Transaction costs: what is payable on top
The 7–8% above the price broken down by line: the Land Department fee, the trustee office, agency commission, the developer’s NOC. What a mortgage adds and how the picture differs off-plan.
- ✓ The subject taken apart: the questions people actually ask, answered
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The essentials
Short answers to what people most often arrive with on this subject. Every figure states the period it belongs to — rates, visa thresholds and yields move.
How much is payable on top of the price
For a cash purchase, budget 7–8% above the price. The bulk is the Land Department transfer fee of 4%; then the trustee office fee, title issuance, the agency commission on resale and small administrative charges. A mortgage adds roughly a further one and a half per cent: registration of the charge, the bank’s arrangement fee and the valuation. These belong in the transaction budget rather than in "later": they fall due at transfer and are not financed.
What makes up the 4%
It is the Land Department fee on the transaction value. Market practice is that the buyer pays, though the fee is formally split between the parties; developer promotions of the "we cover the DLD fee" kind exist and mean exactly what they say. On top sits a fixed administrative charge and the trustee office fee, which scales with the transaction — of the order of two thousand dirhams for cheaper properties and four thousand for expensive ones, plus VAT.
Who pays the agency
On resale, the buyer: the standard rate is 2% of the price plus VAT. On a new build the developer pays, and the broker’s service is free to the buyer — not a favour from a particular agent but how the market works. If someone asks you for a commission on a new build over and above the developer’s price list, that is a question to ask rather than an invoice to pay.
What is an NOC and what does it cost
The developer’s no-objection certificate for the transfer: confirmation that there are no service-charge arrears or other impediments. Registration will not proceed without it. The developer sets the price, and it varies widely — from a few hundred to several thousand dirhams. Who pays is for the parties to agree; market practice puts it on the seller, but the point is worth settling in advance rather than on transfer day.
What does a mortgage add
Three items. Registration of the charge with the Land Department at 0.25% of the loan plus a small fixed fee. The bank’s arrangement fee, up to 1% of the loan and negotiable. And the bank’s valuation, a few thousand dirhams, payable whether or not the loan is approved. Plus life and property cover, which the bank will require for the term.
How do off-plan costs differ
The same 4% to the Land Department is paid up front, on registration of the preliminary contract in the Oqood system, rather than at handover. The principal cost therefore falls at the start, when there is no property yet. No agency commission is charged on a developer sale. What appears instead are charges that do not exist on resale: the developer’s administrative registration fee, and later, on an assignment, a separate fee for permission.
In the news
Write-ups and news on the same subject.
Moscow or Dubai on the same budget: what the tax systems actually cost an owner
Dubai charges no property or rental income tax but a one-off 4% DLD transfer fee and an annual service charge. Moscow has a property tax and rental income tax but far lower purchase costs. A worked example on a $180 000 budget, with every assumption stated.
Selling a mortgaged apartment in Dubai: payoff process, the early-settlement fee, and full costs
A UAE mortgage cannot transfer to a new property — selling always means paying it off in full, either with the seller’s own cash or the buyer’s funds at closing. Early settlement is capped at 1% of the balance or AED 10 000. Here is what a seller actually pays.
Gifting property in Dubai to family: a 0.125% fee instead of 4%, who qualifies and what it costs
Transferring a Dubai home to a spouse, child or parent as a gift costs 0.125% of the DLD valuation (minimum AED 2 000) rather than the standard 4% transfer fee. On a AED 2m apartment that is about AED 2 500 instead of AED 80 000. Who qualifies, the paperwork, and the traps.
Dubai mortgage costs since 2025: the 4% DLD fee and agent commission must be paid in cash
Since 1 February 2025 UAE banks may not finance the 4% Dubai Land Department fee or the roughly 2% agent commission. On a AED 2m apartment that is about AED 122 000 on top of the deposit. The full cash budget for a financed purchase, and where it can be reduced.
Who pays the commission in a Dubai transaction — and who pays everything else
On a new build the developer pays the agent; on resale the buyer does, at 2% plus VAT. The Land Department fee, the no-objection certificate and the trustee office each have their own answer, and three of them are market practice rather than rule.
The valuation and the insurance: two bank requirements worth understanding before you sign
The valuation is paid by you, ordered by the bank, and non-refundable whether or not the loan is approved — and if it comes in low, the difference is found in cash. What a valuer does, what a valuer explicitly does not do, and what the building policy leaves uncovered.
This material is provided for information purposes and does not constitute individual investment advice. Property returns depend on many factors and are not guaranteed.