The questions UAE buyers ask us most, answered plainly. Figures reflect current UAE Central Bank rules — if anything here does not match your situation, an advisor will tell you why.
What is a mortgage?
A mortgage is a loan that lets you buy a property for residential, investment or commercial purposes. The lender secures the loan against the property itself, and you repay it in monthly instalments made up of interest (or profit, under an Islamic structure) and repayment of the amount borrowed.
What types of mortgage are available in the UAE?
- Residential mortgages — your own home
- Investment mortgages — a property you intend to let
- Non-resident mortgages — buying from outside the UAE
- Commercial mortgages — business premises
- Rent-to-own
- Fixed and variable rate mortgages
- Offset mortgages
- Interest-only mortgages
- Fixed payment mortgages
- Land and construction finance
- Islamic home finance — Sharia-compliant structures
What is the minimum deposit on a property under AED 5 million?
- 15% for UAE nationals
- 20% for expat residents
Those are the mirror of the loan-to-value caps: 85% and 80% respectively. See how much deposit is required for worked examples.
And on a property over AED 5 million?
- 25% for UAE nationals
- 30% for expat residents
The AED 5 million figure is a hard threshold, not a sliding scale — cross it and the whole loan is assessed at the lower tier.
What should I think about when choosing a mortgage?
- Your lifestyle and how long you expect to hold the property
- The type of property you are buying
- The loan amount you need
- The cash deposit you can comfortably put down — remembering that roughly 7% of the price is payable in cash on top, and cannot be added to the loan
Our affordability calculator gives you a starting figure, and an advisor will pressure-test it against real lender criteria.
Can non-residents and self-employed buyers get a mortgage?
Yes to both. Non-residents typically borrow 50–75% of the value depending on the bank and passport — see non-resident mortgages. Self-employed applicants are assessed on business performance rather than a payslip; see self-employed mortgages.
Why use YOUAE Mortgages?
We are an independent, whole-of-market brokerage: we compare every major UAE lender rather than selling one bank's product, and we manage the process end to end. That means you see the options a single bank would never show you.
Is my personal information secure?
Yes. We take the protection of your personal information seriously and use 256-bit SSL/TLS encryption for storing and accessing your documents.
How do I get started?
Start a purchase application, or if you already hold a mortgage and want a better rate, look at a buyout or refinance. You can also call 800 MORTGAGES, or +971 58 599 6823 from outside the UAE.