Also surfed the HSBC.ae site yesterday. Correct me if I'm wrong but I gathered that mortgage financing typically does not exceed 80%, with tenures maxing out at 20-25 yrs. With interest rates around 7 to 7.15% and capital gains seen in the Dubai market over the past few years, I suppose the rental/utilities allowance paid by EK doesn't suffice in covering most mortgages for villas & 3 bdrm apartments.
-your are correct. Mortgage financing
normally does not exceed 80% but there are certain projects that have offer up to 97% financing. Note this developments are "off plan" stuff that won't be built for 3-4 years; hence the reason they offer the extended financing to attract investment.
-max tenures are generally 15-25 years depending on the bank or finance company. Note this will be reduced by your age and time to forced retirement; ie if you are currently 46 and the EK retirement age is 65 the bank will only extend the term period of the mortgage to 19 years.
-interest rates are higher than 7-7.15%. Most offer finance on resale property (ie. stuff that you will be able to actually live in over the next year or so) at EIBOR (Emirates Interbank Rates) + "X" amount. The "X" is normally 2.0-2.5% on a floating rate. EIBOR is currently at 5.5% so the current rates are around 7.5-8.0%.
-you are correct. Unless you are able to put down a significant downpayment the EK allowance will not cover the mortgage payment on either a 3 bedroom apartment or a villa at current prices.