New UAE mortgage rules "not imminent" : Central Bank Governor

New rules for the UAE’s property market are a work in progress, and any changes won’t be implemented for six to nine months, the UAE’s Central Bank Governor is quoted as saying.

[The UAE's] Central Bank Governor Sultan Nasser al-Suweidi [2] has been quoted as saying that there was a "misunderstanding" in the media and that no Central Bank ruling had been issued; only a warning to banks to be prepared for rule changes in the future. [3]

No limits on mortgage lending will be imposed before consulting with commercial banks, and any new rules are not imminent, Dubaid-based newspaper Al Ittihad quotes al-Suweidi as saying.

In December last year, media reports claimed that the UAE Central Bank had issued guidelines limiting expat mortgages to 50 per cent of the property value; under the new guidelines, it was reported that expatriates were limited to borrowing 40 per cent of a property’s value for a second and subsequent homes. [4]

Caps for UAE citizens were reported at 70 per cent for a first home and 60 per cent for subsequent ones.

The UAE's Central Bank governor has said new mortgage rules are not