How to check a developer’s record without trusting adverts

Adverts tell you what a developer wants you to see. Your decision deserves what is on the record. One of the strengths of the Dubai market is that a good deal of that record is public.

Step one: is the developer approved?

The Dubai Land Department publishes a list of real estate developers it has approved. You can open it on the Dubai Land Department website or in the Dubai REST app. The lookup is immediate. If a developer is not on it, I would ask why before going any further.

Step two: look at the project itself

The Dubai Land Department's Project Status page lets you search by project name or number. It shows whether the project is registered, its escrow bank, its start and completion dates, and inspection photos. The Dubai REST app also gives off-plan buyers the percentage of completion and the escrow account number.

Step three: look at what they have already delivered

This part is not a database; it is detective work, and it is the most revealing. Take three of the developer's earlier buildings and ask:

• Was it finished, and when? Compare the date promised with the date delivered.
• Does it look as it was sold? Visit, if you can, or ask someone you trust who lives or owns there.
• How is the building ageing, and are the owners content?
• Are there resale listings and rents in that building today? That tells you whether other people want to buy or live there.

Step four: ask the developer the plain questions

How many projects have you completed? Were any late, and why? Who holds the escrow account? May I speak to an existing owner? A good developer answers calmly and in writing.

For family offices and larger investors

For a larger commitment, I would put these checks into a short written due-diligence note that goes into your file: the date you checked, what the official sources showed, what you saw on a visit, and what you asked. Have your own counsel read the contract. If you are placing capital in more than one project, do the same for each and compare them side by side.

My view

Dubai gives you the tools. A few careful hours with them can tell you more than months of marketing. I enjoy this work, because the more carefully a buyer looks, the better the decision usually is.

If you would like to talk it through before you decide, you are welcome to contact me.

Sources: Dubai Land Department, Licensed Developers; Project Status Enquiry; Dubai REST (dubailand.gov.ae). Checked on 24 October 2026. Rules and fees change, so confirm for your own purchase.