How much mortgage can I get in Dubai on my salary?

The two numbers that decide your maximum mortgage

Every UAE bank runs the same two checks before quoting you a maximum loan: the Debt Burden Ratio (DBR) and the Loan-to-Value (LTV) cap. The DBR caps your total monthly debt repayments — including the new mortgage instalment — at 50% of your gross monthly income. The LTV cap limits the loan itself to a percentage of the property price: up to 80% for UAE residents buying their first property under AED 5,000,000, and up to 75% for non-residents on properties up to AED 25,000,000. Whichever of the two produces the smaller number is your real ceiling, so a high salary does not automatically mean a high loan if the property price is low relative to your down payment.

For most salaried applicants with no existing debt, the DBR is the binding constraint rather than LTV, because 50% of income at current rates typically supports a loan comfortably inside the 80% LTV band. Once you add a car loan, personal loan, or several credit cards, the DBR ceiling drops fast — see our Debt Burden Ratio explainer for exactly how liabilities are counted.

Salary to maximum mortgage: the table

The table below assumes a 25-year tenor, an indicative 3.89% fixed rate (Emirates NBD; other banks price 0.05 to 0.10 points either side), no existing debt, and the full 50% DBR allowance used against the mortgage instalment. Figures are rounded to the nearest AED 10,000 and are indicative — your actual approval depends on the bank's own policy, your credit score and the property's valuation.

Why 'salary' is not always what banks use

Banks generally assess affordability against your basic salary plus allowances that are guaranteed and regularly paid, not your total package including one-off bonuses. If your pay slip shows AED 25,000 gross but only AED 18,000 is basic-plus-fixed-allowance, some lenders will use the lower figure, particularly for the DBR calculation. Variable income — commission, overtime, annual bonuses — is often only partially counted, commonly averaged over the last 12 to 24 months and discounted by the bank's own policy percentage. This matters most for sales, real estate and finance roles where variable pay makes up a large share of total compensation.

• Basic salary is almost always counted in full.
• Fixed housing or transport allowances are typically counted if shown on the salary certificate.
• Variable bonus or commission income is often averaged and partially discounted, subject to bank policy.
• Rental income from other owned property can sometimes be added, usually at 50-70% of the declared amount.
• Self-employed or business income is assessed differently — see our self-employed mortgage guide for that route.

How tenor changes your maximum loan

Because the DBR caps your monthly instalment rather than the loan amount directly, stretching the tenor from 25 to a shorter term shrinks your maximum loan, while a longer term (where offered) increases it. Most UAE banks cap the mortgage term so the loan is repaid by a set retirement age — commonly 65 for UAE nationals and 60-65 for expats, though this varies by bank and employment type. A 45-year-old expat applicant may only be offered a 15 to 20-year term, which meaningfully reduces the maximum loan compared with a 25-year term at the same salary.

Down payment: the other half of the equation

Your maximum mortgage only tells you the borrowing side; the property price you can actually reach also depends on your down payment. At 80% LTV, a 20% down payment plus transaction costs is the realistic minimum for a UAE resident's first property. Budget for DLD fees of 4% transfer plus 0.25% of the loan for mortgage registration plus AED 290, a bank arrangement fee of roughly 1% of the loan, and a valuation fee of AED 2,650 to AED 3,150. On a AED 2,000,000 property at 80% LTV, that is roughly AED 400,000 down payment plus AED 110,000-120,000 in combined fees — plan for both, not just the deposit.

1. 1Add up your basic salary and any allowances or bonus income your bank is likely to count.
2. 2Subtract any existing loan instalments and roughly 5% of each credit card limit from your DBR headroom.
3. 3Multiply your remaining monthly headroom against the applicable tenor and rate to estimate your maximum instalment.
4. 4Convert that instalment to a loan amount using an amortisation calculator at the indicative rate.
5. 5Check the result against the 80% (residents) or 75% (non-residents) LTV cap for the property price you have in mind.
6. 6Get a pre-approval to confirm the real number a bank will commit to in writing.

First-time buyers vs. second-property buyers

First-time buyers purchasing a property under AED 5,000,000 typically qualify for up to 80% LTV, meaning a 20% minimum down payment. A second mortgaged property, or a property above AED 5,000,000, is usually capped at a lower LTV band by UAE Central Bank mortgage regulations, which raises the required down payment and, in turn, may reduce the property price you can reach even if your DBR headroom is unchanged. If you are buying your first home, our first-time buyer guide covers the process step by step.

Improving your maximum loan before you apply

If the number from the table above falls short of your target property, there are a handful of realistic levers rather than guesswork. Clearing a car loan or personal loan frees up DBR headroom directly — see the worked example in our existing loans guide. Reducing credit card limits (not just balances) lowers the 5%-of-limit assumption banks apply. A longer, well-documented UAE employment history and a clean Al Etihad Credit Bureau score can also shift you into a more favourable pricing band, occasionally improving the rate you are offered and therefore the loan size the same instalment supports.

Comparing banks widens your ceiling

Because the DBR calculation, income-counting policy and pricing band differ from bank to bank, the same salary can produce a meaningfully different maximum loan depending on who you ask. One lender might discount your bonus income by 50%, another by 30%; one might offer a 25-year term to age 65, another cap you at 60. Lenddoo compares 18+ UAE banks in parallel at AED 0 cost to you, so you see the highest genuine offer rather than the first number one bank quotes.

Pitfalls that shrink your real number

• Using gross package instead of countable income. Bonuses and allowances are often only partially counted — see the income breakdown above.
• Forgetting unused credit card limits count against you, even at zero balance, under the Debt Burden Ratio rules.
• Shopping with a single bank's number. Comparing across the panel with a pre-approval is the only way to see your real ceiling rather than one lender's conservative estimate.