Table of Contents
Frequently Asked Questions
1 What is a real estate mortgage consultancy in the UAE?
Real estate mortgage consultancy provides specialist advice to property buyers, investors, and corporates on mortgage products, bank selection, loan structuring, and rate negotiation across conventional and Islamic mortgages.
2 Does real estate mortgage consultancy require RERA approval?
Yes. Real estate mortgage consultancy requires pre-establishment approval from the Real Estate Regulatory Agency before the business license is issued, with consultants typically holding RERA-approved certifications.
3 What are typical UAE mortgage down payment requirements?
UAE Central Bank Mortgage Regulations require 20% down payment for UAE residents on first property up to AED 5M, 30% for non-residents, with higher requirements for second and subsequent properties.
4 What is Islamic mortgage in the UAE?
Islamic mortgage uses Sharia-compliant structures like ijara (lease-to-own) or murabaha (cost-plus sale) instead of conventional interest-based lending, offered by Dubai Islamic Bank, ADIB, and Emirates Islamic.
5 Who uses mortgage consultancy services?
First-time UAE property buyers, UAE residents and expatriates buying primary homes, property investors building multi-property portfolios, and corporates structuring property finance for commercial assets.
How to Start a Real Estate Mortgage Consultancy Business with Meydan Free Zone
Real estate mortgage consultancy is the advisory business of guiding buyers through property finance: comparing lenders, structuring the loan, and steering an application from pre-approval to drawdown. In Dubai it is a fast-growing niche, because the market has historically been cash-led and is now shifting steadily towards financing.
The numbers behind that shift are striking. Registered mortgage loans in Dubai reached an all-time high of 36,600 in 2024, a 30.2 per cent increase on the previous year, aligned with easing interest rates. 1
Activity has continued to build, with roughly 10,800 residential mortgage transactions worth AED 23.1 billion recorded in the first quarter of 2026, up 13.2 per cent in value year on year. 2 All of this sits within a property market that turned over AED 761 billion in 2024. 3
For advisers, rising mortgage penetration in a traditionally cash-dominant market means a widening pool of buyers who need guidance, making mortgage consultancy a timely activity to hold under a Meydan Free Zone business license, subject to the approval noted below.
Dubai's Shift Towards Mortgage Finance
Dubai has long been a cash-led property market, but registered home loans are climbing fast. The figures below show the momentum behind the mortgage advisory opportunity.
Sources: Cavendish Maxwell; Global Property Guide; Dubai Land Department
Who Is This Activity For?
6619.94 - Real Estate Mortgage Consultancy
Activity 6619.94 sits within the broader class covering activities auxiliary to financial services, which includes the activities of mortgage advisers and brokers. Within that class, this activity focuses on advising clients on property finance: assessing borrowing capacity, comparing products across lenders, and guiding the mortgage application through to approval.
The activity is advisory. It does not extend to lending money, underwriting loans, or acting as the bank. The consultant informs and arranges on the client's behalf, while the credit decision and the funds sit with the licensed lender, as the exclusions below make clear.
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It is important to note what mortgage consultancy does not cover. The activity is purely advisory and does not authorise the holder to lend money, underwrite mortgages, or take the credit decision, which remain with licensed banks and finance companies.
It also does not cover the brokerage of the property itself, or the valuation used to support a loan, both of which are separate licensed activities.
In short: if you are advising and arranging on the buyer's behalf, you are in. If you are lending the money, valuing the property, or brokering the sale, those are separate activities.
Compliance
THIRD-PARTY APPROVAL
This activity requires pre-approval from the Dubai Real Estate Regulatory Agency (RERA) before a business license can be issued by Meydan Free Zone. This license cannot be combined with other activities except those within RERA Activity Group 3.
ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING COMPLIANCE
This business activity is not subject to AML compliance requirements.
References
1 Cavendish Maxwell. Dubai Residential Market Performance 2024: registered loans reach 36,600.
2 Global Property Guide. UAE residential property market analysis: Q1 2026 mortgage transactions.
3 Dubai Land Department. Dubai's real estate sector records AED 761 billion in transactions in 2024.
