UAE Mortgage LTV Caps and Down-Payment Rules: Expat vs National
-
Expat residents can borrow up to 80% on a first home valued at AED 5 million or less (20% down), and 70% above AED 5 million. UAE nationals get 85% and 75% respectively.
-
Second homes and investment properties drop to 60% for expats and 65% for nationals; anything bought off-plan is capped at 50% for everyone.
-
The caps apply to the lower of purchase price and bank valuation, so a low valuation raises your cash requirement even though the caps haven't changed.
Loan-to-value caps are the hard floor under every down-payment conversation in the UAE. They are set by the Central Bank, apply identically at every licensed lender, and no income level negotiates them upward. Here is the complete grid.
The full LTV table (CBUAE Mortgage Regulations, as amended)
| Buyer and property | Max LTV | Min down payment |
|---|---|---|
| UAE national, first home ≤ AED 5M | 85% | 15% |
| UAE national, first home > AED 5M | 75% | 25% |
| UAE national, second/investment property | 65% | 35% |
| Expat resident, first home ≤ AED 5M | 80% | 20% |
| Expat resident, first home > AED 5M | 70% | 30% |
| Expat resident, second/investment property | 60% | 40% |
| Off-plan property, all buyers | 50% | 50% |
Three definitions matter. "First home" means owner-occupied, and each borrower can claim only one property in that category. The AED 5 million threshold refers to property value, not loan size. And non-residents sit outside this table entirely: the CBUAE caps govern residents, while banks set their own (tighter) non-resident policies, typically 50 to 65%, covered in how to get a mortgage as a non-resident.
The valuation catch
Banks lend against the lower of the agreed price and their own valuation. If you agree to pay AED 2.0 million and the bank values the unit at AED 1.85 million, your 80% applies to 1.85M (loan AED 1.48M), and the AED 150,000 gap lands on you in cash on top of the notional 20%. In fast-rising or overheated micro-markets this is the single most common source of last-minute funding gaps.
Why the off-plan cap is 50%
The regulation is explicit: construction risk. Until handover, the collateral doesn't fully exist, so the CBUAE halves the leverage regardless of buyer type or property value. In practice many banks go further, financing off-plan only from major developers or only once construction passes a threshold. The workarounds (developer payment plans, handover-linked mortgages) are covered in buying off-plan vs ready: the finance angle.
Cash planning: the down payment is the start, not the total
Since early 2025, banks cannot finance transaction fees into the loan, so your true cash-to-close is the down payment plus roughly 6 to 7% of the price (DLD transfer fee, mortgage registration, valuation, agent and bank fees, itemised in mortgage fees and hidden costs). For an expat buying a ready AED 2 million first home: AED 400,000 down plus roughly AED 130,000 to 140,000 in costs.
LTV strategy notes
-
Borrowing below your cap is priced. Several banks tier their margins by LTV; coming in at 70% instead of 80% often earns a lower rate, and it shrinks the instalment the DBR stress test has to accommodate. Test both scenarios in the Mortgage Affordability Calculator.
-
The 5M threshold creates a cliff. An expat buying at AED 5.05 million needs 30% down (AED 1.515M) versus 20% at AED 4.99 million (AED 998K). Around the threshold, negotiating the price below AED 5 million is worth more than any rate discount.
-
Category is per borrower, not per emirate. Owning a first home in Sharjah puts your Dubai purchase in the 60% investment tier.
Sources and References
-
CBUAE Rulebook, Regulations Regarding Mortgage Loans, Article 3, and 2020 amendment to Circular 31/2013 raising first-time buyer LTV by 5% (rulebook.centralbank.ae)
-
Dubai Land Department, transfer and mortgage registration fees (dubailand.gov.ae)
This article is for general information and does not constitute financial advice.