Dubai Property ROI Calculator

Enter the purchase price of the property and select your display currency. Choose the property type (apartment, villa, commercial, or off-plan) as this contextualises the result interpretation.

Set your annual appreciation rate. Dubai residential appreciation has averaged 5–12% in established areas. Use a conservative figure (4–5%) for a base case, and a higher rate (8–12%) to model an optimistic scenario. Palm Jumeirah and Downtown have historically outperformed.

Set the hold period using the slider — from 1 to 20 years. Longer holds benefit from compounding. Also set your acquisition costs (typically 7%) and expected selling costs (typically 2–2.5%).

Toggle rental income on or off. If you plan to rent the property during the hold period, select "Yes" and enter your estimated net rental yield. This adds cumulative rental income to the total return figure.

Click "Project Capital Growth". Review the year-by-year table showing property value, capital gain, and ROI for each year of the hold period, alongside the CAGR and total net profit summary.

Note the zero CGT row in the results — all capital gains on Dubai property are tax-free for individuals. The net profit shown is your true take-home return with no deduction for capital gains tax.

Enter the property purchase price and set your intended hold period. The calculator runs both scenarios — full cash purchase and a mortgaged purchase — simultaneously using the same property and hold period.

Set the down payment percentage for the mortgage scenario. Under UAE Central Bank rules, the minimum is 20% for expat buyers (first property, under AED 5M). The cash scenario always deploys the full purchase price plus acquisition costs.

Enter the mortgage rate and term. UAE variable mortgage rates in 2024–25 range from approximately 4%–5.5%. Fixed rates are typically slightly higher. Adjust the term (5–25 years) to match available mortgage products in the market.

Set the annual appreciation rate and net rental yield. Both scenarios use the same property, so both benefit equally from the appreciation and rent. The difference is purely in the cost of financing versus the leverage benefit.

Click "Compare Scenarios". The calculator shows the winner — cash or mortgage — based on total ROI on capital deployed over the hold period. The equity build-up chart shows how your net position evolves year by year under each approach.

Interpret with context. A mortgage often wins in high-appreciation environments because leverage amplifies returns on a smaller equity base. Cash wins when interest costs exceed the leverage benefit — typically at higher rates or shorter hold periods.

Enter the launch purchase price — the price stated in the Sales Purchase Agreement (SPA) signed with the developer. Select your display currency and set the expected construction period in months (typically 24–48 months in Dubai).

Enter the payment plan structure. Dubai off-plan payment plans are split across three or four stages. Enter the percentage due on booking, during construction (milestone-linked), and on handover. These must total 100%. If a post-handover payment plan is offered, enter that percentage separately.

Set the expected appreciation by handover. This is the total price increase from launch to handover — not an annual rate. Dubai off-plan properties in prime locations have appreciated 20–50% from launch to completion in recent cycles. Use 10–15% for a conservative estimate.

Select your exit strategy — either "Sell at Handover" (a flip) or "Rent Out After Handover". If renting, set your expected net rental yield on the post-appreciation value. The calculator models the return under your chosen strategy.

Click "Analyse Off-Plan ROI". The key metric is ROI on Capital Paid by Handover — your gain on only the staged payments you have made, not the full purchase price. This is why off-plan leverage can produce outsized returns in rising markets.

Review the full payment schedule table to confirm the DLD fee and acquisition costs (included automatically at 4% DLD + ~AED 8,000 admin). Verify these figures against your actual SPA and developer fee schedule.

Enter the agreed purchase price of the property and select your display currency. This is the figure stated in the MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) or SPA — before any costs are added.

Select the property type — residential ready, residential off-plan, commercial, or villa. The property type affects the DLD admin fee (AED 580 for off-plan vs AED 4,050 for ready properties) and whether a trustee centre fee applies.

Enter or confirm the agent commission. Standard buyer's commission in Dubai is 2% + 5% VAT. If buying directly from a developer off-plan, the agent's commission is often paid by the developer — set this to 0% in that case.

Enter the NOC fee. The master developer charges a No Objection Certificate fee to allow the transfer. This varies — AED 500–1,500 for most apartment communities; AED 3,000–5,000+ for premium villa communities such as Palm Jumeirah or Emirates Hills.

Select cash or mortgage purchase. For mortgage buyers, enter the loan amount to calculate the DLD mortgage registration fee (0.25% of the loan, minimum AED 1,000). This fee is in addition to the 4% transfer fee and is payable to the DLD separately.

Click "Calculate All Costs". Review the fully itemised breakdown and the total all-in purchase cost. The results also include an estimated selling cost table for future reference — useful when modelling your eventual exit.