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Off-Plan or Completed: How to Read a Handover Date Across 5 Markets
Off-plan spreads the payments; completed stock earns from day one. How deposits are protected in 5 markets, and how to read a NAC handover date.
Buying off-plan lets you pay in stages and usually enter at launch pricing, in exchange for construction risk and no rental income until handover. Completed stock flips that: you pay almost everything up front, but the unit can be let straight away. The deciding question isn't which is better in general. It's how far local law protects your money before you get the keys – and that protection varies enormously between Dubai, Australia, Thailand, Vietnam and the UK.
Source: betterhomes via TradeArabia (Jan 2026); Vietnam Law 29/2023/QH15; Dubai Law No. 8 of 2007; Australian Treasury (Feb 2025)
Most off-plan advice is written for domestic buyers in a single market. Vietnamese investors are usually weighing a Bangkok condo, a Dubai tower and a Sydney project at the same time – three legal systems and three payment cultures. This guide puts the rules side by side, then uses real project data from the NAC Residence Index scores to show how to read a handover date properly.
Two Ways to Pay, Two Kinds of Risk
When you buy off-plan you're not only buying a home, you're helping fund its construction. In return you spread payments over several years, get first pick of the units at launch, and keep any price gains made while the building goes up. The cost is three distinct risks: delay, developer financial distress, and a finished unit that doesn't match the brochure.
With completed stock you can walk the unit, the building and the neighbourhood. You know the achievable rent rather than a projection, and income can start next month. The trade-off is more capital up front and usually a narrower choice of units.
In Dubai, off-plan is the market. According to betterhomes' full-year 2025 report, off-plan deals made up 65% of residential transactions and 53% of value, in a year of about 203,000 transactions worth AED 547 billion, as reported by TradeArabia in January 2026. In Dubai, buying a home that doesn't yet exist is the normal way to buy.
Where Your Money Sits Before Handover
This is the question that matters most, and the answer depends entirely on local law.
| Market | How off-plan buyers are protected | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Dubai | Buyer payments go into a project-specific escrow account, usable only for that project's construction | Escrow account details match Dubai Land Department records |
| Vietnam | Deposit capped at 5%; first payment at 30%; no more than 70% before handover (domestic developers); developer must hold a bank guarantee | The guarantee letter – or a written waiver if you decline it |
| Australia (NSW) | Developer can only rescind under a sunset clause with buyer consent or a Supreme Court order | The sunset date in the contract |
| Thailand | Escrow is voluntary; direct payment to the developer is the norm | The developer's track record and balance sheet |
| UK | Typically a deposit on exchange, balance on completion | The deposit percentage and the project's payment schedule |
Dubai runs the tightest escrow regime in this group. Dubai Law No. 8 of 2007%20of%202007%20Concerning%20Escrow%20Accounts%20for%20Real%20Estate%20Development%20in%20the%20Emirate%20of%20Dubai.html) requires every off-plan payment to go into an escrow account held in the project's name with an accredited escrow agent. Article 9 dedicates that account exclusively to building that project and puts it beyond the reach of the developer's creditors. After the completion certificate, 5% stays in escrow for a further year after the units are registered to buyers. If the project stalls, the escrow agent must see that it is either completed or that buyers are refunded.
In Dubai, buying a home that doesn't yet exist is the normal way to buy.
Vietnam tightened its rules in August 2024. The 2023 Law on Real Estate Business, in force since 1 August 2024, caps deposits at 5% of the price and allows them only once a project is cleared for sale, as summarised by LuatVietnam. The first payment can't exceed 30% of the contract value including the deposit; a domestic developer can collect no more than 70% before handover, and no more than 95% before the buyer receives the ownership certificate. Developers must carry a bank guarantee, but buyers may waive it in writing – and then carry that risk themselves. One caveat: a July 2026 draft amendment proposes moving the 30% and 70% caps from the law into a decree, so the detail may still change.
Australia protects buyers differently: by limiting cancellation. Since 2015, New South Wales law has allowed a developer to rescind an off-plan contract under a sunset clause only with the buyer's written consent or a Supreme Court order, after at least 28 days' notice (Conveyancing Amendment (Sunset Clauses) Act 2015). It targets a very real risk: a developer running down the clock to cancel and resell at a higher price in a rising market.
Thailand leaves buyers to protect themselves. An Escrow Act has existed since 2008, but using it is voluntary and direct payment to the developer remains the default. For an off-plan unit in Bangkok or Phuket, the developer's standing – often a listed company – is the main layer of protection.
Australia: When Policy Pushes Foreigners Towards Off-Plan
In Australia, the choice isn't entirely yours. Under the Treasury announcement of 16 February 2025, foreign investors – including temporary residents – are barred from buying established homes from 1 April 2025, with limited exceptions; the 2026–27 Budget extended the ban to 30 June 2029. New and off-plan homes are not covered by the ban.
That's why NAC's Australian portfolio is new-build only. Per NAC's listing data, Arncliffe Central on Sydney's airport rail line carries an estimated price of A$783,000, a 5.2% gross yield and an estimated 2028 handover – roughly two years in which your capital earns no rent.
Two projects handing over in 2028 can ask you to pre-fund very different amounts.
How to Read a Handover Date on a NAC Listing
Every NAC listing has a "Handover" line. Reading it correctly is the first step to a fair comparison.
"Completed" or "Ready to move in" describes something that has happened. Per NAC's listing data, Sansiri's XT Phayathai completed in 2022, sits 150 m from BTS Phaya Thai, is priced from $153,000 with a 5.0% gross yield, and scores 69/100. AP's The Address Siam-Ratchathewi completed in August 2022, from $208,000 at 5.0%, scoring 67/100. With stock like this, the yield is something you can test against today's rental market.
"Estimated" or "Targeted" is a promise, not a date. DAMAC Safa Gate on Sheikh Zayed Road shows a targeted Q4 2028 handover on a 20% down, 1%-a-month, 30%-on-handover plan, from $542,000 and scoring 78/100. The Hyatt Regency Ho Tram villas show Q4 2027, from $606,000, with a projected 6.5% yield. In both cases the yield is a forecast, not income already flowing.
The payment schedule matters as much as the date. Two projects handing over in 2028 can ask you to pre-fund very different amounts.
At the low end sits Fulham Reach on the Thames: per NAC's listing data, 90% of the price is due on completion with no interim payments, and completion was anticipated in Q2 2026. For the buyer, that structure behaves more like buying completed stock than buying off-plan.
Off-Plan Is Cheaper – But by How Much?
The familiar pitch for off-plan is "buy at the developer's price". NAC's data paints a more modest picture: projected yields on off-plan projects tend to sit slightly above completed stock nearby, but that gap has to pay for the waiting time with no income.
A simple sum makes the point. If an off-plan unit projects 6% but you wait two years for handover, five years of ownership produce only three years of rent. A completed unit at 5% pays for all five. Off-plan only wins if prices rise enough during construction to fill that hole – and nobody can promise that part.
A practical strategy for Vietnamese investors
Start with the law, not the price list. Before comparing prices, ask which account your deposit lands in and who controls it. In Dubai, ask for the escrow account details; in Vietnam, the bank guarantee letter; in Thailand, look hard at the developer's finances.
Read a handover date as a range, not a point. Plan cash flow for a "Q4 2028" project assuming it could slip a few quarters. If a family milestone – a child starting school, say – depends on that date, lean towards completed stock.
Add up everything you pay before handover, not just the deposit. A 20/50/30 plan feels light at signing, but you still pay 70% before you hold the keys. Set that figure against your liquidity over the next three years.
Anchor the portfolio with completed stock. Many families pair an income-producing unit – such as one of the completed Bangkok projects – with an off-plan position for growth, so the portfolio never depends on a single handover date.
Explore on NAC
See also: NAC's Thailand property portfolio · Every NAC project in the UAE · The UAE Golden Visa programme · NAC Property Hub filters
Frequently asked questions
Is buying off-plan safer in Dubai than in Thailand?
On the legal framework, yes: Dubai requires buyer money to go into a project-specific escrow account, while escrow is voluntary in Thailand. A framework doesn't replace checking each developer, though.
In Vietnam, should I waive the bank guarantee for a better price?
The law lets you, but waiving it removes your financial protection if the developer fails to deliver. Weigh the discount against the risk you'd be taking on.
Can Vietnamese buyers choose an established home in Australia?
Between 1 April 2025 and 30 June 2029 (as extended), foreign investors generally can't buy established homes, with exceptions such as permanent residents. New and off-plan homes remain open, subject to foreign investment approval.
NAC strategic insight
There's no universal answer to "off-plan or completed". Some years and some markets reward buying early; some families need certainty and income now. What NAC does is put projects on the same ruler: handover date, payment schedule, deposit protection, and actual versus projected yield.
If you're weighing a completed unit against an off-plan position, book a consultation with NAC and we'll read the contract and the cash-flow schedule with you before you sign.
Sources
- Dubai Legislation Portal — Law No. 8 of 2007 Concerning Escrow Accounts for Real Estate Development (2007)%20of%202007%20Concerning%20Escrow%20Accounts%20for%20Real%20Estate%20Development%20in%20the%20Emirate%20of%20Dubai.html)
- TradeArabia — Dubai records strongest residential year in 2025, betterhomes report (2026)
- LuatVietnam — Off-plan deposits capped at 5% from 1 August 2024 (2024)
- Australian Treasury — Albanese Government clamping down on foreign purchases of established homes (2025)
- Thai Law Online — Escrow accounts in Thailand: 2026 guide (2026)
