The due diligence checklist before you reserve an off-plan unit in Dubai

A short checklist beats a long brochure

A developer's brochure is designed to sell you a lifestyle. A due diligence checklist is designed to protect your money. Both matter, but only one of them tells you whether a project is safe to reserve. Buyers who call Orven from Lagos, Casablanca or Toronto tend to ask the same six questions in a different order. Putting them in a fixed sequence, before you look at floor plans or renders, keeps the decision grounded in facts rather than in a well-lit photograph.

None of the six steps below requires a trip to Dubai. Each one can be completed from your phone or laptop, and an adviser can walk through every item with you on a single call.

1. Confirm the developer and the project are registered

Every legitimate off-plan project in Dubai is registered with the Real Estate Regulatory Agency, RERA, and the Dubai Land Department, DLD. Before anything else, check that the specific project you are looking at, not just the developer's name, has an active registration. This is a five-minute check, and it is the single most important filter for ruling out a project that should not be sold at all.

Read how to verify a developer and a project with the DLD for the exact steps.

2. Locate the escrow account for this project

Off-plan payments in Dubai are not paid to the developer directly. They go into a project-specific escrow account controlled by the DLD, and released to the developer only as construction milestones are certified. Before you transfer a single dirham, ask your adviser to confirm the escrow account reference tied to your unit and your contract, and cross-check it against the project's registration.

Read the escrow account explained for how the mechanism works end to end.

3. Read the payment plan against your own cash flow

A payment plan is not just a percentage split. It is a schedule of obligations you need to meet over the length of construction. Before reserving, list the payment milestones as they appear in the offer, and check that the schedule matches what you were told verbally. Prestige One projects in the Orven selection publish structures such as 20% on booking and 80% on handover for Coastal Haven, or 20% on booking, 40% during construction and 40% on handover for Hilton Residences. Other developers set their own terms, confirmed at contract stage.

4. Read the sales and purchase agreement before you sign

The brochure is marketing. The sales and purchase agreement, known as the SPA, is the document that actually binds you. It sets out the unit specification, the payment schedule, the resale conditions and what happens if either party is late. Read it in full, or have your adviser walk you through it clause by clause, before you sign anything.

Read what a SPA is in Dubai for what to expect in the document.

ORVEN PROPERTIES

Talk to an Orven adviser

Leave your number: an adviser calls you back or replies on WhatsApp, in your language. No commitment.

Your name

Phone (WhatsApp)

Budget (optional)Best time to call (your local time)

5. Check the district and the surrounding selection

A project sits inside a district, and the district shapes what kind of tenant or resale buyer it will attract later. Dubai Islands, Dubai Maritime City, Jumeirah Garden City, Meydan Horizon and Dubai Sports City each have a different character and a different mix of projects in the Orven selection. Comparing the district, not only the unit, helps you judge whether the location fits your own plan for the property.

6. Put the full cost on paper, not just the unit price

Add the DLD registration fee, the Oqood registration for an off-plan sale, and the developer's administrative charges to the unit price before you commit. None of these figures should surprise you at the reservation stage; ask for them in writing.

Checklist item	Where it is confirmed
Developer and project RERA/DLD registration	DLD public records, your adviser
Escrow account reference	Sale offer, cross-checked with the project registration
Payment plan milestones	Sales offer, confirmed in the SPA
SPA terms, including resale and delay clauses	The signed SPA itself
District and surrounding selection	Project page, district guide
Full cost including DLD and Oqood fees	Written estimate from your adviser

Where Orven fits into this checklist

Every step above is one Orven runs before a unit is ever presented to an investor, and one we run again with you before you reserve. Send your budget and the project you are considering on WhatsApp at +971 52 776 1939, or write to sales@orvenproperties.com, and an adviser will go through this checklist with you line by line before any payment moves.

FAQ

Can I complete this checklist without visiting Dubai? Yes. Every item, from checking the RERA registration to reading the SPA, can be done remotely with documents sent by your adviser.

What is the single most important item on this list? Confirming that the specific project, not just the developer, is registered with RERA and the DLD. Everything else assumes that base fact is true.

Does Orven charge for this due diligence review? No. Orven is remunerated by the developer, and the checklist review is part of the advisory service provided before you reserve.

What if the SPA differs from what I was told verbally? The SPA is the binding document. Any difference between it and a verbal description should be raised with your adviser and resolved in writing before you sign.