Ocean Tower

Ocean Tower is Al Ansari’s project on Central Island, the urban core of the archipelago, and the only one of the five with real resale depth. 165 units across G + 2P + 10.

Prices start at AED 1.8M. At AED 2,100 per sq.ft it is roughly 16% under the 2,514 archipelago average on DLD twelve-month data, which is the number worth checking before any brochure claim. Units run 857 to 1,976 sq.ft.

The payment plan is 50/50. Handover is dated Q3 2026. That is early for this island, which means you are letting into a market with very little competing supply and very little evidence of what rents actually clear.

Amenities: Infinity Pool, Lazy River, Fitness Center, Padel/Badminton Courts, Yoga Area and spa (steam/sauna). Beach access is direct.

Unit mix as released: 1 bedroom; 2 bedroom; 3 bedroom.

Registered with the Dubai Land Department under project number 3149. Payments go to the project escrow account, Emirates Nbd Bank PJSC – 0205860274402. Nothing should be paid anywhere else.

Location. Ocean Tower is on Central Island, off the Deira coastline in northern Dubai. Twenty minutes to Dubai International, twenty-five to Downtown and DIFC, five to the Gold Souk and the Deira waterfront. Access today is over the Infinity Bridge, and it is the only way on and off until the dedicated island bridges land, which are contracted for 2027 to 2029. Central Island carries the mall, the marinas and most of the residential stock, which is why resale here is deeper than anywhere else on the archipelago.

Ownership. Dubai Islands is a designated freehold zone, so a foreign buyer owns the property outright with no local partner and no lease. There is no annual property tax in the UAE, no capital gains tax and no tax on rental income. The 4% Dubai Land Department transfer fee plus AED 4,200 admin is paid once, at registration. A completed Dubai property qualifies the sole owner for a 2-year investor visa with no minimum value. The 10-year Golden Visa needs AED 2M registered, which this entry price does not reach.

What the numbers actually say. Budget roughly 6 to 7% on top of the price to complete: 4% DLD, around AED 10,200 trustee and admin, the first-year service charge payable at handover, and snagging. On the entry unit here that is close to AED 1.92M of cash to own it outright. On my own underwriting the entry one-bed on this island returns about 3.7% net long-let, after a AED 24 per sq.ft service charge, six weeks vacancy, 2% agency and 5% management. Not the 11 to 13% being advertised, which is gross short-let at full occupancy on stock that is almost entirely unlet.

How you buy it. A reservation form and a deposit of typically 5 to 10% holds the unit, paid to the developer. The Sales and Purchase Agreement follows within 14 to 30 days and sets the payment plan and the delay clause, which is the paragraph worth reading twice. DLD takes 4% and registers you on the Oqood off-plan register. Instalments then follow construction milestones into the escrow account, and the Oqood converts to a full title deed at handover.