Investment & ROI · 7 min · 2026-10-23

Buy-to-Let Mortgage in Dubai: LTV, Rental Income and DBR

Financing a rental property in Dubai follows specific CBUAE rules: a lower LTV, a deduction for empty months and rental income accepted as a repayment source.

The short answer

A buy-to-let mortgage in Dubai is a mortgage on an investment property. Under the CBUAE "Regulations Regarding Mortgage Loans", the maximum loan is 60% of the value for expatriates and 65% for UAE Nationals, whatever the price (Article 3.2). When assessing affordability, the lender must deduct at least two months' rental income to allow for empty periods (Article 3.1), and repayment can come from salary or from verifiable business or rental income (Article 3.5). Each lender then applies its own policy within these rules.

The LTV for investment properties

The regulation treats a second home and an investment property the same way:

These are maximums. Article 2.4 asks lenders to be more conservative where risks are higher, and your down payment must come from your own resources, not from personal loans or credit cards.

How rental income is counted

The two-months deduction

Article 3.1 says that for investment properties, lenders "are required to make a deduction of at least two months' rental income from the DBR calculation", to take account of non-rental periods. In practice, if a lender counts expected rent, it counts at most ten months of it per year.

Rental income as a repayment source

Article 3.5 lists acceptable repayment sources: salary, verifiable business income or verifiable rental income. End-of-service benefits cannot be used. How each lender verifies rent (tenancy contract, bank statements, valuation report) is its own policy, so ask your lender.

The stress test

The same article requires the loan to be stress tested at 2 to 4 percentage points above the rate on the loan, and total debts must stay within 50% of income.

Worked example: AED 1,200,000 rental apartment

Assumptions, all examples: expatriate investor; ready apartment valued at AED 1,200,000; example rent of AED 84,000 per year (this is an illustration, not market data); example rate 4.5%; 25-year term; gross salary AED 25,000 a month; no other debts.

The payment uses P·r / (1 − (1 + r)^−n), with P = 720,000, r = 0.045/12 and n = 300.

In this example the stressed payment is well within the 50% limit. Whether a lender counts the rent at all, and how much of it, is its decision; some may assess you on salary alone. On salary alone, AED 4,861 is 19.4% of AED 25,000, still within the limit.

The 7 times income cap

Article 3.4 caps the loan at 7 times annual income for expatriates (8 times for UAE Nationals). On a salary of AED 300,000 a year, that is AED 2,100,000, above the AED 720,000 loan here.

Upfront costs to budget

• DLD transfer fee of 4% of the price: AED 48,000 (usually paid by the buyer in practice).
• Mortgage registration at 0.25% of the loan: AED 1,800, plus admin fees.
• Title deed fee: AED 250.
• Trustee office fee: AED 4,000 + VAT (property of AED 500,000 or more).
• Lender fees and valuation fee: each lender sets and discloses them (Article 4).

Documents and questions for your lender

Each lender sets its own documentation list, so ask for it before you apply. Useful questions for a buy-to-let loan:

• Do you count expected rent, or only rent already received under a tenancy contract?
• What deduction do you apply beyond the two-month minimum in Article 3.1?
• Which stress rate do you use within the 2 to 4 point range?
• Is the property eligible as an investment property under your policy (type, location, completion status)?
• What is the total cost of the loan over its life, and what are the pre-payment terms (Article 4)?

Keeping a cash reserve for empty months, maintenance and service charges also helps you cover repayments if the rent stops for a while.

Interest-only and investment loans

The CBUAE allows deferred principal repayment only for investment loans, and for no longer than 5 years from the first drawdown (Article 3.6). We explain this in interest-only mortgages in the UAE.

FAQ

Can I get 80% on a property I plan to rent out?

The 80% (expatriate) and 85% (UAE National) limits apply to a first home, owner-occupied. A property bought for investment falls under the 60% / 65% caps.

Do lenders have to count my rental income?

The regulation allows rental income as a repayment source but requires at least a two-month deduction. Whether and how a lender includes it is set by each lender's policy.

Is it different if I already own my home?

A property beyond your first owner-occupied home is treated like an investment property for LTV. See second property mortgages.

Does the valuation consider future rent growth?

No. Article 2.5 states that appraisal reports should not reflect expected future price appreciation, and Article 2.3 says affordability should not rely on it either.

Read the investment property mortgage guide and test your figures in the LTV calculator.

Calculators for this guide: Mortgage calculator Dubai & UAE · Dubai mortgage for non-residents · Dubai property ROI calculator · Off-plan calculator Dubai

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