How Much Will a UAE Bank Lend You?
Your debt burden ratio, what a lender would advance, and the property it buys — worked out in under a minute.
Mortgage Eligibility Calculator UAE
Enter your income and the property details. Your limit updates as you type.
Paid allowances, a bonus, incentives or a flying allowance? Those count too, and every lender treats them differently. Send us the form and we will work the exact figure out with you.
These two set your deposit percentage. A second home needs 40% down, off-plan needs 50%.
Card limits count at 5% a month whether you use them or not — this is where most people lose capacity.
Your monthly payment is worked out at 3.99%, and your affordability is tested at 6.00% — the higher rate lenders apply in case rates rise. Open this if you want to change either rate.
At the 3.99% you would really pay, it costs AED 12,276 a month.
Want this checked against real lenders?
Every bank tests differently, so the same figures borrow more at one than another. Send this over and we will tell you where your file fits.
💰 Typical Purchase Costs
✅ Eligibility Requirements
- Minimum salary from AED 10,000–15,000, depending on the lender
- Total debt within 50% of gross monthly income
- A good AECB credit score, 650 and above
- Six months in your current job, or two years of audited accounts
- Valid residency visa and Emirates ID, for residents
- Loan repaid by 65 if salaried, 70 if self-employed
Three ceilings. The lowest one wins.
Two are set by regulation and one is how lenders behave in practice. Most online calculators apply only the first.
The 50% debt burden cap
All your monthly debt repayments, the new mortgage included, cannot exceed 50% of your gross monthly income.
The loan-to-value cap
A first home is capped at 80% of value for expatriates and 85% for UAE nationals up to AED 5 million, falling to 70% and 75% above it. Second homes are 60% and 65%. Anything off-plan is 50% for everyone.
The income multiple
A mortgage cannot exceed seven years of annual income for expatriates, or eight years for UAE nationals.
Credit card limits
Banks count 5% of your total card limits as a monthly commitment, whether or not you have spent anything on them. Reducing a limit is the quick win here — it reaches your credit file in days, where closing the card takes weeks and loses the history.
Term and your age
The maximum term is 25 years. Lenders also want the loan repaid by 65 if you are salaried and 70 if you are self-employed or a UAE national, which shortens the term as you get older and lowers what you can borrow.
The stress rate
Banks do not test you at the rate you will pay. They test two to four points higher to check you could still afford it if rates rose. We use 6% so the answer stays conservative.
This is an estimate, not an approval. Each bank applies its own salary floors, age limits and emirate coverage on top of the rules above, and decides only after reviewing a full application. Rental income is counted at ten of twelve months.
How much you must put down
The Central Bank sets the maximum any UAE bank may lend against a property. Your deposit follows from it. The highlighted row is the one your answers land on.
| Buyer | Property price | Maximum loan | Minimum down payment |
|---|---|---|---|
| UAE national, first home | Up to AED 5M | 85% | 15% |
| UAE national, first home | Above AED 5M | 75% | 25% |
| Resident expat, first home | Up to AED 5M | 80% | 20% |
| Resident expat, first home | Above AED 5M | 70% | 30% |
| Second home or more | Any | 65% nationals, 60% expats | 35% to 40% |
| Off-plan property | Any | 50% | 50% |
| Non-resident | Any | 50% to 60%, by bank and country | 40% to 50% |
Transfer and bank fees sit on top of the deposit — budget roughly another 7–8% of the price for the Dubai Land Department transfer fee, mortgage registration, the bank’s arrangement fee, valuation and agency commission. For non-residents we calculate at 50%, the safe end of the band; several banks go to 60% depending on your nationality.
About your borrowing limit
1. Why does the property value change what I can borrow?
Because the Central Bank caps the loan as a share of the property’s value, not just against your income. An expatriate buying a first home under AED 5 million can borrow at most 80% of it, however much they earn. Calculators that never ask the price cannot apply this cap, which is why they often quote a figure well above what any bank would sign.
2. What is a debt burden ratio?
It is the share of your gross monthly income that goes to debt repayments. UAE regulation caps it at 50%, counting the new mortgage alongside your car loan, personal loan and credit cards. If half your income is already committed, no bank can lend you anything further regardless of your deposit.
3. Why do my credit cards count if I never use them?
Banks assume you might. They count 5% of your total card limit as a monthly commitment, so a AED 100,000 limit costs you AED 5,000 of monthly capacity even at a zero balance. The fastest fix is to ask your bank to **reduce the limit** rather than close the card: a reduction reaches your AECB file in about three to four days, while a closure takes forty to forty-five days to show and costs you the credit history on that card.
4. Why does my age matter?
Lenders want the loan repaid before you retire — by 65 if you are salaried, by 70 if you are self-employed or a UAE national. At 50 that leaves a 15-year term rather than 25, and a shorter term means a higher monthly payment for the same loan, so the amount you qualify for drops.
5. Does rental income count?
Yes, but not in full. Banks count ten of the twelve months, then add it to your salary. A property earning AED 120,000 a year adds AED 8,333 a month to your assessed income, not AED 10,000.
6. Is this what a bank will actually lend me?
It is a conservative estimate built on the regulations and standard lender practice. What it cannot know is each bank’s own salary floor, age policy, emirate coverage and nationality rules, which vary considerably and decide where your file actually lands. That part is what an advisor is for.
