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Frequently Asked Questions: The Buying Procedure

Apr 3, 2017 Posted by: LuxuryCroatia.net

Villa with pool and panoramic sea view, near Hvar townThe Buying Procedure in Croatia:

To further help you understand the specifics of the real estate buying procedure in Croatia we have prepared this FAQ section for you.

It is equally aimed for all types of potential buyers as it solves some of the most common questions found while buying Croatia property. Whether you are interested to buy a holiday house in Croatia for your summer vacations, retire in Croatia or simply invest in a Croatian real estate for profit gaining, you will find these frequently asked questions useful.

Croatian Property Buying Procedure:

Q:Can I Have Building Surveys Carried Out?
Building surveys are not that common in Croatia and formal building surveyors as such don’t exist. Having said that, a qualified civil engineer can carry out a survey – as can an architect. The cost of a survey usually depends on the property’s size and location and is likely to cost from €500 upwards. If you wish to have a survey carried out, we would be happy to recommend an independent and qualified Croatian civil engineer, with experience of carrying out surveys in Croatia.
Q:What Choice of Solicitors Do I Have?
There are two choices – find a Croatian solicitor you are comfortable dealing with or alternatively use an in-house solicitor associate to our agency. There are advantages and disadvantages to both options:

Own solicitor advantages:

  • None

Own solicitor disadvantages:

  • Can be much more expensive (up to 2% of purchase price) than in-house solicitor
  • Potential problem with no proven record of his success, no name solicitor, or young solicitor. These are potential problem makers because of no experience, not specialised in real estate matters and large ego which makes conflicts in the buying process to other parties. Many times purchase of real estate failed to complete due to this kind of solicitors!
  • Choosing the “wrong” solicitor, i.e. someone without good experience of property sales to non-Croatians, who will not represent your interest but will charge the fee, even if buying process fail to complete!

Agent’s in-house solicitor advantages:

  • Definitely cheaper than other solicitors (from 1000 EUR to 2000 EUR, which is usually less than 0,5% of purchase price).
    Our agency solicitor is independent solicitor, not employed in the Agency, but independent Lawyer Office (3 independent Lawyers) specialised in real estate legal matters and dealing with number of foreign buyers.
  • Proven experience in countless  real estate sales, particularly to non-Croatians, fluent in English, will translate pre-contract and contract to the English language at no extra fee, give  legal advice for free even before you become client, check the documents of the property status and title, register you/your company as new owner in the land registry court, register your Croatian company (at small extra fee), provide for free all legal advice related to the residency, taxes and other important information which foreign buyer needs, get your OIB number (Croatian tax number).
  • Can easily be given power of attorney should the situation require.
  • Efficient, professional, honest, reliable, at your disposal anytime.
  • Proven experience in property sales, particularly to non-Croatians.

Agent’s in-house solicitor disadvantages:

  • There is no disadvantage, seller hires his own solicitor, agency is mediator.
  • Our recommendation is that you choose the Agency solicitor because of numerous advantages!

Q:How Do I Find a Reputable Solicitor to Look After My Interests?
If you wish, we’re happy to compile a list of English speaking Croatian solicitors based locally to the property you are thinking of buying. All of the solicitors are listed by the Croatian Bar Society. It will then be up to you to contact solicitors from that list, make your choice and agree fees.
Q:What is a Pre-Contract?
A Pre-Contract is similar to the exchange of contracts stage (in the UK), but there are differences. The Pre-Contract is a legally binding document that defines the terms of the property purchase – in particular it effectively fixes the purchase price; it specifies the schedule of payments, including (usually) a 10% deposit payable to the vendor on signing the Pre-Contract; and it fixes the Final Contract settlement date as well as the penalties should either party withdraw from the transaction after signing the Pre-Contract. In Croatia these penalties usually specify that should the vendor withdraw from the transaction after signing the Pre-Contract, they are obliged to return double the deposit to the buyer. If the buyer withdraws from the transaction after signing the Pre-Contract, they will lose their deposit. In the Pre-Contract are also settled all tasks that needs to be resolved, done, finished before the final Contract signed. For example: buyer  want to buy property through his Croatian company, which he needs to register after Pre-Contract signed and before main Contract, where in the main Contract this company will be listed as buyer.
Q:Can I Skip the Pre-Contract and Go Directly to the Final Contract?
Yes, it is possible to skip the Pre-Contract and go directly to the Final Contract stage, which depends on the real estate status and things to be settled before concluding the main contract. If buying process is simple (no extra tasks to be executed before main Contract) and buyer prepared for the transaction of the funds, then there is no need to do Precontract. One of the reasons why Pre-contract is useful is to prevent  the property to be sold to another buyer whilst the Final Contract is being drawn-up, Pre-contract is a good way for buyer and seller to oblige each other to buy/sell the property.  The Croatian system therefore effectively stops possible gazumping once the Pre-Contract has been signed, by making the Pre-Contract legally binding. Also, as the Pre-Contract fixes the final purchase price, there is no room for a vendor to change the asking price at the last minute without having to think seriously about the financial penalties built into the Pre-Contract.  .
Q:Who Drafts the Pre-Contact and the Final Contract?
 Your solicitor will draft the contracts after details of the purchase are agreed through the agency with seller. Drafting the contract can take some time, if you find your own solicitor who is not recommended by the agency, you could face complications in the drafting of the contract due to the solicitors ego, lack of experience in real estate matters, not-cooperative, underestimate the role of the Agency in the process. Therefore we strongly recommend you to hire the solicitor which we work with for a years, who is efficient, professional and results oriented. Experience of our agency when buyer hire other solicitor – drafting takes sometimes months! Because solicitor do not respect what was agreed with seller, and agency needs to constantly correct solicitor, who do not mind that this way makes troubles to the buyer because seller will not sell his property under conditions which are not agreed, seller will not accept new conditions imposed by the egoistic solicitor of the buyer. Therefore, again, we strongly recommend our solicitor, who is independent and experienced and problem solver.
Q:What is a Notary Public and What Do They Do?
The Notary Public is a qualified solicitor appointed by and working for the Croatian Government. Their role is to ensure that all the documents involved in the property transaction are valid, legal and binding. Specifically, it is a requirement within Croatian Property law that the Notary Public witnesses the signatures on the Final Contract – without this witnessing stage the Final Contract is not legally binding. Also, the Notary Public will certify that any documents that have been translated from a foreign language to Croatian have been prepared by a registered court translator or the solicitor personally – thereby guaranteeing that the translated documents are true and valid. Notary Public will also usually provide Escrow Services if required (we recommend for this service to use Bank Escrow Service). At the end, Notary Public only notarise signatures of the sellers on the contracts.  
Q:How Does the Financial Part of the Property Buying Process Take Place?
 Usually the funds are transferred to the vendor’s account after purchase Contract signed and notarised; the Final Contract is signed; and the Seller signs a confirmation that they have received the funds. This confirmation has to be also notarised (usually at the same time when main Contract, and Seller holds this confirmation in hand until he receives full amount of the price). Most people quite understandably are uncomfortable with the thought of sending money to someone in a foreign country with no apparent guarantees – in which case an Escrow Service can be used, or other ways of fund transfers which we can explain in due time by mail.  
Q:Are Escrow Services Available?
Yes, they are available and provided by  solicitors and most Notary Publics and by banks. Fees vary – for instance a typical cost chargeable by a Notary Public is 4000 Croatian Kunas (approx EUR 550) to hold EUR 75,000 in Escrow for up to a year. It may be that an independent solictor you appoint can provide this service for no additional cost, so it would be a good idea to ask any solicitor you are thinking of appointing whether they can offer Escrow Services or not, and whether they charge extra for the service, or you can use bank escrow account to execute transfer of the funds in the moment when you are registered as new owner of the property in the land registry books/court.
Q:How Do I Open a Bank Account in Croatia?
Opening a bank account in Croatia is a fairly straight forward process but you will be required to do it in person and you will need your passport to prove your identity and OIB number that every person in Croatia must have (Personal identity tax  number), which your solicitor will issue for you at local Tax Administration Office. We suggest that you open a foreign currency account to handle the transfer of payments for the property transaction as well as a local Kuna account which you will need for smaller expenses once the transaction has completed. Usually price is listed in EUR but inside Croatia kuna is official currency. You can pay from your local bank to the account of the seller, or you can transfer your funds from your local bank to Croatian bank, and then make cash payment in EUR to EUR account of the seller. This way there is no currency exchange loss which can be significant if EURos has to be transferred in Kunas.
Q:You Can Buy a Croatian Property Either Through a Croatian Company You Set Up, or as a Private Individual. Which Route Should I Take?

Each route has its advantages and disadvantages and there are differences in costs, the time it takes to register the property in your name and your future plans for the property.

Main advantages of buying as a private individual

  • Cheaper and more simple than buying through a company as there won’t be any company set-up costs or on-going company running costs involved. This way of buying  is possible for EU citizens (except buying of agricultural land) and non EU citizens which can buy upon reciprocity rule, but have to get approval of the purchase from the Croatian Ministry of Justice (which can take several months).
  • If you keep the property for at least 3 years before selling, then when you sell you won’t be liable for any Croatian Capital Gains Tax.

Advantages of buying through a company

  • You don’t have to apply for Ministry of Justice permission to own the property (farmland and forest land) if you are non EU citizen. If you want to rent your property to tourists, to gain income,  buy through a company is better way.
  • Its quicker to get registered title deeds in the Land Registry if you purchase through a company, however you will obviously have to factor in the time to form the company (two weeks time needed to form a company) and the associated costs involved in setting up a company (2800 EUR for founding capital which you can take out of the company after registration, and 500 EUR of the public notary fee for registration of the company, about 150 EUR per year for a company tax, about 150 eur per month for the bookkeeper).
  • If buying a new build from a developer then you can subsequently reclaim the PDV (Value Added Tax) of 25%.
  • If you are buying the property which is owned by the company, and you overtake also the company, this way there is no property transfer tax!

There are other advantages which you should discuss with your solicitor before making any decisions, or with the accountant (bookkeeper company) which we will gladly recommend.

Q:Why Do I Need Ministry of Justice Approval to Own the Property if I’m Buying as a Private Individual?
Only approved nationalities are currently allowed to own property in Croatia and only certain types of property can be owned by a non-Croatian. The MoJ ensures that these criteria are fulfilled and that’s why you have to get their permission. Non-allowable purchases are those on forest land and farmland. Other properties that will be scrutinised are those which may be of historical and cultural importance.
Q:How Long Do I Have to Wait for the MoJ Approval?
Approval period is from 15 days to 1 month. As soon as the land registry court receive application for your ownership registration, it will make note (“charge”) about it which will be visible on the ownership certificate (title deed).
Q:At What Point Can I Register My Property Ownership in the Land Registry Books?
If you are buying as a private individual and EU citizen, you can expect to be registered as new owner in the land registry books within 15 days to 1-2 months, depending on the documents which registration court needs to register you as new owner. For those who are non-EU citizens, and need to wait for the Ministry of Justice approval, once Ministry of Justice (MoJ) permission has been granted, you can register your ownership with the Land Registry, which again can take 10 days or 1  month. If you are buying your property through the formation of a Croatian company, then the MoJ’s permission is not required and you can register ownership as soon as you form your company and the company purchase completes.
Q:What Guarantee Do I Have that the Property Won’t be “Sold” Again or that the Final Contract Doesn’t become Invalidated While I’m Waiting for the MoJ Approval?
There are two steps your solicitor should take to ensure against this. Firstly, the Final Contract should be registered with the Land Registry as a “charge” against the property. This “charge” would then show up in any subsequent searches made on the property and would therefore deter any other buyer, as the property title would not be declared “clean”. Secondly, your solicitor should ensure that the vendor signs a “Clausula Intabulandi” (in Croatian: “Tabularna Izjava”). This is a document that states you, the buyer, have fulfilled all contractual obligations with regards to the property purchase and that you do not need any further permission or involvement from the vendor to register the property in your name with the Land Registry (once Ministry of Justice permission has been granted). The “Clausula Intabulandi” must be signed by the vendor and witnessed by a Notary Public.
Q:When Can I Take Possession of My Property?
This is dependent on the terms written into the Final Contract. Usually the buyer can take possession of the property as soon as the sale has completed, ie, the Final Contract has been signed by the buyer and the seller; the full purchase price has been paid; and the “Clausula Intabulandi“ (see above) and Power of Attorney over the property have been signed. As long as these steps have been completed and you have a Powerof Attorney signed, you can take possession even if you have to wait for Ministry of Justice approval before registering your ownership with the Land Registry.
Q:How Do the Utility Bills Get Transferred to My Name?
Transfer of utility bills will be organised either by your solicitor or our agency after completion. In some cases, the utilities cannot be transferred to the buyer until buyer has been registered as the rightful owner with the Land Registry. This is only an issue if buying through the private route and waiting for Ministry of Justice (MoJ) approval. In most cases, transfer of the utility bills to the buyer’s name is possible with copy of the purchase contract. In some cases, utility companies ask the buyer to come personally to sign transfer of utilities to his name. There are a few ways of ensuring that utilities are not disconnected whilst waiting for MoJ approval. One method is to create an agreement with the vendor that allows utilities to remain in the vendor’s name, but payment of bills are debited directly from the buyer’s Croatian bank account. The other method is to arrange for all utility bills to be sent to our agency, which can then organise payment of the bills – for an additional fee.
Q:Can I Start Restoration and Building Work on the Property While Still Waiting for the MoJ Permission?
Yes, the property can be restored and improved within the existing plot’s footprint. Note, however, that building permission will not be issued until your name has been registred in the Land Registry. Before starting any building work, you should carefully consider the fact that any improvements you make may increase the eventual Real Estate Transfer Tax (RETT) which is payable after the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) grants their approval. After you get MoJ approval, local government (council) officials will inspect your property and take a decision on whether the price you paid for it was a fair one for its condition at the time of the sale. They will then base the final RETT fee on this estimate. If have made alterations in the interim, they could value your property at a higher market price than that which you paid, in which case you could end up facing a higher RETT than you had anticipated. One tip to bear in mind therefore is to take plenty of photographs of your property immediately after the purchase and before any house improvements have been carried out. In this way, when you do pay the RETT you can demonstrate to the taxman that the price you paid was a fair price for the property in its original condition.

If you have any more questions you would like answered and couldn’t find them in this FAQ, feel free to contact us for a quick and extensive answer.

For more useful information about the buying procedures, visit our How To Buy blog section, especially the interesting and specific articles from the Previous Customers’ Case Studies. If you’d like to find out more about our services, visit the Luxury Croatia Services section, and, to learn more about Croatia in general, read through our About Croatia blog category or contact us by mail or phone for any info.

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Buying property in Croatia – cost and fees

Mar 12, 2017 Posted by: LuxuryCroatia.net

Why buy property in Croatia?

Crystal Clear Water – Just One of the Reasons

Buying property in Croatia – cost and fees

Croatia – beautiful country to live or retire or just to enjoy holidays

Croatia has much to offer for the property buyer, including an enormous variety of landscapes, a wide choice of unique cities, towns and villages, a great climate, wonderful beaches and crystal clear sea.

Its popularity really took off in 2001, and it promptly became one of the countries that were part of the ‘emerging market’ phenomenon. It opened up to foreign investors, who quickly took advantage of the inexpensive properties that were to be found throughout the country.

Anyone who wants ease of access from the rest of Europe, the clear waters of the Adriatic and an ever-improving infrastructure has got to visit Croatia. Croatia also officially became the 28th member state of the European Union in July, 2013. This is a result of the impressive progress made by the country as an independent state, and definitely helps to promote Croatia tourism-wise.

In addition, as of February 2009, the property market in Croatia became more open to European Union citizens who are now able to buy on the same terms as local Croats (except agricultural land and land in national parks). This burning of red tape in the buying process is not only speeding up the property buying procedure, it also encourage more buyers to purchase in Croatia with confidence.

To read more about the beauties of Croatia, please visit our About Croatia Blog Section.

Buying a property

Property buying in Croatia for non-EU citizens  is governed by the principle of reciprocity meaning the right of an individual to buy property there is on the condition that Croatian nationals are permitted to buy property in the origin country of the purchaser. For EU citizens rule is that they buy in Croatia same way as Croatians, except agricultural land. If foreigner want to buy agricultural land, company has to be formed which will buy agricultural land.

As in all property transactions, the buyer should always use the services of an independent lawyer who acts solely for them. We are glad to recommend experienced and reliable solicitor. It is also essential that the lawyer should speak both Croatian and English fluently.

It is important for the lawyer to check that the property’s title is clean. Because Croatian families traditionally handed properties down from father to son for several generations, in some cases the paperwork is either incorrect or non-existent. Our agency checks all property documents to be sure that status and title are clean and without risk for buyer to purchase it.

Getting a survey done is somewhat unusual in Croatia, but it can be arranged through the agency or civil engineer or architect whom our agency can recommend. This service, with a proper translation, should cost somewhere around €500 should you require it.

There are two main routes for the purchase of property in Croatia – as a private individual or through a company structure that you set up yourself. There are advantages and disadvantages to both methods, and the best solution will be different for each specific case. We are experienced and professional real estate agency and will advise you of the best solution for each individual circumstance.

All steps in the buying process are described in details in our FAQ.

Buying Property in Croatia: Costs & Fees

  • Estate agents charge  3 per cent of the property’s sale price
  • Lawyers charge around 1.5 per cent (Lawyer which my agency recommend will charge about 0,5%, read more under FAQ). This will usually include the Land Registry ownership registration and the preparation of the purchase contract
  • Permission from the Ministry of Justice for a foreign national to acquire property costs around 70 kuna (approximately 10 EUR)
  • The notary’s fee and that of the translator (officially required) total approximately 500 kuna (around 70 EUR)
  • The fee charged by the Land Registrar is about 250 kuna (approximately 35 EUR). Check with your lawyer whether this has been included in his or her fee
  • Property transfer tax is currently set at 5 per cent, as of the January 2017. should be reduced to 4%. This is paid by the buyer. Once the transaction has been completed, the change of ownership should be registered within 30 days. The tax can be paid by money transfer, and is then changed into kuna
  • Registering Croatian company (if buying through the company) – public notary fee is about 500 EUR, founding capital at company registration is 2800 EUR which you can take out of the company after registration, monthly fee for a bookkeeper is about 150 eur, yearly company tax is about 150 eur.

VAT (PDV in Croatia) is currently 25% and payable only on the value of a newly constructed building or a resale for which the VAT was already paid, if disposed of by a business VAT payer. It is also charged on the services provided by both real estate agents and legal advisers.

Real Estate Mortgages

The finance industry in Croatia was subject to a quite a large amount of change. Unfortunately Croatian banks have not recognized foreigner buyers as perspective clients, so only few banks will consider foreigner for approving bank loan to purchase property and with very difficult conditions to be fulfilled by the foreign buyer. It is our recommendation for a foreign buyers to look for suitable bank loan in the native country. Number of our German buyers were approved loans from the German banks to purchase property in Croatia.

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10 Ways to Recognize Illegal Real Estate Agents

Jun 8, 2015 Posted by: LuxuryCroatia.net

Azure Water by the Coast of the Croatian Adriatic

Azure Waters of the Croatian Adriatic

10 Ways to Recognize Illegal Croatian Real Estate Agencies

Dear clients and guests!

We feel that it is our obligation to warn you about illegal agents still operating on Croatian real estate (both sale and rental) market, as well as some unprofessional agencies that will try to put pressure on you to buy property without checking and securing the property situation.

In our effort to help you filter through these false advertisers and agencies, we have prepared some additional information for you. Also, feel free to contact us with any future questions or reports of illegal activities.

Also, to find out more about the services Luxury Croatia Real Estate brand offers, check out our real estate services blog category.

10 Hints on How to Recognize  Illegal & Unprofessional Agents/Agencies:

  1. ask them to give you agent/agency licence registration number which you can check at Croatian Chamber of Commerce (or we can check it for you),
  2. ask them their company registration number: OIB,
  3. ask them their registered office address and check if it exist or not,
  4. ask them to show you their business risk insurance policy,
  5. google or ask around for the average commission percentage in this market and compare it with what you were told by that agency/agent;
  6. check what internet says about them; find testimonials of their clients if such exist;
  7. if they provide misleading or hide correct information, you’re probably dealing with an illegal or non-registered agent/agency;
  8. some of agencies advertise lower prices than provided by owners, those prices are false and are formed as trap to attract buyers;
  9. some agencies advertise properties for sale without having direct (or any) contact with the owner, or providing false pictures of advertised properties, or advertising properties which are not for sale aiming to attract buyers this way;
  10. if agent/agency put pressure on you to decide quickly about buying property, beware of possible fraud or criminal acts.

We strongly recommend that you hire an experienced lawyer/solicitor who will check the agent/agency. In Luxury Croatia, we  (with the help of our lawyer)  personally check every property, title deeds and make sure that all the information and documentation received from our real estate owners and prepared for our potential buyers is clean and registered in land registry court.

  

PROPERTY FOR SALE IN CROATIA

LUXURY CROATIA and it’s travel/rental serviecs brand: ADRIATIC TRAVELLER offer the finest selection of luxury villas for sale and rent: sea front houses, apartments, islands, secluded beach front stone houses, plots of land with gorgeous panoramic sea views, old ruins at low prices on the best locations, large plots in residential zones for building, hotels and resorts for sale, apartment houses for sale and etc.

We are focused on sales of residential properties in the coastal regions of Croatia, Dalmatian islands of Hvar, Brac, Korcula, Vis, Solta, Mljet, Drvenik, Peljesac peninsula, Silba, Dugi otok, Ugljan, Kornati archipelago and others on Zadar area, Sibenik area, Split, Makarska, Dubrovnik, Istria, Umag, Pula… We also manage properties, take care of everything from construction, furnishing, gardening, to renting, cleaning, meeting guests, bookings… we have complete pre-sales and post-sales service for our clients.

We have a team of experts in construction and building: architects, engineers, project managers, interior designer, landscape architects, construction companies, who are able to make your dream property come true.

Our goal is to deliver quality and long lasting relation with our clients.

Welcome and bring your smile with you!

Your LuxuryCroatia.net Team

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Luxury Croatia Real Estate

LUXURY CROATIA and ADRIATIC TRAVELLER are trademarks of the real estate and travel agency Obiteljska putovanja d.o.o.

We are a licenced Croatian real estate and travel agency and are registered in the Agency Register of the Croatian Ministry of Economy and Chamber of Commerce under the number 74/2011 for real estate and ID code HR-B-21-060209791 for travel agency.

Contact us by email sales@luxurycroatia.net, telephone +385 21 77 9999 or mobile: +385 98 981 39 31 (WhatsApp/Viber). You can also Skype us at: mbdesign05, visit us at our office on address 15.studenog 1991 br 3, Žnjan, 21000 SPLIT , Croatia, or find our representative in your area.

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