Registering Property in Finland

This topic examines the steps, time, and cost involved in registering property in Finland.

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Property Value: EUR 1,754,555
City: Helsinki

	Procedure	Time to complete:	Cost to complete:
1	The seller and buyer notarize the deed of sale in the presence of a public notary	1 day	EUR 77
2	The buyer pays the transfer tax	1 day	4% of the property value
3	The buyer applies for a land title at the District Court	7-20 days	EUR 65 (registration fee)

Procedure 1.: The seller and buyer notarize the deed of sale in the presence of a public notary
Time to complete:: 1 day
Cost to complete:: EUR 77
Name of Agency:
Comment:: The agreement can be prepared by the seller or the buyer, no involvement of a lawyer or real estate agent is required. In general the seller shall present an extract from the land register and an abstract of title confirming the title of the property, but this is not formally required. The agreement should be in writing and contain at a minimum the following (according to the Code of Real Estate): name of the seller and buyer, the object of purchase, the purchase price or equivalent compensation and possible subsequent conditions. The sale agreement shall be signed both by the seller and buyer, in the presence of the attesting notary. The attesting notary checks the ID of the seller and buyer and verifies the formal validity of the sales agreement. Failure to follow these requirements will result in the transaction being automatically null and void.
Note that an attesting notary is required only when ownership (full freehold title) of the property is assigned. When the right of tenancy or other right to possess the property is assigned, the presence of the attesting notary is not required.

Procedure 2.: The buyer pays the transfer tax
Time to complete:: 1 day
Cost to complete:: 4% of the property value
Name of Agency:: Local Bank, Tax Authority or online
Comment:: The transfer tax can be paid at a local bank, directly at the Tax Authorities or online. The attesting notary gives the buyer instructions on the transfer tax payment. The payment is done using a printed tax form for the Transfer Tax. The receipt of the payment of the taxes must be included in the application for the registration of title to the property (see procedure 3).

Procedure 3.: The buyer applies for a land title at the District Court
Time to complete:: 7-20 days
Cost to complete:: EUR 65 (registration fee)
Name of Agency:: District Court
Comment:: The buyer is under obligation to register the property title at the Land Registry within 6 months from the purchase. The application shall be submitted to the district court of the region where the property is situated. The Land Register enjoys public credibility and thus the validity of the registration of title and the information of the register can be trusted.
The District court examines the preconditions of title and when those are met, grants the title that is registration of the ownership in the Land Registry (Register of Titles and Mortgages).

The documentation shall include:
Original sales agreement
The receipt of the paid transfer tax (Paid in Procedure 2).
Extract from the Register of Companies, articles of Association, minutes from the General Meeting of the companies (seller and buyer) where the sale and purchase was resolved.
Verified copy of the sales agreement.
Registration fee is paid at bank, local court (registry authority) or online.