Question 1

Does checking my eligibility affect my credit score?

Accepted Answer

No. The eligibility engine runs entirely on the numbers you enter. Nothing is sent to Al Etihad Credit Bureau and no lender is contacted until you submit an application and give explicit consent to the credit check. That consent is captured separately from the consent to share your file, and either can be refused.

Question 2

Why do the results sometimes show a smaller loan than the bank’s advertised maximum?

Accepted Answer

Because three separate caps apply and the smallest one wins. A bank may advertise 80% loan-to-value, but if seven times your annual income is a smaller number, or if your existing instalments leave too little room under the 50% debt burden ratio, that lower figure is your real limit. The engine shows all three so you can see which one to work on.

Question 3

Why is my credit card limit reducing how much I can borrow?

Accepted Answer

Banks convert an unused card limit into a notional monthly instalment, conventionally 5% of the limit, and count it inside the 50% debt burden ratio. A AED 100,000 limit you never touch still consumes AED 5,000 of monthly capacity. Cancelling limits you do not use is usually the fastest way to create headroom. Note this 5% convention is bank practice, not a Central Bank rule, and it does vary by lender.

Question 4

What cash do I need beyond the down payment on a property?

Accepted Answer

The transfer fee of 4% of the purchase price, the agency commission of 2% plus VAT, mortgage registration of 0.25% of the loan, the trustee office fee, the land department administrative fee and the bank valuation. Until February 2025 banks financed most of this. They no longer do, so it is all cash on transfer day. On a AED 2.2 million purchase that is roughly AED 147,000 on top of the deposit.

Question 5

Do you charge me anything?

Accepted Answer

The intended model is a commission paid by the lender on funded volume, not a fee paid by you. That creates an obvious conflict, so the platform commits to showing every eligible lender ranked on cost to you, including those paying a lower commission, and to disclosing the commission basis. The current assumed rates are 0.6% on secured lending and 1.5% on unsecured, visible on the lender desk.

Question 6

Are the rates on this site real?

Accepted Answer

They are compiled from public sources dated August 2026 and every figure carries a confidence marker. Retail mortgage and personal loan rates come from lender disclosures and comparison sites. Business pricing is weaker: UAE banks do not publish SME credit pricing, so most business rates here are modelled from aggregator bands rather than quoted by the lender. Treat everything as indicative and confirm before acting.