Your repayment
Note: Educational estimate for planning. Confirm final amounts on official channels.
What this calculator does
It works out the monthly instalment, then shows you the three things a payment figure on its own hides: how the split between interest and principal changes over the life of the loan, what paying a little extra each month does to the total, and what it costs to settle early.
It does not work out what a bank will lend you — that is a different question with different rules, and it has its own page: the mortgage affordability calculator applies the 50% debt burden cap and the loan-to-value cap and tells you which one binds.
The first years are almost all interest
On a AED 1.2 million loan at 4.25% over 25 years, the instalment is about AED 6,500 a month. In the first month roughly AED 4,250 of that is interest and only about AED 2,250 reduces the balance. After five years of payments totalling about AED 390,000, you will have cleared only AED 150,000 of the loan — less than 13% of it.
This is not a UAE quirk; it is how amortisation works everywhere. But it matters here more than most places, because expatriate buyers frequently sell within five to seven years, and the equity they expect to have built is smaller than the payments suggest. The schedule below shows the real figures for your own loan.
Overpaying is the highest-return thing most borrowers can do
Because the early years are so interest-heavy, money paid off the principal early avoids interest for every remaining year of the term. An extra AED 1,000 a month on a AED 1.2 million, 25-year loan at 4.25% clears it in 19.8 years instead of 25 — five years and three months sooner — and saves about AED 176,000 in interest. You pay roughly AED 237,000 extra to save that, which is a return most savings products will not match.
Two cautions. First, confirm with your lender that overpayments reduce the principal rather than sitting as a credit against future instalments — the difference is the entire benefit. Second, overpayments may count toward the early settlement fee below, so ask what the annual free allowance is before you start.
The early settlement fee, and where sources disagree
The figure reported consistently across UAE lenders and brokers is 1% of the outstanding balance or AED 10,000, whichever is lower. On a AED 900,000 balance the uncapped 1% would be AED 9,000, so the cap does not bite; on anything above AED 1 million the AED 10,000 ceiling applies.
Sources conflict on scope. Some describe the cap as applying to both partial and full early repayment on any mortgage; at least one limits it to variable-rate loans and says fixed-rate exits can cost more. It is attributed to a Central Bank board decision amending Appendix 2 of Regulation 29/2011, though only one source carries that citation. Get your own lender’s figure in writing before you plan around it.
Fixed, variable, and the day the fixed period ends
Most UAE mortgages are sold with a fixed period of one to five years, after which they revert to a variable rate: EIBOR plus the bank’s margin. EIBOR moves with the US Federal Reserve, because the dirham is pegged to the dollar.
The reversion is where people get caught. A loan taken at an attractive three-year fixed rate can land on a materially higher variable rate in year four, and the payment jumps overnight. Run this calculator at both the fixed rate and a plausible reversion rate before you commit — if the second number is uncomfortable, the first one was not really affordable.
Islamic mortgages work differently, and cost similarly
Sharia-compliant home finance avoids interest by using a different legal structure. Under Ijara the bank buys the property and leases it to you, ownership transferring with the final payment. Under Murabaha the bank buys and resells it to you at an agreed mark-up. Under diminishing Musharaka you and the bank co-own it and your payments progressively buy out the bank’s share.
The monthly arithmetic is close enough that this calculator works for either — enter the profit rate where it asks for the interest rate. What differs is the paperwork, sometimes the early settlement terms, and occasionally the fee structure, so compare the total cost rather than the headline rate.
What is not in the monthly payment
Purchase fees of roughly 6% of the price — the 4% DLD transfer fee, trustee, title deed, map, agency commission, valuation and mortgage registration — are payable in cash at transfer and no lender finances them. On a AED 1.5 million purchase that is about AED 90,000 on top of the deposit. The purchase cost calculator itemises every line.
Then there are the running costs the mortgage does not cover: the building’s service charge, the 5% housing fee that owner-occupiers still pay, maintenance, and the life and property insurance the lender requires. The insurance fields above fold those last two into the figure so the monthly number means something.
How to use this calculator
- Enter the property price and your down payment percentage.
- Enter the rate your lender has quoted — a profit rate for Islamic finance works the same way.
- Set the term, bearing in mind lenders also cap it by your age at maturity.
- Add an extra monthly payment to see what overpaying saves in interest and years.
- Adjust the insurance figures if your lender has quoted you different ones.
- Read the year-by-year schedule to see how little of the early payments touches the principal.
- Check what you would owe if you settled early, then confirm the fee with your lender.
Frequently asked questions
How much is the monthly payment on a Dubai mortgage?
On a AED 1.2 million loan at 4.25% over 25 years it is about AED 6,500 a month before insurance. The payment scales with the loan, the rate and the term, and this calculator shows the figure for your own numbers along with the year-by-year schedule.
What deposit do I need for a mortgage in Dubai?
Commonly 20% for an expatriate buying a first home under AED 5 million, since those mortgages are generally reported as capped at 80% of value. Purchase fees of roughly 6% are payable in cash on top, so the real requirement is nearer 26% of the price.
What is the maximum mortgage term in the UAE?
Twenty-five years in most cases, and lenders additionally cap the term by your age when the loan matures — commonly 65 for salaried borrowers and 70 for the self-employed. A 25-year term may therefore not be available to you even if the lender offers it generally.
How much does overpaying a UAE mortgage save?
A great deal, because the early years are mostly interest. An extra AED 1,000 a month on a AED 1.2 million, 25-year loan at 4.25% clears it five years and three months sooner and saves about AED 176,000 in interest. Confirm the overpayment reduces the principal rather than sitting as a credit, and check the free annual allowance.
What is the early settlement fee on a UAE mortgage?
Reported consistently as 1% of the outstanding balance or AED 10,000, whichever is lower. Sources disagree on whether the cap covers fixed-rate loans as well as variable ones, so get your lender’s figure in writing rather than relying on the general rule.
What happens when my fixed rate period ends?
The loan reverts to a variable rate, normally EIBOR plus the bank’s margin, and the payment changes with it. Since the dirham is pegged to the dollar, EIBOR follows US Federal Reserve moves. Run the calculator at a plausible reversion rate before committing, not just at the introductory one.
Can I use this for an Islamic mortgage?
Yes — enter the profit rate where it asks for the interest rate. Ijara, Murabaha and diminishing Musharaka differ in legal structure rather than in monthly arithmetic. What can differ is the early settlement terms and the fee structure, so compare total cost rather than headline rate.
How much can I borrow in the UAE?
That is a separate calculation with separate rules — the lower of what your income supports under the 50% debt burden cap and what the property supports under the loan-to-value cap. The mortgage affordability calculator on this site works out both and names whichever one is stopping you.
Do you store my numbers?
No. Calculations run in your browser and nothing is sent to a server. See our Privacy Policy for analytics and AdSense cookie details.
Where these figures come from
The repayment arithmetic is the standard amortisation formula and is definitional — nothing in it can go stale. The rate, term and deposit are all yours to enter. Three contextual figures are sourced rather than calculated.
The early settlement fee of 1% of the outstanding balance or AED 10,000, whichever is lower, is reported consistently across UAE lenders and mortgage brokers, and attributed by one source to a Central Bank board decision amending Appendix 2 of Regulation 29/2011, effective October 2019. The 80% loan-to-value cap for expatriate first homes and the 25-year maximum term with age-at-maturity limits are likewise consistently reported lender practice.
What we could not verify. We were not able to open the Central Bank of the UAE rulebook to transcribe any of these, so none is presented here as an official quotation. Sources also disagree on whether the early settlement cap applies to fixed-rate mortgages or only to variable-rate ones, and that disagreement is stated on the page rather than resolved by us. Get your own lender’s terms in writing.
Last checked against the source: 30 October 2026. Not affiliated with the Central Bank of the UAE or any lender.
Related tools
Explore connected calculators to finish your UAE budget without dead-end pages.
Privacy & advertising disclosure
Calculations run locally in your browser. We may use Google Analytics (G-HDT8XHLXK2) and, when approved, Google AdSense (ca-pub-9886918406188712).
Third parties including Google may use cookies for ads/measurement. Read our Privacy Policy and How Google uses data.
Publisher pages: About, Contact, Disclaimer.
Disclaimer
Disclaimer: Educational estimate. Loan-to-value caps, term limits and the early settlement fee used here are consistently reported lender practice, not text we transcribed from the Central Bank rulebook, and sources disagree on whether the settlement cap covers fixed-rate loans. Rates, fees and overpayment allowances vary by lender — get them in writing. Not mortgage, financial or legal advice. Not affiliated with any lender.