Property budget converter
What your pounds, dollars or euros buy after costs.
Highest purchase price you can afford
AED 1,818,832
From £400,000 after fees and a 3% currency buffer
- Budget in dirhams£400,000 × 4.88
- AED 1,952,000
- Currency buffer
- − AED 58,560
- Buying costsAbout 4.1% of the price in Dubai
- − AED 74,608
- Left for the property
- AED 1,818,832
Off-plan buyers pay in stages, so only part of this leaves your account at the start. Specialist currency providers usually beat high-street bank rates on large transfers, and can fix a rate for future stage payments.
See developments in this budgetYour figures
Everything you have for the purchase, including fees.
More options
Indicative rate from 12 November 2026. Enter the rate your provider quotes.
Stage payments fall over years; this guards against the rate moving against you.
Rules last reviewed 12 November 2026. Figures are estimates for planning, not quotations or advice.
Convert a budget in pounds, dollars or euros into a realistic UAE purchase price in dirhams after buying costs and a currency buffer.
What this calculator assumes
Property in the UAE is priced in dirhams (AED). The dirham is pegged to the US dollar at 3.6725, so for dollar buyers the price is effectively fixed. For sterling and euro buyers it moves with the dollar, and on an off-plan purchase the payments are spread over years.
The converter works backwards from what you have:
- Converts your budget to dirhams at the rate you enter.
- Holds back a currency buffer against the rate moving before later payments fall due.
- Sets aside buying costs for the emirate and purchase type you choose.
- Shows the highest purchase price that leaves.
Getting the rate right. High-street banks typically add a margin of several percent to the exchange rate on large transfers. Specialist currency providers are usually cheaper and can fix a rate today for stage payments months or years ahead. Whichever you use, UAE developers and banks will ask for evidence of where the money came from, so keep the paper trail.
Questions buyers ask
Is the dirham pegged to the dollar?
Yes. The UAE dirham has been pegged to the US dollar at 3.6725 since 1997. Against sterling and the euro it moves as the dollar does.
How do I pay for a Dubai property from the UK?
By international transfer to the developer's escrow account (off-plan) or by manager's cheque through a UAE account on a resale. Most buyers use a specialist currency provider rather than their bank, and must show the source of the funds.
Can I fix the exchange rate for future stage payments?
Yes. Currency providers offer forward contracts that lock a rate for a future date, usually for a deposit. It removes the risk of the rate moving against you, and the chance of it moving in your favour.
Want these numbers for a real development?
Send us the development or budget and we'll run the figures on live prices.
- Current price list and availability, direct from the developer
- No fee to you on off-plan purchases: the developer pays us
- One salaried adviser, not on commission, from first call to handover
