Guide
Six questions to ask an agent before you sign anything
Choosing an agent in Dubai is mostly a paperwork decision dressed up as a personality one. These are the questions that separate the two.
The agent you pick matters less than the arrangement you agree with them, and the arrangement is usually settled in a conversation nobody writes down. These six questions move it onto paper.
1. Which form are we signing, and who does it bind?
Dubai brokerage runs on standard forms. There is one for the relationship between a seller and their broker, one between a buyer and theirs, and one between two brokers cooperating on a deal.
Knowing which you are signing tells you who is acting for you. It is entirely normal for two brokers to be involved. It is not normal to be unclear about which of them is representing your interests, and the form answers that.
2. Is this exclusive, and for how long?
An exclusive listing gives one agency the sole right to market your property for a period. It is not a trap — an agency that knows it will be paid tends to spend money on photography, staging and advertising, and it concentrates responsibility in one place.
What matters is that the term is finite and stated, that you know what happens at the end, and that you know what performance you are entitled to expect during it. An indefinite exclusive is an arrangement with only one exit.
3. What is the commission, when is it earned, and who pays it?
Two per cent on a sale is the common convention, and leasing is usually a share of the annual rent. Neither is a fixed rate. Both are negotiable, and a professional will discuss it directly.
The more useful question is when it is earned. On exchange, on transfer, on the buyer being introduced? And if a buyer introduced during your exclusive returns three months after it ends, what then? That last one is where disagreements actually happen.
4. Who handles the transfer, and what will it cost in total?
Transfer happens at a registration trustee office, and there are costs beyond the price: the Land Department’s transfer fee, trustee fees, agency commission, and mortgage-related charges where applicable.
Ask for the total, itemised, in writing, before you commit. Any competent agent produces this quickly because they do it every week. Reluctance is data.
5. What is your registration number, and are you the person I will deal with?
Registered agents carry a card. It takes a moment to ask.
The second half matters as much. Being courted by a senior name and handed to someone else after signing is a common and legitimate arrangement — teams exist — but you should know it is happening before you sign, not after.
6. What will you tell me that I will not like?
Not a trick question. An agent who has looked seriously at your property or your budget knows where the difficulty is: the layout that limits the buyer pool, the service charge that will surprise people, the community where the resale market is thin.
An agent willing to say the awkward thing early is an agent whose optimism means something later. One who has nothing but good news has either not looked or is not going to tell you.
None of this requires distrust. It requires writing things down while everyone is still pleased with each other, which is the only time it is easy.
What this drew on
RERA standard agency forms and Dubai Land Department guidance on brokerage arrangements — checked August 5, 2026. Commission levels are market convention rather than a fixed rate, and are negotiable. Confirm current form requirements with the DLD.