I am not able to answer all your questions but can certainly assist with the mortgage questions as that is what I do.

As a non-resident you can still obtain a mortgage although the lending ratio will be less than normal. You will not be able to get more than 75% of the property value and often less (depending on the lender).

You should also allow about 5% of the property value for costs.

Most local lenders are not very user friendly to non-residents. It can be a time consuming process and at some point you will need to be here to open bank a bank account and/or sign documents.

You also need to be aware that some developments are more difficult to finance than others. The bigger developers may have 20 banks available while small developers may not have any, and anything in between.

That means you should keep this in mind as you select properties. It is doubly important for non residents because only a handful of banks are useful for non-residents.

From finance perspective, I would recommend you look at the main developers such as Nakheel, Emaar, Dubai Properties and perhaps Union Properties.

I hope this helps.

Jack
Property Finance Link