Buying real estate is an extremely stressful job. You have to take care of a lot of things. Once you have selected a property, follow these steps.

Are you buying real estate? Of course, in addition to searching ads, looking at a dozen properties, meeting with real estate agents, you finally found the right one. And now the paperwork begins. The following are the steps and tips you should follow if you want the buying and selling process to end properly, that is, without unwanted consequences.

When buying an apartment or house, carefully check the documentation – extract from the land register, building permit or other relevant building document, use permit and energy certificate.

When buying real estate, first check the ownership registered in the land register of the municipal court in the area where the real estate is located. Also, ask the owner of the property for all the documents about the building and the land he owns, as well as the energy certificate.

Land Registry entry

It is proof of ownership or some other right that may be subject to registration in the land register. Extracts from the land register enjoy public trust and have the evidential force of public documents.

Energy certificate

An energy certificate is a document that presents the energy properties of a building, and it is drawn up by authorized persons for energy certification. The document is usually valid for ten years from the date of its issuance.
The energy certificate of the building is issued for the building, or its special part, for which it is necessary to use energy to maintain the internal design temperature in accordance with its purpose.

New construction

If you are buying an apartment under construction, the investor must provide you with:
Executable/valid building permit or other appropriate act for construction.
the use permit that the building cannot obtain if the construction conditions prescribed by the building permit or other appropriate building act have been deviated from. It is not a bad idea to request an overview of the main project, which is part of the building permit.
It should be noted that the investor, i.e. the owner of the building, is obliged to obtain an energy certificate before issuing a use permit.

Conclusion of the preliminary contract

When buying real estate, it is customary to sign a pre-contract in which the real estate is defined by specifying: land registry data about the real estate, description of the real estate (for an apartment, this is the address, floor, number of the apartment, description of the rooms it consists of and the total area), price, date of conclusion of the final contract , and payment of the down payment for the property.
The down payment is agreed upon so that if the buyer cancels, the down payment is kept by the seller, and if the seller cancels, he must pay the buyer double the amount of the down payment. The usual amount is ten percent of the value of the property. You need to have the preliminary sales contract certified by a notary public.

Purchase contract

In addition to everything stated in the pre-contract, the real estate sale contract usually includes the date of handing over the real estate to the buyer as well as the seller’s guarantee that there are no rights of third parties on the real estate. It is recommended that you entrust the drafting of the (pre)contract to a lawyer, in order to make sure that you are well protected as a buyer.
Have the sales contract certified in multiple copies by a notary public.

Registration of ownership

The right of ownership of the real estate based on the contract of sale is not acquired automatically, but by registration in the land register. Certain documents must be submitted for the registration of real estate ownership based on the sales contract. Ask your agent.