# Off-plan handover in Dubai: smart home planning before you move in > What to check and add at off-plan handover in Dubai, from curtain motors and AC to Wi-Fi and leak valves, before furniture makes changes harder. Source: https://staging.avario.ae/articles/just-got-your-keys/ Updated: 2026-11-02 The weeks between off-plan handover and moving in are the easiest time to plan your smart home in Dubai. First check what the developer has fitted. Then add the things that are hardest to fit later: curtain motors, lighting keypads, a water shut-off valve and good Wi-Fi. The rooms are empty and the curtains aren't made yet. No wardrobes block the walls, so cables, motors and sensors go in with far less disruption. This guide covers what to check on handover day and what to add before your own finishes go in. It also explains how to choose between wired and wireless for the home you've just received. ## Why plan at handover rather than after you move in? Every job is smaller in an empty home. Our engineer can reach ceilings, curtain boxes and the distribution board (your fuse board) without moving a sofa or taking down a finished curtain. Once wardrobes, wallpaper and curtains are in, the same work means more dust and more protection. Sometimes it means undoing something you've just paid for. A track made for a manual curtain may need changing for a motor, and a water shut-off valve is a much bigger job once kitchen cabinets hide the pipes. Living elsewhere while the work happens helps too. Nobody has to work around school runs or sleep in a room full of tools. ## What should you check on handover day? Note what the developer has already fitted and where the gaps are. Walk the home with your smart home plans in mind as well as your snagging list. If you'd like help, our engineer can join your handover or snagging inspection on the day and check these points with you. - Any smart system, thermostats or app the developer installed, and whether you've been given the passwords and settings file - The AC type (split, ducted, VRF or chilled-water fan coils) and where each thermostat sits. We connect all AC brands and types, so this tells us how to connect, not whether we can - Wall data points in each room, and where the router or network cabinet is - Curtain boxes: whether there is power nearby for a motor, and room for a motorised track - The main water shut-off, and whether you can still reach the pipes behind access panels - Your front door: what it's made of and how much direct sun it gets, as both affect which smart lock suits it - The building intercom: who made it and what the building allows you to change - Wi-Fi coverage from the developer's router, room by room ## What does the developer still have to fix after handover? For one year from the date you take the unit, the developer must repair or replace defective installations. These include electrical, mechanical and plumbing work. Dubai's law on jointly owned property sets this rule, and it covers apartment buildings and other shared developments. Read your developer's handover terms before any smart home work starts, because they may say how changes you make affect those repairs. Report any snags in writing. ## Wired or wireless: which suits your new home? For most off-plan apartments handed over finished, wireless is the sensible choice. Wired KNX, the cabling standard most wired systems use, needs cable runs that are hard to add once walls are plastered. In the UAE we use Zigbee for wireless control. It's a radio standard that links switches, sensors and motors without new cables, and our team usually installs a wireless system in a couple of days. Our guide to [wireless smart homes in Dubai](https://staging.avario.ae/articles/wireless-smart-home/) explains when it works and when to wire. Wired KNX makes more sense in a villa you're building or about to renovate heavily. For new villas of three bedrooms or more, we advise KNX. In an apartment that isn't KNX ready, the best time for it is a major renovation. Our [KNX automation guide](https://staging.avario.ae/articles/knx-automation/) explains how it works. On a wired job, we can work with your MEP team (the contractor handling mechanical, electrical and plumbing work) or have our own team run the cable. During the main wiring stage, we check the contractor's work every two days. ## What should you add before your finishes go in? Start with whatever is hardest to add later. Most Dubai homes control lighting, AC and curtains first, and two of those touch your fit-out directly. - Motorised curtains and blinds: we work alongside your curtain supplier so tracks, motors and power line up. We fit wired motors, or wireless ones on Somfy or Zigbee. Somfy and Aqara are our favourite brands to work with - Lighting control: decide where keypads go and which scenes you want before you choose wallpaper or wall panels. We provide lighting design and can supply the fittings, or work with your lighting contractor - AC control: schedules, separate control for each room, and the option to start cooling from the app before you get home - Leak protection: wireless sensors under sinks and near the water heater, linked to an automatic shut-off valve. Your MEP contractor fits the valve while the pipes are still reachable. If you don't have one, we arrange one - Wi-Fi: most UAE apartments already have wall data points, so we can usually reuse that cable for wall-mounted access points. We design and install Ubiquiti UniFi networks - Smart lock and intercom: we fit locks from makers including Oji, Tedee, Yale and Aqara. They link to Akuvox intercoms and UniFi Protect, so you can see a visitor and open the door from one app - Cameras: we use UniFi Protect, and recordings are saved in your home, with cloud backup as an option ## Can you connect to the building's own intercom? Usually not. Most built-in building intercoms don't allow a third-party system to connect, because doing so would void their warranty. Your own door camera and intercom normally run alongside the lobby system instead. Keep this in mind when you decide where the indoor screen goes. ## What if the developer already fitted a smart system? Ask for the passwords and the configuration file (the settings file that tells the system what each switch does) before you sign off handover. Without them, nobody can change or extend the system. If you have the files, you choose what happens next. We can keep the developer's system and add to it, or replace the hub, the small box that runs your system, with Symphony. Symphony is our automation platform, designed to make large, complex homes easier to manage. If the file is missing, we rebuild the configuration and you keep a copy. On a wired system with no file and no installer to ask, we rebuild it and replace the hub with Symphony. Our guide to [moving into a home with an existing smart system](https://staging.avario.ae/articles/buying-home-with-smart-system/) covers this step by step. ## What affects the cost? The cost depends on the size of your home, whether you go wired or wireless, how much you want to control and which brands you choose. Timing matters too. Planning at handover usually keeps the job smaller, because nothing finished has to be undone. A shut-off valve is a good example: fitting one while the pipes are reachable is a far smaller job than retrofitting it behind finished cabinets. You don't have to wait for a visit to get a first figure. Send us your floor plans and we'll prepare a budgetary estimate: [request an estimate from your floor plans](https://staging.avario.ae/articles/request-estimate/). ## What happens after you contact us? We get in touch the next business day to arrange a visit. Our engineer checks your wiring, AC units, data points and curtain boxes, then maps your Wi-Fi signal using UniFi tools. You usually get a written quote two days after the visit. Our own team handles all programming and commissioning (setting up and testing everything). When the work is finished, you get the system drawings, a wiring schedule, written records and your passwords. On KNX systems you also get the ETS project file, which is the programming file KNX uses. We then run a training session for your household. If the internet goes down, you can still use the app inside your home over your Wi-Fi. If the home network goes down as well, your keypads keep working. ## Questions people ask - Should I wait until I've moved in? No. Once furniture, curtains and wardrobes are in, the same work needs more protection and can mean undoing finished work. The empty weeks after handover are the easiest time. - Do I need wired KNX in an off-plan apartment? Usually not. A finished apartment suits wireless Zigbee control, which our team installs in a couple of days. KNX fits best when you're planning a major renovation. - Will my smart home stop working if the internet goes down? No. Inside your home you can still use the app over your Wi-Fi, and the keypads work even if the network is down. Smart locks keep working at the door, but remote access stops until the connection returns. - Can I get an estimate before handover? Yes. We can prepare a budgetary estimate from your floor plans or the developer's drawings. After the home visit, you get a written quote. - What should I get from the developer at handover? Passwords and configuration files for anything smart already installed, plus details of the AC system and the intercom. Ask for them before you sign off handover. ## Your next step Book a [home visit or engineering survey](https://staging.avario.ae/articles/book-survey/) while the home is still empty. Our engineer checks what the developer has fitted, and you get a written quote for what to add.