Clients rarely turn down the unit itself. What stops them is usually a number they do not understand: an installment that looks too big, a down payment they cannot raise yet, or a total higher than the figure they saw in the ad. Your job as a consultant is to put those numbers in front of them in a clear order and to answer each question with a figure or a contract clause. This guide walks through the preparation and the six objections you hear most.
Before the meeting: prepare the numbers
Do not walk into a presentation and start calculating on your phone in front of the client. At least an hour before, collect:
- The official unit price from the written offer, and the date the offer expires.
- The down payment (DP, المقدم) percentage, and whether it is one payment or several.
- The plan length and frequency (monthly, quarterly, semi-annual or annual), and when the first installment falls due.
- Any discount, and whether it applies before or after the down payment.
- The maintenance deposit (وديعة الصيانة): its percentage, the price it is based on, and when it is due.
- Charges outside the price: garage, club, any payment at delivery.
- The delivery date written in the contract, not the one mentioned in conversation.
Enter these in the payment plan calculator in the CalcRealty app. It gives you the down payment, the installments and a full schedule with the date, amount and percentage of every payment. Save the calculation and export it as a PDF. The file comes out in the app language, so for a client who reads English, switch the app to English before exporting. Export needs an account, and an ad may play first. The guide to sending an installment PDF on WhatsApp covers the steps for sharing it.
Order the presentation the way the client thinks
A client asks three questions, in this order: what do I pay today, what do I pay each period, and what do I pay in total? Answer them in the same order:
- Due at signing: the down payment and any booking amount.
- The installment: amount, frequency and the date of the first one.
- The total: down payment, all installments, the maintenance deposit and other charges.
Do not hold the total back until the end. A client who discovers the deposit after falling for the unit feels misled, even if the figure was in the contract from the start.
Illustrative example with hypothetical numbers
A unit priced at EGP 4,000,000, a 10% down payment, the rest over 8 years in quarterly installments, an 8% maintenance deposit, no discount.
| Item | Calculation | Amount (EGP) |
|---|---|---|
| Due at signing | 4,000,000 × 10% | 400,000 |
| Number of installments | 8 × 4 | 32 |
| Quarterly installment | 3,600,000 ÷ 32 | 112,500 |
| Monthly equivalent | 112,500 ÷ 3 | 37,500 |
| Maintenance deposit | 4,000,000 × 8% | 320,000 |
| Total | 400,000 + 3,600,000 + 320,000 | 4,320,000 |
The full method, including how different discount types change the figures, is in the down payment and installments guide.
Answering the usual objections
The lines below are illustrative wording, not quotes from real clients.
"The installment is too high" (القسط كبير)
First ask: too high compared with what? A monthly salary, or income that arrives in lumps? Clients often set a quarterly installment against a monthly salary. In the example, EGP 112,500 every three months equals EGP 37,500 a month, and the total is the same whether they pay monthly or quarterly.
If the figure really is beyond them, three things can move: a larger down payment that shrinks the balance, a longer plan if the developer offers one, or a cheaper unit. Ask the developer first whether the longer plan keeps the same price or costs more. According to Egypt Independent in September 2025, businessman Naguib Sawiris said developers compete on payment periods as well as prices, and that payment plans had stretched to up to 12 years. If you show a longer plan, show its total next to the shorter one.
Possible wording: "Let's look at it monthly: 37,500 a month. If that is still heavy, let's try a 15% down payment and see where the installment lands."
With a 15% down payment in the same example, the down payment is EGP 600,000 and the remaining 3,400,000 over 32 installments comes to EGP 106,250 a quarter.
"The down payment is too high" (المقدم عالي)
Ask the developer first whether the down payment can be split into two or three payments. If it can, put that in the calculation. If the client is comparing with a project that asks for less upfront, show the total and the installment in both cases: a smaller down payment means a bigger balance and a higher installment, unless the plan is longer.
One point for a client planning to resell later: a legal study published by Masrawy on 19 September 2026 noted that some developers launch new units in the same project with lower down payments and longer plans, which can make resale harder for early buyers. Do not use this to scare anyone, but say it honestly if the client asks about resale.
"Isn't cash cheaper?" (الكاش أرخص؟)
In total pounds, yes, if the cash price is below the installment price. The better question is what that gap costs per year. Dividing the difference by the number of years gives the wrong figure, because the balance falls with every installment. The comparing payment plans guide explains present value and the implied yearly cost with a formula and an example; use it with a client who actually has the cash.
If the developer offers a cash discount, find out how it is calculated and what counts as cash: one payment, or a few months of payments. The guide to developer discounts and cash prices covers this.
"When will I get the unit?" (هستلم إمتى؟)
Read the date from the contract, not the brochure. Then explain what happens if delivery is late: is there delay compensation, how much, and is it capped? The study Masrawy published in September 2026 found delay compensation in some contracts as low as 0.25% a year, with a total cap of 2% of the unit price, and cases of delays reaching 10 years or more. That alone is reason never to promise a client a date.
If the client needs to move in soon, explain the difference between off-plan and ready units before comparing prices.
"What is this maintenance deposit?" (الصيانة دي إيه؟)
The maintenance deposit is an amount on top of the unit price, paid to the developer for the upkeep of shared areas. It does not reduce the down payment or the installments. According to the study Masrawy published on 19 September 2026 after reviewing more than 40 contracts, some contracts set the deposit at up to 10% of the unit price, and in some cases it was collected before handover.
Possible wording: "The deposit is 8%, so 320,000, due at delivery under the contract. It is not part of the installments, and I have included it in your total from the start."
Who manages the money and how it differs from service charges is covered in the maintenance deposit guide.
"Someone else is offering it cheaper" (فيه حد عارض أرخص)
Do not argue before you see the other offer. Ask for it in writing and line it up against yours item by item: price, area, down payment, installment and frequency, deposit, extras and delivery. "Cheaper" sometimes means a lower price for a smaller unit, no garage, or a higher deposit. The steps are in comparing two developer offers.
Mistakes that cost you the closing
- Quoting a figure from memory that turns out wrong in the contract.
- Showing only the installment and leaving the total and the deposit for later.
- Setting one project's monthly installment against another's quarterly one.
- Promising a delivery date or a price rise. If it does not happen, the client stops trusting you.
- Forgetting the offer's expiry date, so the client comes back a week later to new prices.
Frequently asked questions
Should I present the plan on paper or on my phone?
Both. Walk through it in the meeting from the saved calculation, then send the PDF so the client can review it with family. The file stays the single record of the numbers you gave.
What if the client asks for a plan the developer does not offer?
Say clearly that it is not available, and show the closest real alternative: a different down payment or length from the plans the developer has announced. Do not calculate a plan that does not exist.
Should the maintenance deposit sit inside the total or on its own line?
Both: its own line with amount and due date, and inside the total. The client sees the full figure and understands it is not part of the installments.
How do I explain terms like DP, over and delivery?
One plain sentence per term. The consultant's glossary of client questions has short ready answers, and the real estate glossary has the full definitions.
Run the numbers before the meeting
The payment plan calculator in CalcRealty gives you the down payment, monthly, quarterly, semi-annual or annual installments, the maintenance deposit and a full schedule you can export as a PDF in Arabic or English; you can also save the calculation or share it as an image. Get CalcRealty on Google Play.
Results are planning estimates; the developer contract sets the final amounts.