Where to look for off-plan apartments
Off-plan apartment projects are spread across Dubai, in both established districts and newer communities. Start with the area that suits how you will use the home:
- City centre: Downtown Dubai and Business Bay.
- Waterfront: Dubai Marina, Emaar Beachfront and Dubai Creek Harbour. Emaar describes Dubai Creek Harbour as a 6 sq km development along the historic Dubai Creek.
- Inland residential communities: Jumeirah Village Circle (a Nakheel master community), Arjan, Dubai Sports City and Dubai Silicon Oasis.
- Golf and park communities: Dubai Hills Estate, which Emaar describes as having apartments alongside villas and townhouses around an 18-hole championship golf course.
For a wider comparison, see our guide to areas for off-plan buyers. You can also browse all areas.
What to compare between apartment projects
The headline price per square foot only tells part of the story. Compare these points across your shortlist:
- Layout and usable space: room sizes, how much of the total area is balcony, storage, and whether the kitchen is open-plan or closed.
- Floor area: confirm the area stated in the SPA and how the contract deals with a difference in the final measured area. DLD explains that the developer cannot charge for a larger area unless the contract expressly allows it, and must compensate you if the area falls short by more than 5% of the net area.
- Floor, view and orientation: today's view could be built over later, so check the master plan for the plots next to the building.
- Parking and amenities: how many parking spaces are included, and which facilities you will pay for through service charges.
- Service charges: DLD explains that your share is based on your unit's area on the title deed. Look up the RERA-approved rates for the developer's completed buildings in DLD's Service Charge Index.
If you are buying to invest, run the numbers with our rental yield calculator.
Building rules and buyer protections
An off-plan apartment comes with the same legal protections as any other off-plan purchase in Dubai. There are also extra rules for shared buildings.
- Escrow: under Law No. 8 of 2007, buyers' payments go into a separate escrow account for the project and can only be used to build it.
- Registration: your purchase is recorded on DLD's Interim Register (Oqood). The title deed is issued after the completed project is registered with DLD.
- Owners association: under the jointly owned property law (Law No. 27 of 2007), apartment owners become members of an owners association. They pay service charges and follow the building rules.
- Defects: DLD's investor guide states that, under the same law, developers must repair structural defects for 10 years and minor defects for one year. Both periods run from the date of the building completion certificate.
Before you sign, ask the developer for the building's disclosure statement or jointly owned property declaration, if either is available. DLD's guide notes that these documents help buyers understand a project and what they will owe as owners. Our escrow and RERA guide covers the safeguards in more detail.
Renting out or reselling an off-plan apartment
If you are buying to invest, plan how you will get your money out before you commit. Investors usually either rent the apartment out after handover or sell it before or after completion.
- Renting out: find out what similar completed buildings in the area rent for. The Dubai REST app includes DLD's sale and rental indices for different periods. Then work out your net return after service charges with our rental yield calculator, and compare communities in our rental yields guide.
- Selling before handover: your SPA and the developer set the conditions, and any transfer must be registered on DLD's Interim Register. See our guide to selling before handover.
- Selling after handover: DLD's investor guide explains that you need a no-objection certificate from the owners association manager, or from the developer, confirming your service charges are paid. See how to sell property in Dubai.
If you'd rather move in sooner, compare these projects with ready apartments for sale.
