The legal process is as follows:
It is necessary to complete 2 procedures to complete a purchase
- 1) Justus titulus: Legal entitlement to the property
- 2) Registration with the Area Property Registry
A written contract is required which is signed by both the buyer and seller, (or elected legal representatives), of the respective property. Signatures of both parties must be lodged at a local court.
Before moving to contract stage it is necessary for the sellers ownership papers to be checked in the local land registry. Sometimes properties can have disputed ownership and only properties with clean ownership should be considered
It is often common to sign a pre-contract which will be legally binding to both parties and require a 10% deposit from the buyer. The pre-contract will specify the selling price of the property and timetable for completion of the main contract
Signing a power of attorney with a local lawyer can be done quickly in a local court, which is open 09:00 to 14:00 Monday to Friday. You will need your passport. After the completion of the main contract including exchange of monies the inland revenue will determine an appropriate taxable value and a 3% tax will be levied on this value.
When the 3% tax has been paid it is confirmed with a court stamp and the contract is then passed to the local area land registry for registration of the property. At this stage the purchase should be complete.