In an apartment renovation, the building usually constrains you more than the authority does. Tower management issues its own renovation guidelines, an approved-contractor list, a refundable deposit, permitted working hours and a service-lift booking regime, and those rules set the pace of most Dubai apartment projects. The Property Masters handles both layers: the building's NOC and access rules, and the authority submission where the works move walls, wet areas or services. You get one licensed contractor, a fixed price after a site visit and a 12-month defects-liability period in line with UAE market practice.
What needs a permit, and what does not
The line is whether the works touch structure, services or wet areas.
- Generally no authority permit: painting, flooring over an existing screed, replacing joinery, like-for-like re-tiling, and lighting changes within the existing circuits.
- Permit territory: removing or moving a partition, relocating a kitchen or bathroom, re-routing plumbing or drainage, and altering the AC layout.
See internal modification approval for where that line sits. Your building will also have a view, and it is a separate one: many towers require an NOC even for works that need no authority permit at all.
The building's rules set the programme
The tower sets these commercial terms, not the authority, and they usually pace the job:
- Renovation NOC and guidelines, issued by tower management, often with a refundable deposit.
- Approved-contractor list: some buildings will not admit a contractor who is not on it.
- Working-hours windows, typically restricted and often excluding weekends.
- Service-lift booking: deliveries and debris removal both compete for it, and it most often stretches an apartment programme.
- Debris and protection: routes, coverings and disposal are usually specified.
- Wet-area rules: many buildings require waterproofing sign-off before tiling closes it up.
We deal with the building directly, so access and paperwork constraints are built into the programme from the start.
Wet areas are where apartment renovations fail
A leak in an apartment is the ceiling of the unit below, so the work is done differently:
- Waterproofing is rebuilt, not patched. A new membrane over a compromised one fails at the joint.
- Falls are set to the drain before tiling.
- Moisture-resistant substrates go everywhere water reaches, with sealed edges.
- Pipework is pressure-tested before anything closes over it.
- Sign-off is photographed at each stage. Several buildings require it, and it is worth having regardless.
What apartment renovation costs
An apartment renovation is priced against the general fit-out bands, which start from AED 250 (Essential), AED 450 (Premium), AED 800 (Luxury) per square foot, before 5% VAT and a typical ~10% contingency.
An apartment is the base the other property types are indexed against: villas run roughly 1.8x and townhouses roughly 1.4x. Within an apartment, the swing items are the amount of joinery, whether wet areas move and whether the AC layout changes.
The fit-out cost guide lists the five costs outside the rate and what moves an apartment between bands.
How the programme runs in an occupied building
- Survey and permit scoping: establish what needs approval, and read the building's renovation guidelines before designing to them.
- Building NOC: submitted with the contractor's documents and the deposit.
- Authority submission, where the works require one.
- Access planning: service-lift slots, working hours and protection routes.
- Strip-out and build, sequenced around the access windows.
- Snagging and handover: defects are closed, the deposit refund is pursued and the defects-liability period begins.
The approval sequence sets the date more than the build does; see what sets your fit-out timeline.
Renovating a specific room? See kitchen renovation and bathroom renovation. For the whole picture, see the renovation hub, or villa renovation if you are in a villa.
Renovating an apartment to let as a holiday home? Our holiday home furnishing page covers DET's checklist for apartments, from bedroom sizes to the smart lock. The room-by-room DET furnishing checklist goes through each item.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need permission to renovate my apartment in Dubai?
Two separate permissions, and you may need one without the other. Your building almost always requires a renovation NOC, often with a refundable deposit and an approved-contractor list, even for cosmetic works. An authority permit is needed on top of that when the works move walls, wet areas or services. Like-for-like finishes generally need only the building's NOC.
Can I move my apartment's kitchen or bathroom?
Sometimes, but it is a services decision before it is a design one. Relocating a kitchen or bathroom means re-routing drainage and water, which is permit territory and is constrained by where the building's risers run. We confirm feasibility from the existing services layout during the survey, not from the floor plan.
What are the usual working-hour restrictions?
The building sets them, not the authority, so they vary. Restricted daytime windows on weekdays are typical, often with weekend work excluded, and noisy works are sometimes limited further. Service-lift access is usually booked in slots and shared with other units. We build these constraints into the programme.
How much does an apartment renovation cost in Dubai?
Indicatively, from AED 250 per square foot for an essential specification, AED 450 for premium and AED 800 for luxury, before 5% VAT and a typical 10% contingency. An apartment is the base rate against which other property types are indexed. The swing items are the amount of joinery, whether wet areas move, and whether the AC layout changes.
What happens to my building deposit?
It is refundable after handover, subject to the building's own conditions: typically that the works matched the approved scope, the common areas were not damaged and debris was removed properly. Tower management sets the deposit as a commercial term, and the conditions are in the renovation guidelines issued with the NOC.
How do you protect the apartment below from leaks?
We rebuild waterproofing instead of patching it, set falls to the drain before tiling, pressure-test pipework before anything closes over it and photograph sign-off at each stage. A leak in an apartment becomes the neighbour's ceiling, so wet areas get the most process in the whole job.