Renting in Dubai involves more than annual rent. Here's every AED you pay before moving in.
Contract creation cost
- Online generator: AED 0
- Typing centre: AED 150-300
- Manual blank template: AED 0
Ejari registration
- Ejari fee: AED 195
- Knowledge fee: AED 25
- Total: AED 220
- Typing centre adds AED 100-150 service fee
Broker commission
- Standard: 5% of annual rent
- Paid by tenant typically
- AED 100,000 rent = AED 5,000 commission
- Not applicable if renting direct
DEWA setup
- Apartments: AED 2,000 refundable
- Villas: AED 4,000 refundable
- Activation: AED 20-40
- Same-day connection
Chiller deposit
- AED 1,000-2,000 refundable
- Empower / Palm District Cooling / etc.
- Some buildings include in service charges
Move-in fees
- Move-in permit: AED 500-1,000 some buildings
- Access card: AED 100-200 refundable
- Parking sticker: AED 50-100
Total example (AED 80,000/year 1BHK)
- Contract: FREE
- Ejari: AED 220
- Broker (5%): AED 4,000
- Deposit (5%): AED 4,000
- DEWA: AED 2,000
- Chiller: AED 1,500
- Move-in permit: AED 500
- First cheque (1 of 4): AED 20,000
- TOTAL UPFRONT: AED 32,220 (AED 7,500 refundable)
How to reduce cost
- Skip broker if renting direct (save 5%)
- Online generator instead of typing centre
- Ejari via Dubai REST app not typing centre
- Negotiate 6 or 12 cheques for cash flow
For pillar overview, see Dubai tenancy contract guide.