How to Verify a Dubai Developer Before You Buy (5 Checks)
Short answer: Run five checks before you pay anything: (1) confirm the developer is registered with RERA; (2) confirm the specific project is registered and has a RERA-approved escrow account; (3) check the project's reported completion percentage in the Dubai REST app; (4) examine the developer's delivered projects, not their pipeline; (5) read the grace period, force majeure and assignment clauses in the SPA.
Key takeaways
- All of this is free and public. The Dubai REST app and the DLD portal give you developer registration, project registration, escrow and completion data in minutes.
- Never accept a screenshot. Look the project up yourself using the RERA project number.
- Delivered projects are the only real evidence. An announced pipeline measures ambition, not capability.
- The escrow account number should appear on the sale and purchase agreement, and every payment should be made into it — never into a general company account.
- The grace period clause is where the real delivery risk sits: a twelve-month grace period is twelve months of accepted delay.
Check 1: Is the developer registered with RERA?
Every developer selling property in Dubai must be registered with the Real Estate Regulatory Agency, the regulatory arm of the Dubai Land Department. Registration is not a quality endorsement — it is a licence to operate, and its absence is disqualifying.
- Open the Dubai REST app or the DLD's public services portal.
- Search the developer by exact legal name — not the marketing brand, which often differs.
- Confirm the registration is active, not lapsed or suspended.
- Note the registered legal entity. You will want it to match the entity named as seller in the SPA.
That last step catches a surprising amount. If the brochure says one name, the SPA names a different company, and the RERA registration names a third, you need an explanation before you go further. Related entities are normal in development; unexplained ones are not.
Check 2: Is the project registered, and where is the escrow account?
Developer registration and project registration are separate things. A registered developer can market an unregistered project, and selling units in one is a breach.
| What to verify | Where | What good looks like |
|---|---|---|
| RERA project number | Dubai REST app / DLD portal | Exists, active, matches the marketed project |
| Escrow account | SPA and DLD records | A named, RERA-approved escrow account at a UAE bank |
| Payment destination | SPA payment schedule | All payments go into the escrow account |
| Land ownership | DLD records | The developer owns or controls the plot |
| Oqood registration | After booking | Your unit appears on the interim register within weeks |
The escrow point is the one to be inflexible about. Under Law No. 8 of 2007, buyer funds must go into a RERA-supervised escrow account and are released to the developer only against certified construction milestones. If you are asked to pay into a general company account, a personal account, or an overseas account, stop. There is no legitimate version of that request. We explain how the protection works in what happens if a Dubai developer delays or cancels a project.
Check 3: What is the actual completion percentage?
RERA tracks and publishes construction progress for registered projects. This is the single most useful number available to you, because it is independently reported rather than asserted by a sales adviser.
- Compare reported progress against the payment schedule. If you are being asked for a 50% instalment on a project reported at 15% complete, ask why.
- Check it again before each instalment. Progress that stops moving for two quarters is the earliest reliable warning sign of a stalling project.
- Prefer construction-linked payment plans over date-linked ones. If instalments are tied to verified milestones, a stalled project stops taking your money automatically.
- Visit the site if you can. Reported percentages are audited, but nothing substitutes for seeing whether there are cranes on the plot.
Check 4: What has the developer actually delivered?
This is the check that separates diligence from box-ticking, and it cannot be done in an app.
- List their completed projects — handed over, occupied, with owners living in them. Not launched, not announced, not “under construction”.
- Check delivery against original promised dates. A developer consistently six months late is a known quantity; one consistently three years late is a different proposition.
- Visit a completed project. Walk it. Look at the landscaping maturity, the common area finish, the state of the gatehouse. Build quality three years after handover tells you more than any showhome.
- Talk to owners. Community groups are candid, and snagging quality, service charge behaviour and responsiveness after handover are exactly the things they discuss.
- Check service charge history for their delivered communities in the DLD index. Steeply rising charges can signal an underfunded handover.
- Look at how they handled a problem. Every developer has had one. How they resolved it is the most informative thing you can learn.
For a smaller developer this is straightforward: the list is short and you can walk all of it. For a very large one, sample across price points. Scale is not the same as reliability — we set out the trade-offs in our comparison of UAE and international developers.
Check 5: What does the SPA actually say?
Four clauses carry nearly all the risk. Read these before the price.
| Clause | What to look for | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Anticipated completion & grace period | The stated date and the permitted extension | A 12-month grace period means no breach until a year past the advertised date |
| Force majeure | How broadly it is drafted | An expansive clause can absorb delays that are not truly outside the developer's control |
| Assignment / resale | The paid threshold and whether consent is discretionary | Determines whether you have an exit before handover — see our assignment guide |
| Specification variation | How much the developer may change without your consent | Some agreements permit substantial variation in materials, layout and area |
Also confirm the area tolerance — most SPAs permit a variance of a few percent between sold and delivered area, with a price adjustment mechanism. And check whether the warranty periods are stated: Dubai provides a one-year warranty on mechanical and electrical installations and ten years on structure.
Spending AED 6,000 to AED 10,000 on a conveyancer to read this properly, on a seven-figure purchase, is not a cost. It is the cheapest insurance in the transaction.
A 60-minute checklist
- Dubai REST: developer registered and active — 5 minutes
- Dubai REST: project registered, escrow account named — 5 minutes
- Dubai REST: reported completion percentage — 5 minutes
- Developer's delivered project list, cross-checked against original handover dates — 20 minutes
- Site visit or recent third-party photographs — varies
- SPA: grace period, force majeure, assignment, specification variation — 20 minutes
- Confirm every payment routes to the escrow account — 5 minutes
Any developer worth buying from will hand you the RERA project number and escrow details without hesitation, and will expect you to check them. Reluctance at this stage is itself the answer. For Selora Residences and Lua Residences, ask us and we will send the registration and escrow details directly.
Frequently asked questions
How do I check if a Dubai developer is registered with RERA?
Search the developer's exact legal name in the Dubai REST app or on the Dubai Land Department's public services portal, and confirm the registration is active. Match the registered legal entity against the seller named in the sale and purchase agreement — marketing brands often differ from the registered company.
How do I verify a Dubai off-plan project is legitimate?
Confirm three things independently in Dubai REST: the project has a RERA registration number, it has a RERA-approved escrow account, and the reported construction completion percentage is consistent with what you are being told. All payments must be made into the named escrow account.
What is an escrow account and why does it matter?
Under Dubai Law No. 8 of 2007, every registered off-plan project must have a RERA-supervised escrow account. Buyer funds are paid into it and released to the developer only against independently certified construction milestones. If you are asked to pay into any other account, do not proceed.
How can I check a developer's track record?
Look only at delivered, occupied projects — not announced or under-construction ones. Compare actual handover dates against originally promised dates, visit a completed community to see build quality three years on, talk to owners, and review the service charge history in the DLD index.
What should I look for in a Dubai off-plan contract?
Four clauses: the anticipated completion date together with the grace period, the scope of the force majeure provision, the assignment terms including the paid threshold, and how much specification variation the developer may make without your consent. Also check the area tolerance and the stated warranty periods.
How long does developer verification take?
About an hour, excluding a site visit. The Dubai REST checks on developer registration, project registration, escrow and completion percentage take around fifteen minutes in total; reviewing the delivered track record and the key SPA clauses takes the remaining forty.
Sources & further reading: Dubai Land Department · Dubai REST app · UAE Government portal
Written by Faizan Ahmed, Digital & SEO Lead, Swank Development. Last updated 1 September 2026. Figures are indicative and were verified against official UAE government sources at the time of writing; always confirm current fees with the Dubai Land Department or your conveyancer.
