The purchase can be made remotely. To do this, you need to appoint a power of attorney as your representative, for example, an agent of the real estate agency you work with. It is necessary to certify the document with the seal and signature of a notary. After that, your representative can proceed with the transaction.

Today, foreign buyers have the same property ownership rights as residents of the Emirates. In addition, after buying property, a foreigner can obtain a resident visa and continue to renew it. Since 2006, an owner who is not a resident of the UAE can resell his/her property, rent it out, gift or inherit it.

While before the adoption of the law in 2006, foreigners could only rent housing for 99 years, now after registering a property transaction, the buyer gets full ownership.

When purchasing a secondary housing, the land department charges 2% of the villa or apartment cost from the buyer for its property registration.

Property investors may consider buying off-plan housing. This is a great option if you want to buy an apartment at its best price and have the opportunity to wait for one or two years until it is ready to move in. There is no need to worry that the construction company will delay the delivery of the project since the government monitors their compliance with construction terms. Therefore, all projects are completed on time.

Today, only licensed organisations can sell apartments or land plots. Local authorities provide construction companies with land and allow them to sell properties in the pre-approved construction projects to foreigners. Before concluding a transaction, you should check whether the company has a license that gives them the right to sell property.

When buying a secondary housing, you should check the agreement with the previous seller. This document always contains information about them, as well as the primary cost of the property.