Serro The Heights Country Club Dubai is the name this guide gives to Serro, a collection of 3 to 5 bedroom villas that Emaar Properties lists in The Heights Country Club and Wellness, where the developer’s own page printed a starting price of AED 6,000,000 (about USD 1,633,764, at the pegged rate of 3.6725) and no handover date when it was checked on 15 November 2026.

This guide to Serro The Heights Country Club Dubai reads the Emaar project page, the Latest Launches page, the floor-plan file and the brochure that Emaar publishes for Phase 1, and four broker pages and one press article, each as they stood on 15 November 2026. Where the developer prints a figure it is given first; where it prints nothing, the broker figures are shown beside each other with their sources and none is chosen.
It also takes the nine published floor plans apart to show what the printed total area contains, sets out the Dubai rules on registering an off-plan sale, the escrow account and the fees, and ends with a list of what a buyer can ask for in writing before reserving.
The Emaar page called Serro at The Heights Country Club and Wellness places the release in its New Launches section and gives its key facts as 3-5 bedroom villas and a starting price of AED 6,000,000. On the Latest Launches page, read on the same day, the Serro card carries the label Just launched and prints neither a price nor a count of units available. The page’s own structured data carries a modification date of 11 May 2026.

Emaar describes the design as Mediterranean Modernity, with whitewashed facades, warm terracotta tones, greenery, soft curves and textured materials, and describes interiors as open layouts in a neutral palette of beige and natural tones. It lists seven amenities for the release: a Wellness Centre, a Meditation Garden, a Wellness Lake and Promenade, a Private Beach, a Fitness Area, a Yoga Lake and a Social Terrace. The page prints no specification of materials, appliances or fittings.
Several items that a buyer normally needs are not printed on the developer page, checked 15 November 2026: the handover quarter, any construction percentage, the number of villas, the plot sizes, the payment plan, the service charge and the tenure of the land.
The sections below record what brokers print on each point, with the date, and say so wherever Emaar itself is silent. Emaar’s two sibling releases in the same community, Serro 2 and Salva, are separate buildings with their own pages and are not merged into this one.
| Serro The Heights Country Club Dubai: key facts | What is printed (source, date) |
|---|---|
| Developer | Emaar Properties PJSC (emaar.com, 15 November 2026) |
| Release and community | Serro, one of three collections listed for The Heights Country Club and Wellness: Salva, Serro, Serro 2 (emaar.com, 15 November 2026) |
| Label on Latest Launches | Just launched (emaar.com, 15 November 2026) |
| Product | 3-5 bedroom villas (emaar.com project page) |
| Starting price | AED 6,000,000, printed as Starting price with no unit type named; about USD 1,633,764 at 3.6725 (emaar.com project page) |
| Total area per floor plan | 310.30 to 546.67 m² (3,340.04 to 5,884.30 sq ft), from the file titled Phase 1 Salva and Serro (emaar.com, 15 November 2026) |
| Handover | Not printed on the developer page, checked 15 November 2026; brokers print Q4 2029 or Q1 2030 |
| Payment plan | Not printed on the developer page, checked 15 November 2026; brokers print 10/70/20 or 80/20 |
| Number of villas | Not printed on the developer page; brokers print 383 or 780 |
| Tenure | Not printed on the developer page; two brokers print freehold |
| Map pin | 24.956583, 55.251092 (Emaar’s map component, 15 November 2026) |
The table below puts the developer page next to the four broker pages read on 15 November 2026. Brokers are listing or sales sites and are not Emaar; their statements are shown as they print them. A dash means the page printed nothing on that line.

| Item | Emaar (emaar.com) | Property Finder | APIL Properties | Inside Realty | A1 Properties |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Status | Just launched (Latest Launches); no construction percentage | Off-plan | Off-plan; newly launched | No status line seen | Off plan |
| Handover | Not printed | Q1 2030; March 2030; expected completion 31 March 2030 | Q1 2030; last instalment March 2030 | Q1 2030 | Q4 2029 |
| Villas | Not printed | 383 villas, G+2; 1 building | Not printed | 780 villas, two phases (Serro and Serro 2); plots up to 657 m²; described as two-storey | Not printed |
| Tenure | Not printed | Freehold | Not printed | Freehold zone | Not printed |
| Payment plan | Not printed | 10/70/20 | Labelled 80:20; schedule of 10% booking, 70% in instalments, 20% at completion | 10% at purchase, 70% during construction, 20% at handover | Labelled 80/20; also shows 10%, 70%, 20% |
| Government fee | Not printed | 4% | 4% plus AED 20 in its calculator | Not printed | Not printed |
| Place description | The Heights Country Club and Wellness; junction of E611 and E77 | Dubai, The Heights Country Club & Wellness | The Heights, Dubailand | Southern Dubai, along Emirates Road between Dubai Investment Park and Jebel Ali | The Heights Country Club & Wellness, Dubai |
Two readings of the handover column are possible without choosing between them. Three of the four brokers print the first quarter of 2030, and Property Finder adds an exact day, 31 March 2030, which is the last day of that quarter. A1 Properties prints the fourth quarter of 2029, which is one quarter earlier. Emaar prints neither, so a buyer holds a developer statement of a handover date only when the sale and purchase agreement contains one.
The payment-plan labels look different but can describe the same split. A plan of 10 percent at booking and 70 percent in instalments leaves 20 percent at handover, and the sum of the first two parts is 80 percent, which is what an 80/20 label counts as paid before completion.
The brokers do not say that this is what they mean, so the point is arithmetic, not a finding. The villa count is a genuine difference: 383 and 780 are not two ways of writing one figure. Inside Realty ties its 780 to both Serro and Serro 2, which would explain a figure about twice as large, but the page does not give a count for Serro alone.
Two more differences are worth noting. Property Finder describes the villas as G+2, meaning ground plus two upper levels, while Inside Realty describes two-storey villas.
Emaar’s floor-plan file shows that both can be true of different plans: the 3-bedroom plans have a ground and a first floor, and the 4- and 5-bedroom plans add a third level, as the next section shows. The map pin on Emaar’s project page, with the coordinates shown in the key facts above, is the location marker that the developer itself prints.
Emaar’s project page prints one price line for the release: the Starting price of AED 6,000,000, shown in the key facts next to the words 3-5 bedroom villas. The word from is not printed, and the page does not say which bedroom count the figure belongs to. The Serro card on Latest Launches, read on 15 November 2026, prints no price. The table gives every starting figure seen, with the USD equivalent computed at the peg of 3.6725 dirhams per dollar.

| Serro The Heights Country Club Dubai: price source and date | Wording printed | AED as printed | About USD at 3.6725 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emaar project page, 15 November 2026 | Starting price (3-5 bedroom villas) | 6,000,000 | 1,633,764 |
| Emaar Latest Launches card, 15 November 2026 | No price on the Serro card | not printed | not applicable |
| Property Finder, 15 November 2026 | Launch price | 6.9M | 1,878,829 |
| APIL Properties, 15 November 2026 | Starting Price | 6,676,888 | 1,818,077 |
| Inside Realty, 15 November 2026 | Price from | 6,500,000 | 1,769,912 |
| A1 Properties, 15 November 2026 | Starting From | 6,500,000 | 1,769,912 |
The lowest and the highest of the five starting figures differ by AED 900,000. Property Finder’s page also carries, in its descriptive text, a second and much lower figure of AED 2.4 million, which does not match the launch price in its own key information and is not used in this guide.
None of these figures is a quote. They are the opening lines of pages that change, and a price list with unit numbers is the document that fixes a price for a given villa.
Two brokers print prices by bedroom count. They are shown below with the sizes each prints, and with differences between neighbouring bedroom counts calculated from the printed prices. The sizes are quoted as the brokers give them; the next section sets them against Emaar’s own plan areas.
| Bedrooms | APIL: size, price (AED) | APIL: about USD | Inside Realty: size, from price (AED) | Inside Realty: about USD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 3,340 sq ft; 6,720,888 | 1,830,058 | 316 m² (3,401 sq ft); 6,500,000 | 1,769,912 |
| 4 | 4,302 sq ft; 8,240,888 | 2,243,945 | 400 m² (4,306 sq ft); 8,100,000 | 2,205,582 |
| 5 | 5,761 sq ft; 11,236,888 | 3,059,738 | 541 m² (5,823 sq ft); 10,900,000 | 2,968,005 |
| Step 3 to 4 bedrooms | +1,520,000 | +413,887 | +1,600,000 | +435,671 |
| Step 4 to 5 bedrooms | +2,996,000 | +815,793 | +2,800,000 | +762,423 |
Both lists put the 3-bedroom villa between AED 6.5 million and AED 6.72 million, and both place the 5-bedroom villa at or above AED 10.9 million. Neither broker states whether its price is for a specific plan type, a specific plot or an average, and neither says what the finish includes.
The APIL header figure of AED 6,676,888 sits below its own 3-bedroom price of AED 6,720,888, so even within one page the starting line and the per-type line are not the same number.
The Latest Launches page is a useful reference for what Emaar itself prints about the neighbouring releases at the same time. The table records the three releases of the community as the cards showed them on 15 November 2026. Counts of units available on that page change from day to day, so each figure belongs to its date and is not a statement of stock.
| Release in The Heights | Label on Latest Launches, 15 November 2026 | Price on the card | Units on the card |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serro (this guide) | Just launched | not printed | not printed |
| Serro 2 | Just launched | not printed | not printed |
| Salva | Just launched | from AED 6.76M | 17 units available on 15 November 2026 |
Emaar’s floor-plan file for Phase 1 is titled Salva and Serro and runs to 19 pages: a cover and 18 plan pages, on which nine distinct plans appear, three each for 3, 4 and 5 bedrooms, named Type A, Type B and Type C. Every plan page prints the area of each floor, the carport area, the area of terraces and balconies, and a total area, in square metres and square feet.

The file does not say which of the three types belongs to Serro and which to Salva, so this guide shows all nine as printed and does not assign them.
The notes on the plan pages say that dimensions are measured from finish to finish, that materials, dimensions and drawings are approximate, that information is subject to change at the developer’s discretion, that actual area may vary from the stated area, and that drawings are not to scale. These notes matter for the next step, because the printed total area is the figure the brokers quote when they give a size for Serro The Heights Country Club Dubai.
| Plan (as printed) | Ground floor m² | First floor m² | Second floor m² | Carport m² | Terraces and balconies m² | Total area m² | Total area sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 bedrooms, Type A | 130.37 | 131.29 | – | 46.01 | 14.06 | 321.73 | 3,463.07 |
| 3 bedrooms, Type B | 130.15 | 131.15 | – | 45.99 | 14.80 | 322.09 | 3,466.94 |
| 3 bedrooms, Type C | 128.28 | 126.08 | – | 45.97 | 9.97 | 310.30 | 3,340.04 |
| 4 bedrooms, Type A | 136.53 | 130.75 | 45.58 | 48.57 | 39.21 | 400.64 | 4,312.45 |
| 4 bedrooms, Type B | 136.50 | 130.61 | 45.58 | 48.57 | 38.96 | 400.22 | 4,307.93 |
| 4 bedrooms, Type C | 140.27 | 129.44 | 44.07 | 48.57 | 37.34 | 399.69 | 4,302.22 |
| 5 bedrooms, Type A | 154.36 | 163.94 | 59.83 | 68.66 | 99.88 | 546.67 | 5,884.30 |
| 5 bedrooms, Type B | 154.58 | 162.56 | 59.89 | 68.70 | 100.67 | 546.40 | 5,881.39 |
| 5 bedrooms, Type C | 150.12 | 168.26 | 61.67 | 68.70 | 86.42 | 535.17 | 5,760.52 |
Adding the printed parts reproduces every printed total in square metres, so the total area is the sum of the floors, the carport and the terraces and balconies, and nothing is left out of it. In square feet, two totals differ by 0.01 from the sum of their parts, which is rounding.
The consequence is that the total area is not the interior living area. The enclosed floors, that is the ground, first and, where there is one, second floor, are smaller than the total by the carport and the terraces and balconies.
The second table does that subtraction for each plan. The share of the total that sits in the carport and the terraces and balconies is about 18 to 19 percent in the 3-bedroom plans, about 21 to 22 percent in the 4-bedroom plans and 29 to 31 percent in the 5-bedroom plans. All figures in it are calculated from the printed areas, and none is printed by Emaar.
| Plan (as printed) | Enclosed floors m² (calculated) | Carport plus terraces m² (calculated) | Share of total in carport and terraces, percent (calculated) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 bedrooms, Type A | 261.66 | 60.07 | 18.7 |
| 3 bedrooms, Type B | 261.30 | 60.79 | 18.9 |
| 3 bedrooms, Type C | 254.36 | 55.94 | 18.0 |
| 4 bedrooms, Type A | 312.86 | 87.78 | 21.9 |
| 4 bedrooms, Type B | 312.69 | 87.53 | 21.9 |
| 4 bedrooms, Type C | 313.78 | 85.91 | 21.5 |
| 5 bedrooms, Type A | 378.13 | 168.54 | 30.8 |
| 5 bedrooms, Type B | 377.03 | 169.37 | 31.0 |
| 5 bedrooms, Type C | 380.05 | 155.12 | 29.0 |
The reading that follows from the table is that a buyer who compares villas by the total area is comparing different mixes of covered floor, carport and outdoor space.
The 5-bedroom Type A has 546.67 m² in total and 378.13 m² of enclosed floor, while the 5-bedroom Type C has a smaller total of 535.17 m² but a larger enclosed floor of 380.05 m². On the printed figures, the type with the smaller total area has slightly more enclosed floor, because its terraces and balconies are 86.42 m² against 99.88 m².
The 4-bedroom plans show the opposite pattern within a narrow band. The three types have totals within 1 m² of each other, from 399.69 to 400.64 m², and enclosed floors from 312.69 to 313.78 m², so for 4 bedrooms the plan type changes the layout more than the area. For the 3-bedroom villa the enclosed floor runs from 254.36 to 261.66 m², and the Type C plan is the smallest on every measure.
The broker size for a 3-bedroom villa of 3,340 sq ft, quoted by APIL, equals the Type C total of 3,340.04 sq ft, and the 4- and 5-bedroom sizes it quotes, 4,302 and 5,761 sq ft, equal the Type C totals as well.
A1 Properties quotes the range 3,340 to 5,884 sq ft, which equals the lowest and the highest total in the file. Inside Realty’s 316 m², 400 m² and 541 m² do not equal a single plan total and may be averages or rounded; the page does not say.
There is one structural difference to carry into any question about the plan. The 3-bedroom plans have two levels of living space, ground and first floor. The 4- and 5-bedroom plans list a third area under second floor, and the key plan names the top level roof floor.
That is consistent with Property Finder’s G+2 and with Inside Realty’s two-storey wording for the smaller villas, and it is another reason to ask which plan, and which plot, a particular price refers to. A site plan with plot numbers is not on the Emaar pages that were read.
Emaar does not print a payment plan for Serro on the project page, the Latest Launches page or in the brochure. The plan is therefore a broker statement, and the brokers’ own pages differ in label but not in the split of the three parts.

The only dated schedule found is on the APIL page, which prints a milestone list and a calculator for the three bedroom counts. The table gives the schedule for the 3-bedroom price of AED 6,720,888, using the amounts the calculator printed.
| Milestone as printed by APIL | Share | Amount for the 3-bedroom (AED, as printed) |
|---|---|---|
| On booking | 10% | 672,089 |
| Government fee, shown separately | 4% plus AED 20 | 268,856 |
| 1st instalment, March 2026 | 10% | 672,089 |
| 2nd instalment, September 2026 | 10% | 672,089 |
| 3rd instalment, March 2027 | 10% | 672,089 |
| 4th instalment, September 2027 | 10% | 672,089 |
| 5th instalment, March 2028 (upon 40% construction completion) | 10% | 672,089 |
| 6th instalment, August 2028 (upon 60% construction completion) | 10% | 672,089 |
| 7th instalment, January 2029 (upon 80% construction completion) | 10% | 672,089 |
| Final instalment, March 2030 (upon 100% construction completion) | 20% | 1,344,178 |
| Total before handover including fees, as printed | – | 5,645,566 |
| Total cost including fees, as printed | – | 6,989,744 |
The listed shares add up to 100 percent: 10 at booking, seven instalments of 10, and 20 at the end. The fee line is outside that total and is the broker’s reading of the Dubai Land Department fee, which Section 7 sets beside the official page. A few features of this schedule are for a buyer to clarify in writing rather than assume.
The first two dates, March and September 2026, are earlier than the day this guide was checked, so the schedule does not say how a booking made in November 2026 treats instalments that are already past. The last three instalments are tied to construction percentages, the earlier ones to calendar months, and the page does not say who certifies the percentages.
The timeline that Property Finder prints is a separate set of dates. Its project timeline shows an expected booking date of 19 March 2026, a construction start of 20 March 2026 and an expected completion of 31 March 2030, with no entry for the project announcement. Arithmetic on those dates gives 1,472 days between the construction start and the expected completion, which is 48 months and 11 days, and 1,232 days between 15 November 2026 and 31 March 2030.
| Date item | Value | Source and date |
|---|---|---|
| Expected booking date | 19 March 2026 | Property Finder, 15 November 2026 |
| Construction started | 20 March 2026 | Property Finder, 15 November 2026 |
| Expected completion | 31 March 2030 | Property Finder, 15 November 2026 |
| Handover quarter | Q1 2030 | Property Finder, APIL Properties, Inside Realty, 15 November 2026 |
| Handover quarter | Q4 2029 | A1 Properties, 15 November 2026 |
| Days from construction start to expected completion | 1,472 (calculated) | Property Finder dates |
| Days from 15 November 2026 to expected completion | 1,232 (calculated) | Property Finder date |
| Handover or construction percentage on Emaar’s pages | Not printed on the developer page, checked 15 November 2026 | emaar.com |
The word expected appears on those dates, and a portal timeline is not a contractual date. The date that binds the developer is the one in the sale and purchase agreement, together with whatever the agreement says about changes to it. This is the reason the list of requests in Section 10 puts the handover date and the way it can change at the top.
The Heights Country Club and Wellness is the Emaar community in which Serro The Heights Country Club Dubai sits. Emaar’s community page calls it a masterplan of meandering pathways, green spaces, courtyards and cascading water features, and says that it lies at the junction of E611 and E77.

The page gives drive times of 10 minutes to Expo City Dubai and to Al Maktoum International Airport, 20 minutes to Dubai Hills Estate and 30 minutes to Downtown Dubai. The brochure for Phase 1 prints the same four figures beside a locator map.
Two road designations in that sentence can be matched to public reference material. An encyclopaedia entry on the E 611 road gives E 611 as the Emirates Road, renamed from the Dubai Bypass Road in 2013, and describes E 77 as the Jebel Ali to Al Habab road, with the Emirates Road starting at E 66 and extending inward towards E 77.
Inside Realty places the site along Emirates Road between Dubai Investment Park and Jebel Ali, which agrees in general terms. The brochure map labels Emirates Road, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road and Sheikh Zayed Road among other names and does not say which of them is E77, so the junction is stated here as Emaar prints it.
The map in the brochure also labels the neighbouring areas that Emaar chose to show: Emaar South, Expo Living, The Oasis, Grand Polo, The Valley, Dubai Hills Estate, Emirates Living, Dubai Creek Harbour, Downtown Dubai and Dubai Marina, with Al Maktoum International Airport, Expo City and the Dubai Investment Park.
The labels show direction, not distance. For the distances, the table sets the four sources side by side. The units differ, since Emaar and two brokers give minutes and APIL gives kilometres, and none of the broker pages says whether its figures are by car or at what hour.
| Destination | Emaar (community page, brochure) | Property Finder | Inside Realty | APIL Properties |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Expo City Dubai | 10 minutes’ drive | – | 10-15 minutes (with the airport) | – |
| Al Maktoum International Airport | 10 minutes’ drive | – | 10-15 minutes (with Expo City) | 35 km |
| Dubai Hills Estate | 20 minutes’ drive | Dubai Hills Mall 10 minutes; Dubai Hills Golf Club 10 minutes | 20 minutes | – |
| Downtown Dubai | 30 minutes’ drive | 12 minutes (Downtown and Burj Khalifa) | 35-40 minutes | 18 km (Downtown Dubai); 18 km (Dubai Mall) |
| Dubai International Airport | – | 15 minutes | – | 25 km |
| Dubai Marina | – | 22 minutes | 30-35 minutes (Marina and Palm Jumeirah) | 28 km |
| Other places named | – | Dubai Miracle Garden 15; Mall of the Emirates 18; Emirates Golf Club 20 (minutes) | – | Global Village 15 km |
The gaps are large. For Downtown Dubai the sources print 30 minutes, 12 minutes and 35 to 40 minutes, and 18 kilometres; for Dubai Hills the figures run from 10 to 20 minutes.
A single figure cannot be taken from this table, and the practical step is to measure the routes that matter to the buyer, at the hours that matter, rather than to quote any of them. The Emaar figures are the only ones that come from the developer, and they come with the junction description above.
The community is described by a few figures that Emaar prints in its brochure and on its community page, and by one press report from the launch. They are community figures and say nothing about Serro alone, and they are not all in step with each other, as the table shows.
| Community item | Emaar (brochure, community page) | Khaleej Times, 21 May 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Total area | 7.5 million m² (brochure and community page) | 81 million sq ft, which is about 7.5 million m² when converted |
| Open space | 25% of the total area (brochure), which is 1.875 million m² (calculated) | 1.3 million m² of open space, which is about 17% of 7.5 million m² (calculated) |
| Residential clusters | 21 (brochure) | – |
| Estimated residents | 38,411 (brochure) | – |
| Home types | 3, 4 and 5 bedroom villas (community page) | Townhouses and semi-attached villas |
| Infrastructure named | Schools, hospitals, mosques and a large retail space (community page) | The same four items |
| Movement tracks | 1,200 m movement loop, 1,600 m cycling trail, 400 m running track around the wellness centre (community page) | Cycling and jogging tracks, no lengths |
| Cost of the community | – | AED 55 billion |
The open-space difference is a dated difference between two sources, published about two and a half years apart, and the guide does not decide between them. The description of home types differs in the same way: the 2024 article speaks of townhouses and semi-attached villas for the whole community, while Emaar’s current pages speak of 3 to 5 bedroom villas.
The infrastructure list is a statement of what the community includes, and the pages do not say what is built or open on the date they were read.
The amenity lists differ in length. The developer’s project page lists seven named amenities. The brochure adds a community pool, a playscape, sports facilities, community retail, an indoor and outdoor gym and a linear park, and the community page adds a Wellness Centre and Clubhouse and tracks.
Property Finder’s list is longer still and includes items that no Emaar page lists, such as a spa, tennis courts and a concierge; those are not repeated here. The pages print the name Private Beach without saying where it is or how large it is, which is one more point for the written questions.
The steps below come from Dubai Land Department (DLD) service pages, the Dubai legislation portal and the UAE government portal, all read on 15 November 2026. They describe the general rules for an off-plan purchase in Dubai.

They are not a statement about any step already taken for this release, and pages and fees can change, so each source should be read again before a contract is signed. For the wider picture, the guides on buying off-plan in Dubai and on foreign buyers in Dubai cover the process in more steps.
| Topic | What the official source states | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Off-plan sales entered in the interim register | A disposition of a unit sold off-plan is entered in the Interim Property Register; the law says a sale or other disposition that transfers or restricts ownership is void unless entered there | Law No. 13 of 2008, Article 3 |
| Before a developer sells off-plan | No master developer or sub-developer may start a project or dispose of units off-plan before taking possession of the land and obtaining the required approvals | Law No. 13 of 2008, Article 4 |
| Registration of the sale | The developer registers the sale in the provisional register through the Oqood portal; the sale and purchase contract is signed by the developer and the purchaser and registered within 90 days of signing | DLD: request to register the initial sale |
| Registration fee | Seller 2% of the sale value and purchaser 2% of the sale value, plus AED 10 knowledge fees and AED 10 innovation fees | Same DLD page |
| Project registration and escrow | The developer registers the project and opens an escrow account for off-plan sales; a 30% guarantee is among the conditions, met by 30% of construction completed, a bank guarantee for 30% of construction or a cash deposit of 30% | DLD: register project |
| What the escrow account is | A bank account of the project into which amounts paid by purchasers for units sold off-plan are deposited; the law applies to all developers who sell off-plan in Dubai | DLD FAQ |
| One account per project | The account is opened in the name of the project and is dedicated exclusively to its construction; no attachment may be imposed on it for the developer’s creditors; each project has its own account | Law No. 8 of 2007, Article 9 |
| Retention | The escrow agent retains 5% of the total value of each account after the completion certificate and releases it one year after registration of the units in the names of purchasers | Law No. 8 of 2007, Article 14 |
| Purchaser’s request on the plot | A purchaser of an off-plan unit may ask the Department to update the registry entry of the plot to show a purchase agreement with the sub-developer | Law No. 8 of 2007, Article 8 |
| Checking the project | The Project Status service in the Dubai REST app searches by project name or project number | DLD: project status |
| Checking a licence or permit | The Trakheesi verification service lets a customer check the e-copy of licences and permits issued for real estate activities | DLD: verify licence and permits |
Put in order, the sequence is as follows. The developer must hold the land and the approvals and have the project registered with its escrow account. The buyer signs the sale and purchase agreement, and the sale is entered in the provisional register through Oqood within 90 days of signing.
The buyer’s instalments are paid under the payment schedule, and the escrow account named in the contract is the place they are paid to. At the end, the unit is registered in the buyer’s name, the step to which the escrow law ties the release of its 5 percent retention. The emphasis of the DLD pages is on the register and the escrow account, and for that reason the contract should name both.
The English text of Law No. 8 of 2007 on the legislation portal sets out the escrow rules, and the DLD service pages describe the current process, including the 30 percent guarantee condition in the project registration service. A buyer asking about these points in writing is asking for the project number and the escrow agent’s name, which can be checked on the DLD services above, and not for a legal opinion.
The fee arithmetic is simple and is given here only as a scale. On the Emaar starting price of AED 6,000,000, 2 percent is AED 120,000, about USD 32,675, and 4 percent is AED 240,000, about USD 65,351.
The DLD page names the 2 percent seller and 2 percent purchaser shares of the sale value; Property Finder prints a 4 percent government fee, and APIL’s calculator adds 4 percent plus AED 20 to the buyer’s total. The contract states who pays which part, and the table below keeps the three statements apart.
| Fee statement | Value printed | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Registration of the sale, seller | 2% of the sale value | DLD initial-sale page, 15 November 2026 |
| Registration of the sale, purchaser | 2% of the sale value | DLD initial-sale page, 15 November 2026 |
| Knowledge fee and innovation fee | AED 10 each | DLD initial-sale page, 15 November 2026 |
| Government fee | 4% | Property Finder, 15 November 2026 |
| Government fee in the calculator | 4% plus AED 20 fixed; AED 268,856 on AED 6,720,888 | APIL Properties, 15 November 2026 |
| 4% of AED 6,000,000 | AED 240,000, about USD 65,351 (calculated) | Arithmetic on the Emaar starting price |
According to the UAE government portal, Dubai permits foreign ownership in the areas it designates as freehold, where non-residents and expatriate residents may acquire freehold rights, usufruct rights or leasehold rights of up to 99 years. It points to Article 3 of Regulation No. 3 of 2006 for the land plots designated as freehold.

That regulation, as printed on the legislation portal, lists 23 areas by plot number, and The Heights does not appear among the names printed there. The same regulation is one instrument among the ones that fix the freehold areas, and this guide does not conclude anything from the omission.
Emaar’s pages print no tenure for the release. Property Finder prints freehold, and Inside Realty prints that the project lies in a freehold zone. Both are broker statements.
A buyer therefore holds the answer to the freehold question only when the sale and purchase agreement and the registered title say so, and the sensible request is for the tenure to be written into the agreement, with the plot number. The guide on freehold and leasehold in Dubai explains the two forms of ownership in more detail.
On residence, two official pages state the property route to a Golden Visa in different words, and both are shown as printed. The UAE government portal, updated on 28 July 2026, lists investors in real estate for a period of 5 years with a minimum capital of AED 2 million through property ownership.
The DLD service page for the investor request describes a 10-year renewable residence permit for an owner of a property whose purchase value is AED 2 million or more at the time of purchase, requires that the property be wholly owned in the applicant’s name, and lists an e-certificate of title or title deed among the documents. For a mortgaged property it asks for a bank letter showing the amount paid.
| Point | UAE government portal (updated 28 July 2026) | DLD investor service page (15 November 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Duration for the real estate route | 5 years | 10 years, renewable |
| Value condition | Minimum capital of AED 2 million, through property ownership | Purchase value of AED 2 million or more at the time of purchase |
| Ownership condition | Property ownership | Wholly owned by the applicant, one or more properties |
| Document named | – | e-Certificate of Title or title deed |
| Mortgaged property | – | Bank letter showing the amount paid |
| Fee total printed for the permit | – | AED 9,884.75 for the applicant, as printed |
Every price printed for Serro The Heights Country Club Dubai is above the AED 2,000,000 figure, which is about USD 544,588 at the peg, and the Emaar starting price is three times that amount. No Golden Visa eligibility is claimed for any villa here.
Whether a particular off-plan unit counts, given that the DLD page asks for a title deed and that an off-plan unit is registered in the interim register first, is a question for the authority, and the answer should be obtained before the purchase. The guide to the Dubai Golden Visa explains the application.
On tax, the UAE government portal’s taxation page says that the country does not levy income tax on individuals and that it levies 5 percent value added tax on the purchase of goods and services.
The Federal Tax Authority’s FAQ says that the VAT treatment of real estate depends on whether it is commercial or residential, that supplies of residential property are generally exempt, and that the first supply of a residential property within three years of completion is zero-rated. The pages read for this guide do not mention an annual property tax; the guide to property tax in Dubai covers the charges that do exist, and the mortgage guide covers financing.
Service charges are separate from tax. The DLD Service Charge Index service lets a user calculate a charge by title deed, or by project, usage and year, and its notes say that the calculation does not include arrears.
No service-charge estimate for the release is printed on the Emaar pages or the broker pages, and for a villa in a community with a wellness centre, tracks, a pool and landscaped areas, the estimate and the way it is set are a request for the written list.
Emaar Properties PJSC is a public joint stock company that, according to its investor-relations FAQ, was incorporated in 1997 and listed on the Dubai Financial Market on 26 March 2000, with its headquarters in Dubai. On its investor-relations page, Emaar describes itself as a global property developer with a presence in the Middle East, North Africa and Asia, whose principal activities are property investment, development and development management, shopping malls and retail, entertainment, hospitality, property management and utility services.

Emaar’s About page names Burj Khalifa, Dubai Mall and Dubai Fountain among its landmark destinations. The communities listed on emaar.com are ten in the UAE: Downtown Dubai, Dubai Creek Harbour, Dubai Hills Estate, Emaar Beachfront and Emaar South as the flagship group, and The Heights Country Club, The Oasis, The Valley, Rashid Yachts and Marina and Grand Polo Club and Resort as the rising group.
Its pages list a presence in Saudi Arabia, India, Pakistan, Egypt, Morocco, Turkey and Lebanon as well. These are Emaar’s own descriptions, read on 15 November 2026 on its About page, its investor-relations page and its investor FAQ, and they are company-level statements, not statements about Serro. A profile of the company is on this site as the Emaar developer profile, within the directory of Dubai developers.
A reservation in Dubai is followed by a sale and purchase agreement, and the questions below are answered most reliably in that document or in an attachment to it. They follow from the gaps in the published pages, and none is a comment on any party. The list is the normal checklist for an off-plan purchase of a villa.
The answers should be on paper before money is paid. A broker’s page, including those quoted in this guide, is not a substitute, since each of them carries a notice that prices and availability change. The most useful single document for the first questions is the price list with unit numbers.
Serro is one of three collections that Emaar lists for The Heights Country Club and Wellness. Serro 2 and Salva are separate releases with their own guides on this site, and the Emaar pages for them are read separately.
Emaar’s brochure map also shows Emaar South, Expo Living, The Valley and The Oasis near the community, and several existing listings on this site are in or near those communities. The table lists them with what the developer’s Latest Launches page showed for each on 15 November 2026 where it showed anything. A link to a page that is not yet published will work once the guide is live.
| Listing | Community | Latest Launches card, 15 November 2026 | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serro 2 | The Heights Country Club and Wellness | Just launched; no price or unit count printed | Serro 2 guide |
| Salva | The Heights Country Club and Wellness | Just launched; from AED 6.76M; 17 units available on that date | Salva guide |
| Golf Trails | Emaar South | Just launched; from AED 1.91M; 16 units available on that date | Golf Trails guide |
| Vista Ridge | Emaar South | Just launched; from AED 2.61M; 10 units available on that date | Vista Ridge guide |
| Ovelle | The Valley | from AED 8.89M; 5 units available on that date | Ovelle guide |
| Alana | The Valley | Not in the card list read for this guide | Alana guide |
| Terra Woods | Expo Living | Just launched; from AED 1.60M; 25 units available on that date | Terra Woods guide |
Two listings by other developers describe villas and townhouses in the same wider part of Dubai. DAMAC Riverside is filed under Dubai Investment Park, a name that Emaar’s brochure map also labels, and DAMAC Islands is filed under Dubailand. They are different developers, communities and products, and the guides do not compare them with Serro on price or quality. For the wider market context, the Dubai market guide, the UAE pages and the Dubai pages are the starting points on this site.
It is the name used here for Serro, a release of 3 to 5 bedroom villas that Emaar lists in The Heights Country Club and Wellness. Emaar’s page labels it Just launched and prints a starting price of AED 6,000,000. The page prints no handover date, payment plan or villa count, and the brokers’ figures for those points are shown with their sources in this guide.
The developer page prints a Starting price of AED 6,000,000, about USD 1,633,764 at 3.6725, for 3-5 bedroom villas, without naming a unit type or the word from. The Latest Launches card shows no price. Brokers print AED 6.5 million to AED 6.9 million as their starting figures, and their per-bedroom prices are in the price section.
Emaar’s page prints no handover quarter, checked 15 November 2026. Property Finder, APIL Properties and Inside Realty print Q1 2030, with Property Finder adding an expected completion of 31 March 2030, and A1 Properties prints Q4 2029. The binding date is the one in the sale and purchase agreement.
Emaar’s floor-plan file for Phase 1 prints total areas of 310.30 to 546.67 m², or 3,340.04 to 5,884.30 sq ft, for nine plans from 3 to 5 bedrooms. The totals include the carport and the terraces and balconies, which are between about 18 and 31 percent of the total by calculation. The file does not say which plans belong to Serro.
Emaar prints no tenure. Property Finder and Inside Realty print freehold. The UAE government portal ties foreign ownership in Dubai to areas designated as freehold. A buyer should have the tenure and the plot number written into the agreement, since broker pages are not the register.
The DLD page for registering an initial sale names 2 percent of the sale value for the seller and 2 percent for the purchaser, plus AED 10 knowledge and AED 10 innovation fees. Brokers print a 4 percent government fee. The contract states who pays which share, so the split should be asked for in writing.
No eligibility is claimed. The UAE portal states a minimum capital of AED 2 million through property ownership, and the DLD service page describes a 10-year permit for a property bought at AED 2 million or more and lists a title deed among documents. How that applies to an off-plan villa is a question for the authority.
Emaar’s community page prints 10 minutes’ drive to Al Maktoum International Airport and Expo City Dubai, 20 to Dubai Hills Estate and 30 to Downtown Dubai. Brokers print other figures, from 12 minutes to 35-40 minutes for Downtown Dubai and 18 km in one case, so the routes should be measured.
They are three collections in the same community, each with its own page on emaar.com. On 15 November 2026 the Salva card printed from AED 6.76M with 17 units available, while the Serro and Serro 2 cards printed neither. The floor-plan file is titled for Salva and Serro together.
Last checked: 15 November 2026. Sources:
Dirham figures are converted to dollars at the pegged rate of 3.6725 per USD, and every conversion, area share and day count is arithmetic on the printed figures, not a quotation. This is not legal, tax or financial advice.
