Featured answer
For a standard Dubai resale, DLD's Property Sale Registration page lists 2% of the sale value for the seller and 2% for the buyer, making 4% in total. If the purchase is financed, DLD's mortgage service adds a 0.25% mortgage registration fee on the mortgage value. Buyers should also budget title deed, map and trustee/service-partner fees, plus brokerage as a separate market cost.
What sits inside the real buyer cost stack
The core official layers are sale registration, title deed/map lines, service-partner or trustee lines, and mortgage registration if applicable. The buyer should then add brokerage, valuation, bank arrangement cost, and any legal review as separate commercial or financing costs.
Official 2026 cost lines
| Item | Amount | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Sale registration | 4% total | DLD lists 2% seller + 2% buyer on the Property Sale Registration page. |
| Title deed issuance | AED 250 | Listed on DLD's sale-registration page. |
| Apartment or villa map | AED 250 | Listed on DLD's sale-registration page. |
| Knowledge + innovation fees | AED 20 | AED 10 + AED 10 on DLD's sale-registration page. |
| Service-partner / trustee fee | AED 4,000 + VAT if AED 500,000 or above; AED 2,000 + VAT if below | Channel-specific on DLD's Property Sale Registration page. |
| Mortgage registration | 0.25% of mortgage value | DLD Grant Property Mortgage service. |
| Brokerage | Often budgeted at around 2% | Market cost, not a DLD statutory fee. |
LTV rules and the February 2025 financing reality
CBUAE's published mortgage framework continues to show maximum owner-occupier LTV caps of up to 80% for expatriates and up to 85% for UAE nationals on lower-value first homes, with lower caps above AED 5 million and on subsequent or off-plan properties. But those caps do not mean transaction fees will be financed. Market reporting in January 2025 said banks were instructed from 1 February 2025 not to include DLD and broker fees in mortgage financing. The safe buyer assumption in 2026 is therefore: down payment is one cash bucket, transaction costs are another.
Step-by-step: budget the purchase properly
- 1
Classify the transaction
Is it a standard resale, financed purchase, or sale of a property that is already mortgaged? Different DLD service pages apply.
- 2
Build two cash buckets
Separate the down payment from DLD and transaction fees.
- 3
Estimate the official DLD lines
Use DLD's live sale-registration and mortgage pages for the current fee structure.
- 4
Add market costs
Brokerage, valuation, bank fees, and legal review do not disappear just because the DLD quote looks clean.
- 5
Verify channel-specific service-partner fees
The exact service channel can change the partner-fee presentation.
Common mistakes
- Budgeting only the deposit and ignoring the registration stack.
- Treating brokerage as a DLD statutory fee.
- Assuming the mortgage will cover DLD and broker fees.
- Ignoring extra release charges when the property being sold is already mortgaged.
Official links
- Property Sale Registration
Main sale-registration fee page.
- Grant Property Mortgage
Mortgage-registration fee page.
- Registering the Sale of a Mortgaged Property
Extra charges if the property being sold already carries a mortgage.
Need a mortgage or legal referral?
If you are financing the purchase, get a mortgage-readiness review before signing Form F so you know your real cash requirement. If the sale structure is more complex, get legal review before transfer. This page is informational only and is not legal advice.
References
- DLD: https://dubailand.gov.ae/en/eservices/property-sale-registration/Official sale-registration fee schedule.
- DLD: https://dubailand.gov.ae/en/eservices/grant-property-mortgage/Official mortgage registration fee.
- DLD: https://dubailand.gov.ae/en/eservices/registering-the-sale-of-a-mortgaged-property/Official extra charges where the property being sold is already mortgaged.
- CBUAE: https://www.centralbank.ae/media/kaqlwo0h/cbuae-fsr-report_2025_en.pdfPublic CBUAE materials on mortgage LTV framework.
- Secondary market reporting: https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/property/2025/01/25/uae-property-mortgages-fees/Public reporting on the February 2025 instruction that DLD and brokerage fees should not be rolled into mortgages.
Informational only. This page is not legal advice, tax advice, or lending advice. Always verify the live fee structure on DLD's current service pages before paying.