Is there an annual property tax in Dubai?

No. There is no annual property tax and no tax on rental income for individual owners. The recurring costs are operational: service charges, cooling, maintenance, insurance and management. Tenanted properties also carry the 5% housing fee on annual rent, billed through DEWA, but the tenant pays that, not the owner.

What does it cost per year to hold an apartment in Dubai?

For a typical AED 1.5 to 2.5M apartment: service charges of AED 10,000 to 27,000 depending on the building, maintenance of AED 3,000 to 15,000 depending on its age, landlord insurance of AED 1,000 to 2,500, and management at 5 to 8% of rent if you use it. Added up, that is roughly 1.5 to 3% of the property's value a year, before any mortgage costs.

Who pays for chiller, the landlord or the tenant?

It depends on the building and on the contract. In many district-cooled towers the tenant registers with the cooling provider and pays for what they use. In some buildings the capacity charge is attached to the unit, which makes it the owner's bill. Find out before you buy, because owner-paid cooling can take several thousand dirhams a year off the yield of a studio or one-bed.

How much should I budget for maintenance?

A workable rule is about 0.5% of the property's value a year for newer stock, rising to 1.5% once a building is past its first decade. Air conditioning units, water heaters and white goods account for most of it. An annual maintenance contract for an apartment usually costs AED 2,000 to 4,500 and turns surprise bills into scheduled ones.

What's the most underestimated cost of ownership?

Vacancy. One empty month costs 8.3% of the year's rent, which is more than most owners spend on maintenance all year. After that comes the gap in service charges between one building and the next, which you pay every year you hold.

Is it worth owning property in Dubai once the costs are in?

Often, yes, but the answer depends on net rental yield rather than the figure on the brochure. Take off service charges, maintenance, insurance, management and an allowance for vacancy and the gross number shrinks by a fair margin. A building with modest charges, held for years and ideally managed yourself, is where the sums work. A tower with high charges and frequent tenant turnover is where they do not.

What owning a Dubai property costs each year.

No property tax does not mean no costs. This is the full annual ledger for a Dubai property: the one to read before you buy, and the one to go back over every year afterwards.

Dubai charges no annual property tax and no personal tax on rental income, but holding a property still costs roughly 1.5% to 3% of its value every year. That covers service charges, maintenance, insurance, and management if you use it. The cost owners underestimate most is vacancy: one empty month is 8.3% of a full year of rent.

In short

Dubai has no annual property tax and no personal tax on rental income. The costs of holding are operational, and they add up.
Budget roughly 1.5 to 3% of the property's value a year for service charges, maintenance, insurance and management.
Vacancy costs more than any of them: each empty month is 8.3% of the year's rent.
The same apartment can cost AED 9,000 or more a year extra in a high-charge tower than in a modest one. Check Mollak before you buy, and once a year after that.

The idea

Dubai is sold on what it does not charge: no property tax, no income tax on rent. Both are true, and they are half the ledger. Owners who know the other half choose better buildings, set better rents, and are not caught out when the invoices arrive in March.

The annual ledger

Typical holding costs for a Dubai apartment, 2026

Cost	Typical range / year
Service charges (Mollak)	AED 10,000 to 27,000
Maintenance & repairs	AED 3,000 to 15,000
Landlord insurance	AED 1,000 to 2,500
Management (if used, 5 to 8% of rent)	AED 5,000 to 12,000
Owner-paid cooling (building-dependent)	AED 0 to 8,000
Vacancy (per empty month)	8.3% of annual rent

Indicative ranges compiled June 2026 for a typical AED 1.5 to 2.5M apartment. Your building's Mollak rate and your own contracts decide the figures that apply to you.

Service charges: fixed, set per building, and not up for negotiation.
For most apartment owners this is the largest line. It is set per square foot and invoiced through Mollak. Our service charge guide explains what a normal rate looks like and how to challenge a budget that is out of line.
Maintenance: small bills until they arrive together.
An AC compressor, a water heater, a washing machine: each is a four-figure bill, and in a building of one age they tend to fail in the same few years. Older stock needs money set aside for this rather than hope.
Vacancy and turnover: the cost between tenants.
Repainting, deep cleaning, listing fees, and the empty weeks themselves. Pricing a relisting correctly does more for your annual return than any fee you might negotiate down.
The mortgage, if you have one.
Interest, the life cover the bank insists on, and valuation and processing fees when you set it up. Keep these separate from the property's own running costs; they belong in a cash-on-cash calculation, not in the yield.

A full year on one unit

Here is the whole ledger for one case: a 750 sq ft one-bed in JVC at the 2026 medians (value AED 960,000, rent AED 72,000), owned by someone who lives abroad and uses a manager.

Twelve months of ownership: JVC one-bed, 750 sq ft, managed

Line	AED / year
Rent collected	72,000
Service charges (750 × AED 14)	−10,500
Management fee (6%)	−4,320
Maintenance contract + one callout	−3,200
Landlord insurance	−1,100
Vacancy allowance (2 weeks averaged)	−2,770
Owner keeps	50,110
Net yield on AED 960,000	5.2%

Service charge at AED 14/sq ft. Management at 6% of rent. Vacancy allowance of two weeks a year, averaged over a typical two-year tenancy. Compiled June 2026.

The brochure said 7.5%. The owner banks 5.2%, and nothing went wrong that year: no burst pipe, no bounced cheque, no dispute. This is what an ordinary, well-run year looks like once every line is counted. An owner who lives locally and manages the unit themselves keeps the management fee, so the same year nets about AED 54,430, or 5.7%, and a shorter void between tenants lifts it further. The same unit is a different investment depending on who holds it.

Mulki keeps this ledger up to date for each unit you own, with your Mollak charges, rent and vacancy record, and the net yield they produce, measured against your area from DLD data.

Indicative ranges, reviewed June 2026. Not financial advice.

Questions

Is there an annual property tax in Dubai?: No. There is no annual property tax and no tax on rental income for individual owners. The recurring costs are operational: service charges, cooling, maintenance, insurance and management. Tenanted properties also carry the 5% housing fee on annual rent, billed through DEWA, but the tenant pays that, not the owner.
What does it cost per year to hold an apartment in Dubai?: For a typical AED 1.5 to 2.5M apartment: service charges of AED 10,000 to 27,000 depending on the building, maintenance of AED 3,000 to 15,000 depending on its age, landlord insurance of AED 1,000 to 2,500, and management at 5 to 8% of rent if you use it. Added up, that is roughly 1.5 to 3% of the property's value a year, before any mortgage costs.
Who pays for chiller, the landlord or the tenant?: It depends on the building and on the contract. In many district-cooled towers the tenant registers with the cooling provider and pays for what they use. In some buildings the capacity charge is attached to the unit, which makes it the owner's bill. Find out before you buy, because owner-paid cooling can take several thousand dirhams a year off the yield of a studio or one-bed.
How much should I budget for maintenance?: A workable rule is about 0.5% of the property's value a year for newer stock, rising to 1.5% once a building is past its first decade. Air conditioning units, water heaters and white goods account for most of it. An annual maintenance contract for an apartment usually costs AED 2,000 to 4,500 and turns surprise bills into scheduled ones.
What's the most underestimated cost of ownership?: Vacancy. One empty month costs 8.3% of the year's rent, which is more than most owners spend on maintenance all year. After that comes the gap in service charges between one building and the next, which you pay every year you hold.
Is it worth owning property in Dubai once the costs are in?: Often, yes, but the answer depends on net rental yield rather than the figure on the brochure. Take off service charges, maintenance, insurance, management and an allowance for vacancy and the gross number shrinks by a fair margin. A building with modest charges, held for years and ideally managed yourself, is where the sums work. A tower with high charges and frequent tenant turnover is where they do not.

Mulki keeps the ledger for every unit you own, all year round.

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What owning a Dubai property costs each year.

In short

The idea

The annual ledger

Service charges: fixed, set per building, and not up for negotiation.

Maintenance: small bills until they arrive together.

Vacancy and turnover: the cost between tenants.

The mortgage, if you have one.

A full year on one unit

Questions

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