new home, but you wait for it and handover dates can move. A ready home can be lived in or let at once, at prices and rents you can check against registered deals: for Dubai, see a community's rental yield and prices paid. Neither is right for everyone, and nothing here is financial advice.