Verify the developer, project registration, permission for off-plan sales and the seller's authority through DLD. Check the unit and plot identifiers and official construction progress. Confirm the procedure for recording your purchase in the interim register, commonly through Oqood.
Check the project's own escrow account before transferring purchase instalments. A broker must not divert the purchase price into its own account. Keep receipts identifying your unit and the payment purpose; escrow regulation is not an unconditional investment or refund guarantee.
Review the net area and plans, total price and charges, payment milestones, handover and extension clauses, specification changes, default consequences and dispute forum. Put material promises in the signed documents and assess restrictive or unclear terms before accepting them.
A practical next step
Obtain the complete sale agreement and attachments before paying a reservation amount. Have the regulatory records, payment destination and key contract obligations checked together, with unresolved points answered in writing.
Official sources
Know Your Rights — Real Estate Investors in Dubai
Executive Council Resolution No. 6 of 2010 — registration, marketing and escrow payments
Law No. 8 of 2007 — developer registration and project escrow accounts