Buying Real Estate: Legal Checks Before You Sign

Buying an apartment, a house or land is the largest single transaction in most people's lives. And yet, the common practice is to sign a "standard" contract obtained from an agency or from the seller, without any legal review. The risk is not theoretical: buyers lose both their money and the property because of encumbrances, third-party rights or unresolved ownership issues that could have been discovered in a single day.

First and most important: the property title deed

Before any negotiations, obtain a current property title deed from the Agency for Real Estate Cadastre and check:

• Who is registered as the owner: the seller must be identical to the person in the title deed. "We will sort out the registry records later" is a sentence that should end every conversation.
• Encumbrances and restrictions: mortgages, enforcement proceedings, prohibitions on disposal, easements, rights of usufruct, notes of pending disputes.
• Whether the property is legal: whether what is being sold physically corresponds to what is registered, or whether there are unauthorized additions and conversions.

Deposit and preliminary agreement: obligations before the main contract

When a deposit is given, the rules must be clearly agreed: what happens if the buyer withdraws, and what happens if the seller withdraws (return in double the amount). In more complex transactions, a preliminary agreement is concluded with precise deadlines and conditions. Both the deposit and the preliminary agreement are binding legal acts: a careless formulation here costs dearly later.

The main contract and the notary public

A real estate sale contract must be certified (notarized) before a notary public in order to produce legal effect. Key points the contract must regulate precisely:

• An exact description of the property according to the cadastre data
• Price, method and schedule of payment, and protection when paying before the transfer
• The moment of handover into possession and the consequences of delay
• The seller's warranties that the property is free of encumbrances and third-party rights
• Who bears the taxes and costs (property transfer tax, notary fees, registration)

Registration is not a formality

Ownership is acquired by registration in the cadastre, not by signing the contract. Until the transfer is registered, the buyer is exposed: the seller can theoretically encumber or even "sell" the property again. That is why the payment schedule should always be tied to the steps of the registration process.

Buying an apartment in a building under construction

A separate category of risk: check the building permit, the investor's right over the land, whether the same apartment has not been sold to someone else, and how your payment is secured while the building is unfinished and unregistered. Investors' contracts are drafted in their favor: every clause can and should be negotiated.

The most common pitfalls from practice

• Heirs selling before the probate procedure is completed
• A spouse who has not signed, even though the property is marital community property
• Unpaid utility bills and prior owner's reservations carried over with the property
• A parking space or basement that "comes with the apartment" but does not exist in the title deed

Related service: Real Estate Law

This text is general legal information and does not constitute legal advice for a specific case. For advice tailored to your situation, consult an attorney.