What buying and selling property in Dubai costs
Most cost surprises in a Dubai transaction are not the big number, they are the four smaller ones nobody mentioned. This page lists what each side actually pays, item by item, and names the official page each figure comes from — so a quote you have been given can be checked line against line rather than argued about.
5 answers, each with the official source it rests on · Last checked 19 August 2026
What buying a property costs, item by item
Buying in Dubai carries several separate costs, and it helps to see them as a list rather than one number. The Dubai Land Department registration fee is 4% of the sale value. The trustee office that handles the transfer charges AED 4,000 plus VAT where the sale value is AED 500,000 or more, and AED 2,000 plus VAT below that. Issuing the new title deed adds a further charge — DLD's portal itemises AED 250 for the certificate, AED 120 to AED 250 for the map depending on property type, and AED 10 each for the knowledge and innovation fees. Agency commission has no published rate, but the settled market standard on a sale is 2% of the price, on distress.ae's own observation of the market, and it applies to residential and commercial sales alike. There is one important exception: buying off-plan directly from a developer, the buyer normally pays no agency commission at all — the developer pays the agency, and that holds even where the buyer came through their own agent. Where there is a mortgage, the bank's own fees sit on top and are set by the lender, so ask for them in writing before you commit. There is still no single total that applies to everyone: it depends on the price, whether you borrow, and whether you are buying from a developer or a private seller.
Source: Dubai Land Department — Property Sale Registration · Correct as of 18 August 2026 · Applies: Dubai
The 4% DLD transfer fee — who pays it
The Dubai Land Department charges a transfer fee of 4% of the sale value when a property changes hands. DLD's own fee page splits it 2% to the seller and 2% to the buyer. In practice, the settled convention in Dubai is that the buyer funds the whole 4%. Because it is a convention rather than a rule, who pays is agreed between the parties and written into the Form F contract — so read what your Form F actually says rather than assuming the default.
“Seller: 2% of the sale value Buyer: 2% of the sale value”
Source: Dubai Land Department — Property Sale Registration · Correct as of 3 August 2026 · Applies: Dubai
Trustee office and registration fees
On top of the 4% transfer fee there are fixed costs at registration. The trustee office charges AED 4,000 plus VAT where the sale value is AED 500,000 or more, and AED 2,000 plus VAT below that — AED 4,200 and AED 2,100 at 5% VAT. Issuing the new title deed adds roughly AED 580 all-in on distress.ae's own figures: DLD's portal itemises the certificate and map fees separately and they come to less than that on their own, before the trustee office's handling charge. These are flat amounts rather than percentages, so they weigh far more on a small purchase than on a large one.
Source: Dubai Land Department — Request for Transfer of Ownership · Correct as of 3 August 2026 · Applies: Dubai
What selling a property costs
Selling costs far less than buying, and the most common mistake is assuming the large fees are the seller's. They are not. The Dubai Land Department's 4% registration fee and the trustee office's charge are both funded by the buyer under the settled convention in Dubai, and neither is a seller's cost unless the Form F says otherwise — so read it. What a seller actually pays is a short list. The developer charges for the No Objection Certificate, at an amount the developer sets with no central register to check it against; distress.ae typically sees somewhere between AED 500 and AED 5,000. Any outstanding service charges have to be cleared before a transfer can complete. Final utility bills need closing off too — DEWA for electricity and water, and the district cooling provider where the building has one, commonly Empower or Emicool. Agency commission is usually the buyer's, though a seller does sometimes agree to pay 2% under their own arrangement with their agent. If there is a mortgage on the property, the bank's early-settlement charge is capped by the UAE Central Bank at 1% of the outstanding balance or AED 10,000, whichever is lower, before VAT.
Source: Dubai Land Department — Request for Transfer of Ownership · Correct as of 18 August 2026 · Applies: Dubai
What the agent's commission is, and who sets it
Agency commission in Dubai is a matter of contract, not a published rate. Brokers must be licensed and entered in the brokers register kept by the Real Estate Regulatory Agency under Bylaw No. (85) of 2006, and the sale is documented on RERA's standard contracts — Form A between seller and agent, Form B between buyer and agent, and Form F for the sale itself. What the commission is, and who pays it, is agreed in that paperwork. RERA's own Real Estate Brokerage Practice Guide sets out how brokers must operate and does not publish a commission rate or a cap, so treat any figure quoted to you as the market's habit rather than a regulated price, and get it in writing before you sign. One rule is statutory: where a broker markets an off-plan project, the sale proceeds must go into the project's escrow account, and the broker may not take their commission out of that money first.
“The Real estate Broker may not deposit the sale proceeds in his own account or deduct his commission from such proceeds before depositing it in the escrow account. Any agreement to the contrary of the provisions of this Article will be void.”
Source: Dubai Land Department — Real Estate Regulatory Agency — Real Estate Brokerage Practice Guide, Second Edition 2024 · Correct as of 1 November 2024 · Applies: Dubai
Go deeper on this
These answer the question. The pages below walk the decision.
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Service charges and what you actually own in a Dubai building
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