Your first home in Dubai, priced and checked.
Moving to Dubai means paying a year's rent in a few cheques, a deposit, an agency fee and DEWA before you get the keys, often for a flat you've only seen in photos. We check every home against registered Ejari rents and its DLD permit, film viewings, and read the contract before you hand over a cheque. Fixed price. We work for you, not the landlord.
Collected rents
What the latest ads are asking in Dubai.
From 42 listings collected by 2026-10-30. A research snapshot of asking rents, not an offer of a home.
Why it's hard
Renting in Dubai is fast, cash-heavy and easy to get wrong.
Rents are quoted per year and paid in one to four post-dated cheques. On top of that come a deposit, an agency fee, Ejari and DEWA. Asking rents vary widely for the same tower, and fake listings target people who are still abroad.
A year of rent, upfront
Fewer cheques usually means a lower rent, but your salary arrives monthly. We show the real move-in cost of each home (first cheque, deposit, agency fee, Ejari, DEWA) and look for landlords who accept more cheques.
Is this a fair rent?
We compare each asking rent with the average of new Ejari-registered contracts for the same community and size, and with the rent you could be held to at renewal under the RERA rental index rules.
Fake ads and booking fees
Dubai Police warn about ads priced below market that ask for a booking fee before a viewing. Every home we send carries a DLD advertising permit, and you never pay anyone before a viewing and a contract you've read.
How it works
From first call to keys.
You make the decisions. We do the searching, checking, visiting and paperwork, and you can follow every step.
Intake call
30 minutes on budget, office, commute by metro or car, communities, move-in date and how many cheques you can write. We also check your visa and Emirates ID timing, because Ejari and DEWA need them.
Your shortlist
8–12 live homes with a DLD permit, each scored against your brief and priced against registered Ejari rents, with the full move-in cost worked out.
Filmed viewings
A scout visits your favourites, live or recorded: light, noise, AC, chiller or chiller-free, parking, the walk to the metro.
Contract check, then keys
Before you sign we read the tenancy contract and addendum in plain English: cheques, deposit, maintenance, notice periods, and what the landlord can raise at renewal. Then Ejari, DEWA and keys.
On your own
- Scroll Property Finder, Bayut and dubizzle for weeks
- Guess whether an asking rent is fair
- Pay a booking fee to someone you've never met
- Discover chiller and DEWA costs after you sign
- Sign a contract and addendum you haven't read
With Settle
- One shortlist that matches your brief
- Each rent compared with registered Ejari contracts
- DLD permit and agent licence checked on every home
- Full move-in and monthly cost before you choose
- Contract explained before any cheque changes hands
Rent check
Is this rent fair?
Type in a listing you're looking at. We compare it with the Dubai asking rents we collected for the same size and neighbourhood.
Before you pay anything
- Never send a deposit or "reservation fee" before you or someone you trust has seen the home in person.
- A rent far below the local median is the most common sign of a fake listing.
- Ask for the owner's ID and proof of ownership, and check the name matches the contract.
- Don't move the conversation to WhatsApp or email at the landlord's request before the viewing.
Pricing
One fixed price. No percentage of your rent.
Prices in UAE dirhams, VAT included. You pay us for research and checks. Rent cheques, the deposit, Ejari and DEWA go straight to the landlord, the listing agent or the authority, never to us. If you rent through a licensed listing agent, their agency fee is separate and set by them.
Shortlist
For people already in Dubai who'll do their own viewings.
- 30-minute intake call
- 8–12 permit-checked homes in 2 days
- Each rent compared with Ejari contracts
- Full move-in cost for every home
Settled
Research, viewings and checks until you have the keys.
- Everything in Shortlist
- Up to 8 filmed viewings
- Agent licence and title checks
- Tenancy contract and addendum read for you
- Ejari, DEWA and cooling set-up checklist
- 50% back if you haven't signed in 30 days
Companies
For teams relocating staff to Dubai.
- Settled for each employee
- One dedicated contact
- UAE VAT invoices
- Progress report for HR
Every plan includes a 30-day arrival guide for Dubai. Settle never takes money from landlords or their agents, and is not your real estate broker.
Questions
Before you start
Are you a real estate broker?
No. In Dubai only RERA-licensed brokers may act as intermediaries in a letting. We do the research and checking for you, and when you choose a home you rent it directly or through the licensed agent on the ad. We take no commission from anyone.
Will I still pay an agency fee?
Usually yes, if the home is listed by an agency: the norm is about 5% of a year's rent plus VAT, paid to the agent. We tell you the fee before you view, and include direct-from-landlord homes where they exist.
How many cheques will I need?
Most landlords ask for 1 to 4 post-dated cheques for the year, sometimes with a lower rent for fewer. Some large landlords now accept monthly payments under DLD's Flexi Rent scheme. We show the cheque terms on every home.
How do you know if a rent is fair?
We compare it with the average of new rental contracts registered in Ejari for the same community and number of bedrooms over the last 12 months, and show you the latest registered contracts.
Can my landlord raise the rent next year?
Only within the RERA rental index rules, and only with 90 days' written notice before your contract ends. We explain what that means for each home before you sign.
What happens to my documents?
Your passport, visa and Emirates ID copies are shared only with the landlord or agent you choose, for the contract and Ejari, stored encrypted and deleted once you've signed.
Waitlist
Be first when Dubai opens.
Three quick steps. We're opening cities in the order people ask for them. Nothing is charged until we've spoken.
You're on the list.
We'll email you as soon as Dubai opens.
Other cities
Moving somewhere else?
Same method and local rules in every city.