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Palm Jumeirah AED 3,559/sqftDubai Maritime City AED 3,157/sqftDowntown Dubai AED 2,884/sqftDubai Islands AED 2,772/sqftDubai Creek Harbour AED 2,563/sqftBusiness Bay AED 2,502/sqftDubai Marina AED 2,478/sqftDubai Hills Estate AED 2,458/sqftJumeirah Lakes Towers AED 2,321/sqftMohammed Bin Rashid City AED 2,098/sqftAl Jaddaf AED 2,051/sqftJumeirah Village Triangle AED 1,658/sqftDubai South AED 1,652/sqftArjan AED 1,584/sqftJumeirah Village Circle AED 1,488/sqftDubai Sports City AED 1,328/sqftALL DLD SALES · OFF-PLAN + EXISTINGPalm Jumeirah AED 3,559/sqftDubai Maritime City AED 3,157/sqftDowntown Dubai AED 2,884/sqftDubai Islands AED 2,772/sqftDubai Creek Harbour AED 2,563/sqftBusiness Bay AED 2,502/sqftDubai Marina AED 2,478/sqftDubai Hills Estate AED 2,458/sqftJumeirah Lakes Towers AED 2,321/sqftMohammed Bin Rashid City AED 2,098/sqftAl Jaddaf AED 2,051/sqftJumeirah Village Triangle AED 1,658/sqftDubai South AED 1,652/sqftArjan AED 1,584/sqftJumeirah Village Circle AED 1,488/sqftDubai Sports City AED 1,328/sqftALL DLD SALES · OFF-PLAN + EXISTING
DLD · MEDIAN 12M TO OCT 2026

Distress Deal

DISTRESS DEAL: 2-BR IN DESIGN QUARTER - TOWER A

Available
Listed 23 October 2026

Available when we last checked. The asking price shown is the one published when the listing was added on 23 October 2026, and it is not re-checked against the market automatically. Confirm availability and price with us before you act on it.

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The numbers

Payment breakdown

Total cost for buyerAED 3,055,665The unit price plus the transfer fees and commission — the whole commitment, not the headline.
Unit priceAED 2,875,000
Fees and commissionAED 180,665
Step 01Due at transferAED 1,905,665Payable when the unit transfers to the buyer.
  • Payment to sellerAED 1,725,000
  • DLD Transfer fee (4% + 40 AED)AED 115,040
  • Trustee Office FeeAED 5,250
  • Buyer's Agency Commission (2% + VAT)AED 60,375
  • Total on transferAED 1,905,665
Step 02Payable to Meraas after transferAED 1,150,000The balance of the payment plan, which the buyer takes over.
  • On HandoverAED 1,150,000
  • Total remaining payment planAED 1,150,000

Ask us to walk through this schedule, or to confirm the current balance with the developer before terms are agreed.

Ask about these terms

Unit details

Property type
Apartment
View
Community
Balcony
Yes

Distress Deal

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

OVERVIEW

The property is a two-bedroom apartment in Design Quarter - Tower A, a Meraas development in Dubai Design District. The stated size is 1,184 sq.ft. The unit has a community view and a balcony, and handover is scheduled for Q1 2027. The layout has a living area, a dining area, a kitchen, two bathrooms, a utility room and an entrance foyer.

The asking price is AED 2,875,000. The original price plus the 4% DLD fee is AED 2,990,000, so the reduction is AED 115,000, or 3.8% below original price. On the stated size the price works out at AED 2,428 per sq.ft, against AED 2,525 per sq.ft at the original price plus DLD. At transfer the buyer pays AED 1,905,665, of which AED 1,725,000 goes to the seller. The balance of AED 1,150,000 falls due to the developer on handover, with no instalment before it. The total cost for the buyer, including every transfer fee, is AED 3,055,665.

LOCATION & TRANSPORT

Design Quarter sits on the southern side of Dubai Design District, beside Al Khail Road. The district lies between Al Khail Road and the Dubai Creek. Downtown Dubai and Burj Khalifa lie to the west, with Business Bay between them and the district. Meydan and its race track lie to the south, across Al Khail Road.

By car, Al Khail Road gives direct access to the wider city in both directions. To the south-west it runs towards Al Quoz and Dubai Hills Estate. To the north-east it links to Ras Al Khor and the routes towards Dubai International Airport. The Al Ain - Dubai Road and Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road connect the area with the outer communities.

AMENITIES & SURROUNDING

Dubai Design District is a business district for the creative industries. Its streets hold design studios, offices, galleries, shops, cafes and restaurants. The district also hosts design and fashion events during the year.

Design Quarter groups residential towers and mid-rise buildings around a shared landscaped podium. Residents have planted gardens with shaded seating and paved walkways, a swimming pool deck and outdoor sports courts. A residents' lounge offers space to work, meet and play games.

Ras Al Khor Wildlife Sanctuary, a protected wetland known for its flamingos, lies along the creek to the east. The Dubai Mall, the Dubai Fountain and Burj Khalifa are a short drive to the west. Dubai Hills Estate Mall and Meydan add further retail, dining and leisure options to the south-west and south.

MARKET

The reduction is measured against the original price plus the 4% DLD fee. On that basis the apartment is offered at 3.8% below original price, a reduction of AED 115,000. On the stated size of 1,184 sq.ft, the asking price is AED 2,428 per sq.ft. The original price plus DLD works out at AED 2,525 per sq.ft, a gap of AED 97 per sq.ft.

The DLD transfer fee is AED 115,040, at 4% plus AED 40. The original price excluding DLD is AED 2,875,000, the same as the asking price. The fee is therefore the same whether it is struck on the original price or on the asking price. The reduction equals the 4% DLD element of the original price. The trustee office fee is AED 5,250 and the buyer's agency commission, at 2% plus VAT, is AED 60,375. Those items and the AED 1,725,000 payment to the seller make up the AED 1,905,665 due at transfer. The payment to the seller and the balance on handover together equal the asking price.

A buyer comparing this unit with other off-plan two-bedroom units in the district should do so on the same per sq.ft basis.

CONCLUSION

The apartment suits a buyer who wants a two-bedroom unit with a balcony in Dubai Design District, from Meraas, with a single payment left to make on handover in Q1 2027. It also suits an investor who prefers to commit most of the capital at transfer and hold until completion, with an entry price 3.8% below original price.

AED 1,905,665 is paid at transfer and AED 1,150,000 on handover, for a total cost of AED 3,055,665. The price on the stated size of 1,184 sq.ft is AED 2,428 per sq.ft. Before terms are agreed, a current statement of account should be obtained from the developer to confirm the amount paid to date and the balance outstanding.

Location

DESIGN QUARTER - TOWER A — Dubai Design District

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Illustrative model

Scenario modeller

Set your own assumptions and see how DISTRESS DEAL: 2-BR IN DESIGN QUARTER - TOWER A behaves as a cash purchase, the same purchase mortgaged, or a capital-only resale.

Listed
23 October 2026

The date this listing was added to our records. The asking price below is the one published then, and is not re-checked against the market automatically — confirm it with us before relying on it.

Below original price
3.8%

As stated on this listing: the asking price measured against the original purchase price recorded for this unit. It is not a discount to current market value and not a valuation — a unit priced below what it originally sold for may still be at or above what comparable units achieve today. Check the registered comparables before treating the gap as equity. It is not used in any calculation below.

Handover
Q1 2027

As stated on this listing. Rent cannot start before handover, so on an incomplete unit the early years of the schedule below are holding cost only.

Purchase

Seeded from this page. Change it to your figure.

Drives the service charge only.

Rent and service charge both start here.

Holding & income

Your figure. We have not assumed one.

0% holds rent flat. It may be negative.

Your figure — we publish none. A month vacant plus re-letting time is roughly 8%, if that fits your building.

Your figure — we publish none. Letting fees and routine repairs.

Your figure — we publish none. Look your building up on Mollak — rates run AED 3 to AED 30+.

Acquisition costs

4% is the Dubai standard.

Buyer-side. 5% VAT added.

Your figure — we publish none. The trustee tariff is tiered and the admin lines vary by office; ask your trustee office for the total, and add your NOC and any legal quote.

Exit

1 to 40 years.

0% by default: we publish no price forecasts.

5% VAT added automatically.

Total cash investedThe purchase price plus every cost of getting the keys. It is the denominator of the ROI, ROE and IRR figures.
AED 3.05M
Price plus every acquisition cost
Illustrative exit price
AED 2.88M
After 5 yr at 0.0% p.a.
Total profit, capital onlyCapital movement over the hold, less every purchase and sale cost and the service charge. It carries no rental income at all, because no rent has been set.
—
Set service charge, maintenance & management, vacancy allowance above
Net yieldNet operating income (rent collected less management, maintenance and service charge) divided by the purchase price. It cannot be calculated until a gross annual rent is set.
—
Set a gross annual rent
Cash out, and cash back over 5 years
Cash out at t0AED 3,050,375
Cash back, years 1–5—

Set service charge, maintenance & management, vacancy allowance above to see cash back — until then this figure would be assuming zero for them.

Cash required at completion
Purchase priceAED 2,875,000
DLD transfer fee (4%)AED 115,000
Agency fee (2%)AED 57,500
VAT on agency fee (5%)AED 2,875
Conveyancing, trustee & adminAED 0
Total cash investedAED 3,050,375

ROI and IRR are calculated on this figure: the price plus every cost of getting the keys.

No rental evidence is held for this unit. The rent figure is yours to set — we have not assumed one. Until you enter a gross annual rent, the yield, ROI/ROE and IRR figures reflect capital movement and costs only.

Annual operating position
Gross annual rentAED 0
Vacancy allowance (not set)—
Maintenance & management (not set)—
Service charge (1,184 sq ft at a rate not yet set)—
Net operating income—

Figures marked “—” need service charge, maintenance & management, vacancy allowance entered above — we do not compute them on an assumed zero.

Cash-flow schedule — the 5-year figures the IRR is solved from (incomplete, see note)
YearNet operating incomeSale proceeds, netNet cash flow
0 · today——−AED 3,050,375
1AED 0—AED 0
2AED 0—AED 0
3AED 0—AED 0
4AED 0—AED 0
5AED 0AED 2,814,625AED 2,814,625
Years 1–5AED 0AED 2,814,625AED 2,814,625
Less the year-0 outflow of AED 3,050,375 → total profit−AED 235,750

Exit at year 5: illustrative sale price AED 2,875,000 less selling costs AED 60,375 = AED 2,814,625 net. The final column is the schedule the IRR is solved from. Rent is held flat in nominal terms — the rent-growth field is at 0% — as is the service charge, so no inflation is assumed on either side. This audit table is arithmetic, so every row must resolve to a number — but service charge, maintenance & management, vacancy allowance are not set above, and the figures here currently assume zero for them. Nothing on this table should be read as a result until you set them; the headline tiles above withhold theirs for exactly this reason.

Sensitivity — the same purchase at −5% to +5% exit growth
Exit growthExit priceTotal profitROIIRR
−5% p.a.AED 2.22M———
−3% p.a.AED 2.47M———
0% p.a.your figureAED 2.88M———
3% p.a.AED 3.33M———
5% p.a.AED 3.67M———

Each row re-runs the whole model with only the exit growth rate changed, over the same 5-year hold. The 0% and negative rows are not a worst case — they are simply what the same purchase returns if prices do not rise. Dubai prices have fallen in the past and can fall again. The return columns are shown as “—” until a gross annual rent is set; the total profit column reflects capital movement, purchase and sale costs and the service charge only.

Method
Handover
The date the unit is handed over, set in quarters from purchase. Gross rent, the vacancy allowance, maintenance and management, and the service charge all start there and not before — an unbuilt unit cannot be let and is not billed. The year handover falls in gets the exact fraction it is entitled to, not a rounded whole year. Capital growth is not treated this way: it compounds from today across the whole hold, because an off-plan unit can be sold before it completes. Where the holding period ends before handover, there is no operating income anywhere in the schedule and the whole return is capital movement less costs.
Gross yield
Gross annual rent ÷ purchase price. Before every cost. Where handover is in the future this is a stabilised full year from handover — a rate on the price, not a figure reduced by the construction period. The schedule shows what each year actually books.
Net yield
(Rent collected after the vacancy allowance − maintenance and management − service charge) ÷ purchase price. Stabilised on the same basis as the gross yield.
Rent growth
Compound annual movement in gross rent, applied from handover and stepping at each anniversary of it, which is when a tenancy renews. It may be negative. It does not touch the service charge, which is held flat in nominal terms.
ROI
Total profit over the whole hold ÷ total cash invested (price + all acquisition costs). Unlevered. Not an annual rate.
ROE
Total profit over the whole hold ÷ equity contributed (deposit + all acquisition and finance costs), after debt service. Levered. Not an annual rate.
Cash-on-cash return
Year-one operating cash flow, after debt service where there is a mortgage, ÷ cash invested. Reported separately from ROI/ROE and never merged with it. Year one means the first year of the schedule as it stands: where that year falls before handover it carries no rent, so on a mortgaged off-plan purchase the figure is negative — that is the year you fund out of pocket, and it is shown rather than smoothed away.
IRR
The annualised rate that discounts the dated cash-flow schedule above to a net present value of zero, solved numerically. Where the schedule has no sign change, or the solver does not converge on a single meaningful rate, we print “—” rather than substitute a simpler annualised-return figure.

Email my results

We’ll send this scenario — your assumptions and the figures they produce — to your inbox.

Set service charge, maintenance & management, vacancy allowance above and we can email you this scenario. Until then every headline figure reads “—”, because the model would otherwise be assuming zero for them — and we publish no figure for them.

An illustrative model, not a forecast, a valuation, an offer or investment advice. Every figure is generated from the assumptions on this page — some yours, the rest stated defaults, not promises. Rents, service charges, fees, vacancy, handover dates, financing terms and sale prices vary by unit and over time; past prices are not a guide to future prices. Returns are not guaranteed and capital is at risk.

Mortgage availability, loan-to-value, rate and term are subject to lender criteria and underwriting; nothing here indicates that finance will be offered. Figures exclude any tax payable in your country of residence — take independent financial, tax and legal advice before committing. Mitchell's Commercial Real Estate is a trading brand; the RERA-licensed broker is Stephen James Mitchell, BRN 68593.

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A discounted unit is bought the same way any other is. The questions are just sharper. These are our own guides and articles on buying from overseas, taking on a resale or an off-plan assignment, and what the purchase costs.

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