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United Arab Emirates · AED

Ras Al Khaimahreal estate

Ras Al Khaimah is the northern emirate being repriced by one project: the Wynn integrated resort on Al Marjan Island, the first licensed casino in the UAE.

DubaiAbu DhabiSharjah
Freehold zones
RERA escrow
3D map
4% / 2%transfer fee: Dubai vs the other emirates
0%annual property tax — the service charge is the carry
RERA escrowwhere off-plan money is legally required to sit
Ejaritenancy registration that makes a lease enforceable
What a purchase really costs

AED 1,500,000 home in Ras Al Khaimah

Land Department transfer fee (2%)
AED 30,000
Trustee office & title issuance
AED 2,250
NOC and developer admin
AED 1,500
Agency, buyer side (2% + 5% VAT)
AED 31,500
Cash needed at the trustee office
AED 1,565,250

≈ +4.4% over the price. Dubai charges 4% at the Land Department; Abu Dhabi and the northern emirates charge 2%. There is no annual property tax, which is why the service charge — quoted in dirhams per square foot and revised yearly — is the number that actually decides a yield. Off-plan money belongs in a RERA escrow account; if there is no escrow, there is no deal.

Rentals run on rules

The rent side, in three lines

  • Every tenancy must be registered on Ejari — an unregistered contract has no standing at the rental dispute centre.
  • The RERA rental index sets how far a landlord may raise on renewal, and 90 days’ written notice is required to change any term.
  • Rent is still commonly paid in one to four cheques, and DEWA plus district cooling sit outside the quoted rent.

Service charge is the second mortgage nobody quotes. Ask for the per-square-foot figure and the last two years of revisions.

Cities

Four emirates, four rulebooks

Freehold is granted zone by zone and the transfer fee changes at the emirate border. Dubai’s DLD is not Abu Dhabi’s DMT, and a Sharjah title is a different instrument again.

Al Marjan Island land values and off-plan launch pricing moved sharply after the Wynn announcement, with the resort targeted to open in 2027. Underwrite that as a construction-and-opening schedule with execution risk, not as a completed amenity.

RAK offers genuine foreign freehold in designated areas at a 2% transfer fee against Dubai’s 4%, and the emirate has its own municipality registration rather than the DLD. Al Hamra and Mina Al Arab are the established communities; the Hajar mountains and Jebel Jais are the non-beach draw.

Liquidity is the constraint. This is a thinner market than Dubai in both directions — fewer buyers on the way in, and fewer on the way out.

FAQ

Can foreigners own freehold here?
Yes, in designated investment areas, registered with RAK Municipality. Confirm the plot designation before you pay a reservation fee.
Is the casino actually happening?
The licence and the Wynn Al Marjan project are real and under construction, targeted for 2027. Treat the opening date and the demand it implies as a forecast, not a delivered fact.

All markets: sivrce.com · Georgia marketplace: sivrce.ge · Prices and availability are published only when a verified listing exists. Market currency: AED.