How much you can borrow: Central Bank LTV caps
An expat buying a first home worth up to AED 5 million can borrow up to 80% of its value, so the minimum down payment is 20%. These loan-to-value (LTV) caps come from the UAE Central Bank's Regulations Regarding Mortgage Loans and bind every bank in the country. A bank can lend less than the cap, never more.
| Buyer and property | Maximum loan (LTV) | Minimum down payment |
|---|---|---|
| Expat, first home, up to AED 5m | 80% | 20% |
| Expat, first home, above AED 5m | 70% | 30% |
| Expat, second home or investment property | 60% | 40% |
| UAE national, first home, up to AED 5m | 85% | 15% |
| Any buyer, off-plan property | 50% | 50% |
"First home" means a home you will live in, and each borrower can claim only one property in this category. The LTV is measured against the bank's valuation, not the price you agreed. If the valuer says AED 1.9 million on a AED 2 million deal, the bank lends 80% of AED 1.9 million and you pay the gap in cash.
Two more rules are often missed. The down payment must come from your own money, not from a personal loan or credit card. And the loan cannot exceed 7 times your annual income for expats (8 times for UAE nationals).
Mortgage for non-residents
Non-residents can get a Dubai mortgage, but the practical limit on a ready property is usually 50 to 60% of the value, so plan for a 40 to 50% down payment. The Central Bank does not set a separate non-resident cap. Each bank sets its own, and only a smaller group of banks lends to people without a UAE visa.
- Minimum income for non-residents is often around AED 25,000 a month, though some banks accept less. Many also set a minimum loan size.
- Rates are higher than for residents. Market reviews in 2026 put non-resident fixed rates at roughly 4.8 to 6%.
- Income is assessed in the currency and country where you earn it, and the bank will ask for a credit report from your home country.
- Policies move. In July 2026 Mashreq was reported to limit non-resident buyouts to 50% LTV, case by case.
If you plan to relocate, timing matters. Once you hold a UAE residence visa and a local salary or trade licence, you are assessed as a resident and the first-home cap rises to 80%.
Income, debt burden, term and age
All your monthly debt payments, including the new mortgage, must stay within 50% of your gross income. This is the debt burden ratio (DBR) set by the Central Bank. Car loans, personal loans and credit cards count, and banks also allow for household spending, so they rarely lend right up to the 50% line.
- Stress test: the bank must check that you could still pay if the rate were 2 to 4 percentage points higher.
- Investment property: at least two months of rent are deducted from the income the bank counts, to cover empty periods.
- Maximum term: 25 years.
- Age: the Central Bank leaves this to banks. Most want the loan repaid by 65 for salaried borrowers and by 70 for self-employed.
- Minimum income: many banks start at about AED 15,000 a month for salaried residents. Self-employed thresholds are higher, for example AED 40,000 at Mashreq from July 2026.
- Bonuses and commission are discounted or ignored if they are not guaranteed.
An example. A resident expat buys a first home for AED 2,000,000 and borrows 80%, AED 1,600,000, over 25 years. At 4.2% the payment is about AED 8,620 a month. Stress-tested at 6.2% it is about AED 10,500, so the bank will want household income of at least about AED 21,000 a month with no other debts. You can run your own numbers in the mortgage calculator.
Mortgage rates in 2026: fixed or variable
In October and November 2026, fixed rates for residents with salary transfer run from about 3.75% to 5% depending on the bank and the fixed period. Variable rates are EIBOR plus a bank margin of about 1 to 2%. With 3-month EIBOR at about 4.3% in early November 2026, a variable loan costs roughly 5.3 to 6.3% today, so most buyers currently choose a fixed period.
- 1-year fixed: about 3.75 to 4.9%.
- 3-year fixed: about 3.95 to 4.4%.
- 5-year fixed: about 4.2 to 5.05%.
- Variable: 1, 3 or 6-month EIBOR plus 1.00 to 1.99%, sometimes with a minimum rate.
"Fixed" in Dubai means fixed for 1 to 5 years. After that the loan moves to EIBOR plus the margin written in your offer letter, so compare the follow-on rate, not only the headline. EIBOR tracks US rates because the dirham is pegged to the dollar at 3.6725. These rates change every month. Non-residents and buyers without salary transfer pay more.
The 2026 regional conflict did not stop mortgage lending. Some banks tightened criteria, mainly minimum income and the number of financed properties.
Mortgage fees and insurance
A mortgage adds about 1 to 1.5% of the loan in one-off costs, on top of the normal purchase costs such as the 4% DLD fee and agency fee. The full purchase budget is in the guide to buying costs.
| Cost | Typical amount (2026) |
|---|---|
| Bank arrangement fee | 0 to 1% of the loan plus 5% VAT, some banks waive it |
| Valuation | AED 2,500 to 3,500 (range AED 2,000 to 5,000) |
| DLD mortgage registration | 0.25% of the loan plus small admin fees |
| Life insurance | about 0.4 to 0.8% of the outstanding loan a year |
| Property insurance | about AED 800 to 2,000 a year for a typical apartment |
| Early or partial settlement | max 1% of the outstanding loan or AED 10,000, whichever is less |
Life insurance is a condition at every retail lender, with the bank named as beneficiary up to the loan balance. You can usually buy it from another insurer if the cover matches. The early settlement cap is set by the Central Bank, which matters later when you sell or move the loan to another bank.
Documents and process: from pre-approval to transfer
Get a pre-approval before you sign Form F (the sale agreement) with a seller. It shows your real budget, is usually free or low-cost, and is typically valid for 60 days, sometimes 90.
- Salaried residents: passport, visa, Emirates ID, salary certificate addressed to the bank, recent payslips, 6 months of bank statements.
- Self-employed: trade licence, memorandum of association, 2 years of audited financial statements, 6 months of personal and company statements.
- Non-residents: passport valid 6 months or more, proof of address, home-country credit report, 6 to 12 months of statements, payslips or company accounts, 1 to 2 years of tax returns. Some banks need certified translation or attestation.
- Pre-approval from the bank.
- Form F signed, with a 10% deposit cheque. Add a clause that protects the deposit if finance or valuation fails.
- Bank valuation by an independent valuer.
- Final offer letter and loan documents signed.
- If the seller has a mortgage, the seller's bank issues a liability letter and is paid off first. The developer issues a NOC.
- Transfer at a Trustee Office. DLD registers the title deed and your bank's mortgage the same day.
For a resident buying resale, application to transfer usually takes 3 to 6 weeks. Non-resident files often take longer because overseas documents have to be collected and sometimes attested.
Mortgage for off-plan and at handover
Off-plan mortgages are capped at 50% of the value for every buyer, and the bank pays only after you have paid your own share to the developer. Its payments follow construction milestones that must be checked on site, so banks lend only on approved projects, and few buyers use this route.
The usual approach is different. You pay the construction instalments from your own funds and take a handover mortgage for the balance. On a 60/40 or 70/30 plan the last 30 to 40% falls due at completion. At that point the property is ready, the normal ready-property caps apply (up to 80% for a resident's first home), and the LTV is based on the valuation at handover. Start the pre-approval 2 to 3 months before the expected handover date. A developer's post-handover payment plan is the other option: no bank, but you keep paying the developer for a fixed period after completion. The trade-offs are in off-plan vs ready property.
Do you need a mortgage broker
A broker is most useful if you are a non-resident, self-employed or paid partly in bonuses, because banks treat these profiles very differently and some will not lend at all. A good broker compares offers across many banks, knows current policy changes and prepares the file so the valuation and offer arrive on time. Many Dubai brokers are paid by the bank on completion, so the service is often free for the buyer. Ask how they are paid before you start.
With my clients I ask for the pre-approval before we shortlist properties, so the search starts from the real budget. If you already own property in Dubai, you can also borrow against it, see equity release on Dubai property. Purchases go through FOR YOU Real Estate, a licensed Dubai agency. This guide is general information, not financial advice. To check your numbers, send me a message.
