A 50/50 is not a payment plan

Off-plan brochures keep repeating two numbers: 50/50, 60/40, 70/30. They tell you what share of the price you pay before handover and what share after. They do not tell you when, or how often.

What a real document says

The AGUA Residences payment plan, on Dubai Islands, announces a 50/50. In detail, page 3:

• 10% on booking;
• 14% down payment, shown as “10% + 4% (DLD)”;
• 1% per month;
• 50% on handover.

Two remarks. First, the 4% Dubai Land Department registration is a fee paid on top of the price: it is not part of the 50/50. Second, the document does not say how many 1% instalments there are. To reach 50% before handover you need 30, two and a half years of payments, while handover is announced for Q4 2027.

Questions to ask

1. How many instalments, starting when?
2. If construction is delayed, do the payments continue?
3. Are the fees (DLD, admin, service charges) listed with amounts?
4. Is the plan written in the sale contract (SPA), not just the brochure?

Run the numbers

On every offplandeal project page, the “What I pay” tool turns the published plan into a calendar, fees included. When information is missing, it shows it as an assumption, never as a fact.