Do
- Return documents in full the first time. A partial submission is not submitted; it sits in a queue until it is complete.
- Tell us immediately if ownership details change, or if the unit is sold or refinanced during the contract.
- Keep the utility account active and in credit throughout onboarding. A disconnected supply stops the inspection, the styling and the photography.
Don’t
- Do not list the property yourself on any booking platform in parallel. Duplicate listings cause double bookings, channel penalties and permit compliance problems.
- Do not let contractors, brokers or a previous tenant hold keys once handover is complete. Access is controlled through us for the duration of the contract.
- Do not book your own stay dates until the calendar is live and you have used the owner booking process.
Once your management contract is signed, onboarding runs as a sequence of dependent stages. Each stage unlocks the next: we cannot apply for the holiday home permit without your documents, we cannot photograph a unit that is not styled, and we cannot publish a listing without an active permit. The single largest cause of a delayed first booking is incomplete owner documentation, so the faster you return what we ask for, the faster the property starts earning.
Your onboarding is run by a dedicated account manager who is your point of contact throughout. You will be introduced by email at the start, and you can reach the team at any time on +971 (4) 392-0202 (phone/WhatsApp) or info@deluxehomes.com.
The onboarding sequence
- Contract signed and account opened. We register you and the property in our system, confirm your payout details and issue your onboarding checklist. Your account manager is introduced at this point.
- You submit the property documentation. This is the stage that most often stalls, and everything downstream waits on it. See the document checklist below.
- We register the property with DET (formerly DTCM) and apply for the holiday home permit. The permit is issued in the owner's name and is a legal requirement for short-term letting in Dubai. We submit the application within 48 hours of receiving your complete documents. DET's own target is one business day after a complete application, subject to its approval.
- We register the property with the building or community management, including access cards, parking allocation, move-in permissions and any tourism-use notification the building requires.
- We inspect the property. A member of the operations team walks the unit and produces a condition report covering furniture, appliances, AC, plumbing, electrics, safety items and the inventory. You receive the report with any recommended works and costs for your approval.
- You approve any works or purchases. Nothing is spent on your property without your written approval. Repairs, replacements and missing-item purchases are agreed with you before we proceed. Spending limits and cost handling: the approval limit is set in your signed agreement; approved costs appear on your monthly statement and are offset against your payout, unless you choose to pay the supplier directly.
- Styling and set-up. We bring the unit to guest-ready standard: linen and towel sets, kitchen and bathroom consumables, welcome amenities, decorative styling and the safety and information items required in a licensed holiday home.
- Connectivity and utilities are confirmed. Utility accounts must be live in the correct name, and Wi-Fi is installed and tested. Every property we manage is equipped with complimentary guest Wi-Fi; where a permanent line is not yet installed in a new building, we run a 5G SIM router in the interim so the property can go live.
- Professional photography. A photographer shoots the styled unit, plus building and amenity imagery. Photos are delivered within 3 working days of the shoot.
- Listing build and pricing. We write the listing copy, set house rules, load the calendar and set the opening rate strategy for your unit based on comparable properties, season and building.
- Distribution and go-live. The listing is published to our website and our booking channels. Once live, the property is bookable and your account manager confirms go-live in writing.
- First booking and handover to operations. From the first confirmed reservation, day-to-day guest management, housekeeping and maintenance move to the operations team, and your reporting cycle begins.
What we need from you
Collect these before your first onboarding call. Scans or clear photographs are acceptable unless we ask for an original.
- Title deed or, for off-plan and pre-handover units, the Oqood / sales purchase agreement
- Passport copy of every registered owner (and Emirates ID and visa page if resident)
- Owner contact details, including a mobile number reachable outside the UAE
- DEWA (or equivalent utility) account number and premise number
- Building or community access details: unit number, parking bay number, access card or fob quantities
- Any existing building approvals, NOCs or tourism-use permissions already issued for the unit
- Bank account details in the owner's name for payouts
- Keys, access cards and fobs handed over in the agreed quantity: at least 2 sets for guests, plus 1 more for each additional bedroom, and 1 spare set kept by our operations team
The permit is yours, and it is non-negotiable
Short-term letting in Dubai is only lawful under a valid DET (formerly DTCM) holiday home permit. The permit is issued against the property and in the owner's name; we act as the licensed operator managing it. That is why we need your ownership and identity documents rather than being able to license the unit ourselves.
Inspection, styling and works
The inspection exists to protect your asset and your revenue. Guests review cleanliness, comfort and working equipment above almost everything else, and a unit that goes live with a failing AC or a stained mattress collects low scores in its first weeks that then suppress its ranking and rate for months.
The condition report separates items into three groups so you can make a commercial decision on each:
| Category | What it means |
| Required | Compliance or safety items, or defects that would stop us letting the unit. These must be resolved before go-live. |
| Recommended | Items that materially affect guest scores and achievable nightly rate. Your call, with our estimate of the revenue impact. |
| Optional | Cosmetic upgrades that lift positioning in the building but are not blocking. |
Photography and listing
Photography happens once, on a fully styled and immaculately clean unit, in the right light. This is why we do not shoot around outstanding works or ahead of styling. Reshooting costs time and pushes go-live back by a full cycle.
You will be shown the listing before it is published so you can check factual details: unit description, bedroom configuration, view, parking and building amenities. Rates, minimum stay and house rules are set by us under the management contract, but your account manager will walk you through the opening strategy so you understand how the number was reached.
- Parking: your building's allocated bay is included in the listing as standard. Almost every property we manage has a parking spot, usually underground. If your unit has no bay, or the bay sits outside the building, tell us at document stage so the listing is accurate.
- Wi-Fi: listed as complimentary for guests. High speed in general, but we do not publish a guaranteed speed.
- Check-in: guests are met by a Guest Relations Officer as the norm. Self check-in applies only in a limited number of properties and cases, and only where the guest has completed online self-identification.
- Security deposit: charged to guests on most channels; some booking platforms handle deposits under their own rules.
After go-live
From the moment the listing is live, the property is in the market and being priced daily against comparable units. Do not expect the calendar to fill instantly: a new listing carries no review history, and the opening period is deliberately used to win the first bookings and reviews that then support higher rates.
- Reporting and statements are issued through the owner portal, where you can see occupancy, revenue and expenses for your unit.
- Landlord payouts are made on the 15th of each month, or the next working day if the 15th is a non-working day, covering the previous month's income and expenses.
- Owner stays are booked through your account manager or the owner portal. A cleaning fee applies to owner stays; the current amount is shown in the owner portal and kept up to date there.
- Permit renewal is managed by us and requires your documents again at renewal. The permit is valid for one year and does not renew automatically; we file the renewal at least 14 days before it expires.
Typical timeline
From complete documentation to first published listing: usually 4 to 6 weeks, provided no major maintenance or other obstacle holds us up. Furnishing takes 2 to 3 weeks for a semi-furnished property and 4 to 6 weeks for an empty one, and runs alongside the permit and our other onboarding tasks. After the photo shoot the listing goes live within about a week, portal by portal, as some platforms take time to review a new listing. Once it is live in our system and on our website, our sales team offers it to clients straight away, and we market new properties actively to win the first bookings quickly. The variable parts are permit issuance, building approvals and any works you approve after the inspection.
Questions during onboarding
Your account manager is the fastest route for anything specific to your unit. For general queries, call or WhatsApp +971 (4) 392-0202 or email info@deluxehomes.com. In an emergency at the property, contact the local emergency services first, then notify us.