# Moving to Dubai



## DaveyDVS (Mar 21, 2015)

Firstly, hi all! 

I have been lurking this forum for around a month now and feel that it is time to make the plunge and post.

My girlfriend and I have been living in Australia for the past 5 years and are both British originally (I'm age 25, she is age 24). We have been talking about moving to Dubai around December of this year. 

I work in Real Estate and my girlfriend works in digital advertising. The company she works for has just opened a Dubai office. My only concern is that a lot of the real estate jobs I have seen so far are commission only and as I understand it these can take 3-6 months for the commission to start to build up. 

How normal is it to find salaried packages in the property industry? Can anyone recommend any trustworthy agencies over there that I could speak to about roles? I have seen that Ray White and LJ Hooker (Huge franchises in Australia) both have Dubai/UAE offices so I was thinking about them.

How normal is it these days for companies to offer relocation packages? I understand that this will be role dependent, but at this stage I have 3 years work experience in property in UK/Australia so have proven that I can learn new legislation whilst on the job and I feel that my CV/Resume reads quite well.

If we were to move to Dubai in December when do you think that we realistically need to start inquiring about jobs? I have read quite a few posts on here that say it has taken them 3-4 months to find a job that they are happy with but my concern would be that if I found a role sooner rather than later then they would want us to move immediately before we were in a position which we were to do so.

Hope I haven't overloaded everyone with questions and look forward to hearing back!


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## twowheelsgood (Feb 21, 2013)

You missed the obvious ....... cohabitation by unmarried couples is illegal here. Its certainly done, but don;t forget that part when deciding.

You seem to have lurked quite extensively (well done!) and you have your answer - the vast majority of RE jobs are commission only and you might have to pay for your desk as well.

Enquire away but until you;re here, it'll be difficult to get a job unless you can find a job with a local company to you, for a Dubai overseas branch.


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## Helpinghands (Mar 22, 2015)

Real Estate jobs are all commission based roles. You are right in saying it will take 3-4 months for the commission to start rolling in.

You can check on recruitment agency websites for roles that suit your skill set e.g. Mackenzie Jones, BAC recruitment, Charterhouse etc

Jobs with relocation packages are rare this place is not a hard ship posting anymore and without sounding rude if they do relocation packages it would be someone older with years of professional experience being paid a very high salary - but again they are few and far between now unless their skill set is in high demand.

Good luck with your move if you decide to do it


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## DaveyDVS (Mar 21, 2015)

@Helpinghands - Thanks for the additional information! I guess when I said 'relocation package' I was meaning more along the lines of 2-3 weeks in a hotel etc in order to settle in. I have seen a few jobs that have a basic salary that you are able to switch over to a full commission on a higher rate later into the job. 

I know it's a 'how long is a piece of string' question but when do you think that I should actively start applying for jobs? I guess the sooner the better but I guess employer's wouldn't be too keen knowing that I will not be making the move until December. 

@Twowheelsgood - I have read that cohabitation is illegal (but that people do still do it!) if we were to look at houses with an agent would they refuse to rent to the both of us without proof of marriage etc? How do people get around this? 

When you say that you have to pay for your desk would you happen to know a rough cost of how much this would be? Trying to ensure that I have a good enough knowledge base to help me make the right choices (As well as helping in the interviews eventually of course!)

I feel like I have a good enough understanding of how real estate works in order to make the switch to the UAE market, although I understand that there are huge cultural differences that may have an impact on the workplace when I am over there. Overall we're super excited to make the move, just have a lot of planning and questions to answer before we are ready to do so!


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## twowheelsgood (Feb 21, 2013)

> if we were to look at houses with an agent would they refuse to rent to the both of us without proof of marriage etc? How do people get around this?


Rental agreements are taken out by individuals - if you have residency, then they need that document to permit renting to occur. In my case, the lease is in my name and my wife lives with me but isn't mentioned on the paperwork anywhere. They won't care much who else is there with you unless you start to exceed the permitted number of people by putting in bunk beds.

Your challenge will be that unless you are both working. one of you will be doing border runs as you cannot sponsor a girlfriends residency, the way I can with a wife.

No idea on the desk rental - I've just heard here that it happens.


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## DaveyDVS (Mar 21, 2015)

twowheelsgood said:


> Rental agreements are taken out by individuals - if you have residency, then they need that document to permit renting to occur. In my case, the lease is in my name and my wife lives with me but isn't mentioned on the paperwork anywhere. They won't care much who else is there with you unless you start to exceed the permitted number of people by putting in bunk beds.
> 
> Your challenge will be that unless you are both working. one of you will be doing border runs as you cannot sponsor a girlfriends residency, the way I can with a wife.
> 
> No idea on the desk rental - I've just heard here that it happens.


We will both be working thankfully. It looks as though my girlfriend will hopefully have a job lined up through her company and I may be better off just taking the RERA on arrival and push for a job once I am in Dubai. The only struggle is supporting myself through those initial months but this is something that we've worked through and managed in Australia so I can't see it being an issue.

It's a scary move nonetheless!


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## marc (Mar 10, 2008)

Maybe start with rentals first and get used to the market, also only focus on one area, there are to many buildings and areas to be running around like a headless chicken being everything to everyone, it never works.

Sales you will be looking at at least 3 months to get going and learn the ins and outs. Also each deal depending on if there is a mortgage in play can take anywhere from 1-3 months to transfer so keep that in mind. Rental commission is paid as soon as the tenancy contract is signed so turnarounds are much better. 

I did real estate for 7 years here so let me know if you need any help. 

Good luck!


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## IzzyBella (Mar 11, 2013)

You might want to talk to MAW0504, he works in the industry and might be able to give you some advice.


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## Helpinghands (Mar 22, 2015)

Hi again, I worked in recruitment for a short time for commission based roles and we used to tell potential candidates that they needed around £7,500 (about AUD 14,500) for the first 3 months (if they were alone). Again desk costs can range from £100 (AUD 190) to AED2,500 (AUD 870) dependent upon the company (from my knowledge). I have a friend in real estate to and can ask any other questions you may have.

Living together is technically illegal but as someone else mentioned unless you bring undue attention to the fact it is generally ignored. Only one of you will be on the tenancy agreement. This may cause a few problems, just to warn you, when it comes to getting a bank account and credit card as not having bills etc in your name may be an issue but there are always ways round it just becomes a little more complicated and tiresome!

You would need to do your RERA to do real estate here from my understanding so that would be good to do before you come over, in my opinion. Never to early to look for jobs but beware it might take a little time, I would afford yourself 3 months looking and 3 months until you start earning a decent salary then you can budget in the meantime.

Hope this was helpful


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## DaveyDVS (Mar 21, 2015)

marc said:


> Maybe start with rentals first and get used to the market, also only focus on one area, there are to many buildings and areas to be running around like a headless chicken being everything to everyone, it never works.
> 
> Sales you will be looking at at least 3 months to get going and learn the ins and outs. Also each deal depending on if there is a mortgage in play can take anywhere from 1-3 months to transfer so keep that in mind. Rental commission is paid as soon as the tenancy contract is signed so turnarounds are much better.
> 
> ...


A lot of the roles I have looked at so far start as sales and leasing consultants so I figure that in the interim until I get the market knowledge of UAE and experience with the legislation I will focus on that until I can make the switch over to sales. I actually have very good experience with high net worth individuals in the commercial and residential markets so I am hoping that this will help me.

I have seen that the RERA certificate is available for 2,500 Dhs, is this a reasonable cost or should I keep shopping around? Does anyone know if this can be completed through distance learning?

I'm lucky in that my girlfriend will be able to help us through the interim period until I am settled in the new role and build the contacts and experience required. I actually know a couple of expats out there at the moment so I'm trying to gather as much information as possible to ensure that we're making the right move.

Who are the leading real estate companies to be aware of in Dubai? I currently work for a boutique agency based in Sydney that caters towards the high-end of the market - Although with property prices being as they are in Sydney I guess that is the majority of agencies!

Thanks all for your help so far.


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## marc (Mar 10, 2008)

DaveyDVS said:


> A lot of the roles I have looked at so far start as sales and leasing consultants so I figure that in the interim until I get the market knowledge of UAE and experience with the legislation I will focus on that until I can make the switch over to sales. I actually have very good experience with high net worth individuals in the commercial and residential markets so I am hoping that this will help me.
> 
> I have seen that the RERA certificate is available for 2,500 Dhs, is this a reasonable cost or should I keep shopping around? Does anyone know if this can be completed through distance learning?
> 
> ...


2,500 AED is the official price so that's correct.
You will need to be here to take the course, there is some classroom lectures and then the final exam, its quite easy. - Managing Director's Message (Official site)

Theres plenty of agencies, do not worry about having to pay for a desk, however usually if you pay for a desk or monthly costs you should be getting 60-70% commission but not much support, or you pay nothing, work for a firm and get 50% so it depends how comfortable you feel. 

All the biggest firms do not charge for desk space, I would say the biggest in no particular order are; Allsopp, Smith & Ken, Espace, SPF Realty, Lannhill, Hamptons, Rocky Real Estate... there are loads.


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