Dubai property, explained › Buying
Service charges, and Mollak
The annual charge per square foot that runs the building, the law that sets it, the system that collects it, and what it does to a yield.
Written September 2026 · 3 min read
Every apartment in Dubai, and most villas in a managed community, pays a service charge: an annual sum per square foot that funds the running of the building, from the lift contract to the swimming pool to the insurance. It is set per building, approved by RERA every year, and collected through Mollak, the Dubai Land Department's system built for exactly this. It is the number that turns a gross yield into a net one, and the number most buyers discover last.
What it pays for
Two funds. The general fund is the year's running costs: security, cleaning, landscaping, the pool and gym, lift maintenance, fire systems, the common areas' electricity and water, the building's insurance, and the management company's fee. The reserve fund is savings for the works that come every decade rather than every year, the façade, the lifts, the waterproofing, so that a big bill is met from a fund rather than a levy. In a master-planned community there is often a third line, the master community charge, for the roads, parks and lakes outside the building, set by the master developer.
How it is set
Law No. 6 of 2019 governs jointly owned property. Each building's owners have a committee, its affairs are run by a management company licensed by RERA, and every year a budget is prepared, audited and submitted to RERA for approval. The approved budget divided by the building's total unit area is the rate, in dirhams per square foot, and each owner's share is that rate times their unit's registered area. The department publishes the approved rates as the service charge index, building by building, on its website, which is where a buyer checks a figure before believing a seller.
Mollak
Mollak, Arabic for owner, is the department's system for service charges, launched in 2019. Every jointly owned building's budget is on it, every invoice is issued through it, and every payment goes into the building's own account at a bank, held for that building and audited, so that an owner's money cannot be spent on another project or disappear with a management company. Owners see their invoices and pay them through Mollak in the Dubai REST app, and the invoice shows the RERA-approved rate it was calculated from. The system is also where an unpaid balance lives, and an unpaid balance is what stops a sale: the developer or management company will not issue the no-objection certificate a transfer needs until the account is clear.
What it costs
| Building | Commonly | A 900 sqft one-bedroom, a year |
|---|---|---|
| Older or simpler apartment buildings | AED 10 to 18 per sqft | AED 9,000 to 16,200 |
| Newer towers with the full set of amenities | AED 18 to 30 per sqft | AED 16,200 to 27,000 |
| The premium addresses | AED 30 and above, in places well beyond | AED 27,000 and up |
| Villas in a gated community | A few dirhams per sqft, on the plot or the built area, as the community's rules set | Varies widely |
Ranges, from the index, at the time of writing; the building's own approved rate is the figure that matters, and it is looked up, not guessed. Whether the air conditioning is included changes everything: a chiller-free building carries its district cooling in the charge and looks expensive beside one that does not, until the resident of the second building opens their Empower account.
Who pays, and when
The owner, not the tenant, unless a contract says otherwise, which is rare. Invoices come quarterly or annually through Mollak, and at a sale the year's charge is apportioned to the day of transfer between seller and buyer. Late payment carries a penalty, and a long-unpaid account can end in the Rental Dispute Centre, which hears service charge cases as well as tenancy ones. A landlord's rental yield is gross until the service charge comes off it, which is why the calculator asks for it by name.
Before you buy
- Look the building up in the department's service charge index, and compare its rate with its neighbours'
- Ask the seller for the last two years' Mollak invoices and the audited budget, and read the reserve fund's balance
- Ask whether cooling is in the charge, and if not, what the district cooling account costs a year
- Ask whether the building has any special levy pending, for works the reserve fund could not meet
- Confirm the seller's account is clear, because the no-objection certificate will not come until it is
The cost of buying covers what is paid on the day; this is what is paid every year after it.
Where this leads
The pages that pick up from here
The rental yield calculator →
Gross to net: the calculator asks for the service charge by name.
The cost of buying →
What is paid on the day; this page is what is paid every year after it.
DEWA move-in →
The resident’s running cost, beside the owner’s.
The sales reports →
Every building with its recorded prices, to set a charge against.
Questions people ask
Service charges and Mollak, answered
What are service charges in Dubai?
An annual charge per square foot, set per building and approved by RERA, that funds the building’s running: security, cleaning, the pool and gym, lifts, fire systems, common-area utilities, insurance and management, plus a reserve fund for major works. The owner pays it, not the tenant.
What is Mollak?
The Dubai Land Department’s system for service charges, launched in 2019. Every jointly owned building’s budget and invoices run through it, payments go into the building’s own audited bank account, and owners see and pay their invoices through Mollak in the Dubai REST app.
How much are service charges in Dubai per square foot?
Commonly AED 10 to 18 a square foot a year in older or simpler apartment buildings, AED 18 to 30 in newer towers with full amenities, and AED 30 and well beyond at the premium addresses; villas pay a few dirhams a square foot on the plot or built area. The building’s RERA-approved rate is published in the department’s service charge index.
Who sets the service charge?
Each building’s management company prepares a yearly budget, audited, which the owners’ committee reviews and RERA approves under Law No. 6 of 2019. The approved budget divided by the building’s total unit area is the rate.
What happens if service charges are not paid?
Late payment carries a penalty, a long-unpaid account can go to the Rental Dispute Centre, and an unpaid balance stops a sale: the no-objection certificate a transfer needs is not issued until the account on Mollak is clear.
Does the tenant pay service charges?
No, the owner does, unless a contract says otherwise, which is rare. What a tenant pays is the rent, the DEWA bill with the housing fee on it, and in many towers a district cooling account.
Regulation here is stated as regulation, and what the market merely does is marked as convention. Figures were checked in September 2026; the rest of the set is written the same way.