PROCESS OF PURCHASING REAL ESTATE
In Italy, foreign citizens are allowed to acquire all types of properties in full ownership, including undeveloped land plots, as well as shares or stakes in companies that own real estate in Italy.
STAGES
- Search for a property and prepare for the transaction.
- Reservation of the property.
- Conclusion of the contract.
- Payment for the property.
- Registration of property rights.
PREPARATION FOR THE TRANSACTION
After choosing a property (you can do this yourself or with our help remotely), you need to obtain an identification tax code.
Codice Fiscale is an individual number that encodes personal data (analogous to TIN).
It is necessary for any transactions with government agencies in Italy.
In Italy, you can get it at the local tax office (we help in guaranteed receipt of Codice Fiscale), or at the Italian consulate in your country of residence.
We also provide support in the process of opening an account in an Italian bank (depending on the country of residence, we can do this without the client’s presence).
The buyer transfers the required amount from an account in his country. The purchase can also be paid for by transferring directly to the seller’s account or to the trust account of the notary conducting the transaction.
In the future, it will be possible to pay for utilities from this account.
PROPERTY RESERVATION
The Italian real estate market has a peculiarity of conducting negotiations in writing.
First, the buyer makes a written offer to the seller (proposta di acquisto). The latter can either immediately agree or offer counter-terms.
The proposta di acquisto specifies not only the desired price, but also the terms of conclusion of further contracts.
When the seller accepts the purchase offer, the buyer transfers a deposit to him. As a rule, this is 10% of the price of the property.
In the future, if one of the parties fails to complete the transaction, this will entail financial liability for them.
If the buyer refuses, he will lose the deposit. If the seller changes his mind, he will have to return the deposit in double the amount. Penalties are also specified in the purchase offer.
At this stage, we also thoroughly study the documents provided by the seller on the right of ownership of the property.
CONCLUSION OF THE CONTRACT
PRELIMINARY CONTRACT
The conclusion of a preliminary contract is not mandatory. It is signed if the transaction is extended over time, the payment is divided into tranches, or one of the parties insists on it.
If the buyer is ready to pay the entire amount at once, the final purchase and sale contract is usually signed.
The preliminary agreement is certified by a notary and contains the following information:
- Personal data of the seller and the buyer
- The cost of the property and the payment procedure, including the amount of the deposit
- Description of the property and its cadastral data
After signing the agreement, the notary begins to check the property documents provided by the seller, during which it is determined whether the seller is actually the owner, whether the property is mortgaged, or whether there are any other reasons preventing the transaction.
If the check shows that it is impossible to sell the property, the transaction is considered to have failed due to the fault of the seller and he bears financial liability to the buyer in the form of double the amount of the deposit.
After signing the preliminary agreement, the seller does not have the right to cancel his decision to sell the property. The transaction is considered completely irreversible. At this stage, the buyer pays for the agent’s services.
SALE AND PURCHASE AGREEMENT
The main purchase and sale agreement – the deed (contratto notariledi compravendita) – is signed by the seller and the buyer (the authorized representative) at a notary and is subject to notarization.
If it is impossible to be present in person when signing the agreement, the buyer issues a corresponding power of attorney to the authorized representative.
With a buyer (authorized representative) who does not speak Italian, the signing of the deed takes place according to the following scheme:
The services of the interpreter and witnesses are paid by the buyer.
It is important to remember that by the time of signing the main agreement, the buyer is obliged to pay taxes, the notary’s fee and the agent’s fee.
Only after this will it be possible to sign the deed.
At this stage, the cost of the property is also fully paid by a covered check or an advance bank transfer.
An interpreter and two witnesses who speak two languages are present at the transaction.
PAYMENT OF THE TRANSACTION
Payment in Italy is usually made by so-called covered checks. These financial documents are issued by the Italian bank in which the buyer has an account.
On the day of signing the notarial contract of sale, the buyer gives the check to the buyer.
You can also transfer funds in advance from an account abroad to the notary’s trust account, who will transfer them to the seller after all the terms of the contract have been met.
You can also transfer funds from the buyer’s account to the seller’s account during the transaction.
REGISTRATION OF OWNERSHIP
After signing the main contract, the state registration of the transaction takes place.
The notary transfers all the information to the cadastral office.
Registration of ownership takes from several days to 3 months, depending on the municipality to which the cadastre belongs.
However, the ownership itself is transferred at the time of signing the deed, along with the keys.
The new owner receives the original deed after its registration with government agencies.