What Is an EOI in UAE Off-Plan Property?

#How an EOI works

1. Before or at launch, the developer opens EOIs for a project or phase, often through its brokers.
2. The buyer submits an EOI with their details, preferred unit types and, usually, a deposit.
3. Allocation. When units are released, EOI holders are offered units in an order the developer sets, often first come, first served.
4. Reservation and SPA. A buyer who takes a unit pays the booking amount and signs the Sale and Purchase Agreement, and the developer registers the sale in Oqood.

#What the rules say

DLD and RERA do not define or regulate EOIs as such. Two official rules frame them:

• An off-plan sale made before the project is approved and registered with DLD is void (Law No. 13 of 2008 and its implementing bylaw).
• Buyers' payments for an off-plan unit belong in the project's escrow account. RERA's brokerage guide tells brokers to direct buyers to pay there.

#Questions to ask before paying an EOI

• Who holds the deposit, and is it paid into the project escrow account?
• When and how is it refunded if no unit is allocated or the buyer withdraws?
• How is it applied to the price if the buyer proceeds?
• How is priority decided between EOIs?

#On Nogbase

Brokers submit EOIs on a specific project or unit from the free broker app. The developer reviews every EOI in one queue with an activity log, so priority is recorded instead of argued over on WhatsApp.