Registering Property in Greece

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

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Standardized property

Property Value: EUR 1,050,878
City: Athens

Registration Requirements Summary:


  Procedure Time to complete: Cost to complete:
*1 Receive site visit by the engineer 1 day (simultaneous with proc. 2,3,4,5,6) Included in proc. 2
*2 Obtain a topographic site plan sealed and signed by the engineer 1 day (simultaneous with proc.1,3,4,5,6)  
*3 Search of information in the Land Registry and preparation of the sale agreement by a lawyer 1 days (simultaneous with proc.1, 2, 4,5,6)  
*4 Seller obtains tax clearance certificate from the tax authority 1 day (simultaneous with proc.1 , 2,3,5,6) no cost
*5 Seller obtains a certificate from Social Security Institute 1 day (simultaneous with proc.1 , 2, 3, 4,6) no cost
*6 Obtain tax clearance from the Municipality 1 day (simultaneous with proc.1 , 2, 3, 4,5) no cost
7 Payment of property transfer tax at the Tax Authority 1 day 1% (new tax rate as of 2005)
8 Deliver the draft of the sale agreement to the Bar Association 1 day Lawyer fees varie with the value of the contract (in €): From 44,020.55 to 1,467,351.43 440.21 + 0.5% of excess over 44,020.55
9 A notary public notarizes the sale agreement and prepares the transfer deed 1 day 1.2% of property value
10 The deed is recorded under the name of the buyer at the Land Registry 8 days (1 day for registration and 7 days for issuing the certificates) 0.575% of property value (registrar’s rights)+ EUR 25 + EUR 5 for each certificate (4 certificates)
11 Registration of the transfer in the Cadastre (ktimatologio) 5 days €25 (cadastral extract) + 0.575% of property value (registrar’s rights) + EUR 5 for each certificate
* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.

Registration Requirement Details

Procedure 1.
Receive site visit by the engineer
Time to complete:
1 day (simultaneous with proc. 2,3,4,5,6)
Cost to complete:
Included in proc. 2
Name of Agency:
Comment:
An inspection by an engineer is required for the new topographic site plan to be drafted.
Procedure 2.
Obtain a topographic site plan sealed and signed by the engineer
Time to complete:
1 day (simultaneous with proc.1,3,4,5,6)
Cost to complete:
300
Name of Agency:
Comment:
After the inspection in Procedure 1, a new site plan sealed and signed by the engineer is obtained. The plan shall be submitted to the notary public a few days before the conclusion of the sale contract.
Procedure 3.
Search of information in the Land Registry and preparation of the sale agreement by a lawyer
Time to complete:
1 days (simultaneous with proc.1, 2, 4,5,6)
Cost to complete:
450
Name of Agency:
Land Registry
Comment:
A lawyer conducts a search of information in the Real Estate office and then prepares the sale agreement. Only lawyers are entitled to conduct a search in the Real Estate Office. The research in the Land Registry mentioned in procedure 3 may take more than 2 days, since the due diligence of the ownership titles goes back 20 years at least; the duration of the research also depends on the findings of the due diligence of the ownership titles of the real property.
An attorney’s participation at the conclusion of the sale contract is obligatory only if the contract value (determined by the real estate’s real value) exceeds € 29,347. The sale agreement is usually prepared by the notary and then reviewed by the seller’s and the buyer’s lawyers.
Procedure 4.
Seller obtains tax clearance certificate from the tax authority
Time to complete:
1 day (simultaneous with proc.1 , 2,3,5,6)
Cost to complete:
no cost
Name of Agency:
Tax Authority
Comment:
The seller should provide a Tax certificate issued by the competent Tax Authority, according to Law 1882/1990 . The certificate assures that the seller has been paying his taxes accordingly. The tax certificate may also be obtained by the notary public.
Procedure 5.
Seller obtains a certificate from Social Security Institute
Time to complete:
1 day (simultaneous with proc.1 , 2, 3, 4,6)
Cost to complete:
no cost
Name of Agency:
Social Security Institute
Comment:
The seller must obtain a certificate of good standing from the Social Security Institute, which assures that the seller (company) has been paying its social security.
Procedure 6.
Obtain tax clearance from the Municipality
Time to complete:
1 day (simultaneous with proc.1 , 2, 3, 4,5)
Cost to complete:
no cost
Name of Agency:
Municipality
Comment:
The seller must obtain a tax clearance certificate from the Municipality. The certificate assures that the seller has been paying the real estate fees.
Procedure 7.
Payment of property transfer tax at the Tax Authority
Time to complete:
1 day
Cost to complete:
1% (new tax rate as of 2005)
Name of Agency:
Inland Revenue Service
Comment:
Parties obtain a copy of the declaration made before the Tax Authority competent in the locality of the property verifying that the buyer has paid the property transfer tax. The transfer tax is paid on the objective value of the property.
Procedure 8.
Deliver the draft of the sale agreement to the Bar Association
Time to complete:
1 day
Cost to complete:
Lawyer fees, according to the following schedule:
Value of contract (in €) Lawyer fees (in €)
Up to 44,020.55
Name of Agency:
Bar Association
Comment:
The draft of the sale agreement is delivered to the Bar Association of the Lawyers. Article 37 par 1 of law 2915/2001 sets the value above which a lawyer must be retained to appear and be a signatory to a notarial document. These limits are: €29,347.03 for the areas of Athens and Piraeus Bar Associations. Bar association fees must be paid before the execution of the sales contract at the notary. Either the lawyer or the parties can deliver the agreement to the Bar Association.
Procedure 9.
A notary public notarizes the sale agreement and prepares the transfer deed
Time to complete:
1 day
Cost to complete:
1.2% of property value
Name of Agency:
Comment:
The notary notarizes the sale agreement and prepares the public deed in the presence of the parties and their lawyers, who must also sign.
The notary checks up on the documentation which legitimizes the legal representatives of the contracting parties (i.e. Minutes of the Board of Directors regarding the representation of the company published in the Government Gazette, Minutes of the Board of Directors and notarized Power of Attorney regarding the authorization of the contracting party to act on behalf of the company and execute a sale agreement regarding the specific real estate), the ID’s of seller and buyer and attaches to the Public Deed the documentation obtained in the previous procedures.

The documentation includes:
Site plan or Cadastral extract (obtained in Procedure 2)
Sale agreement (prepared in Procedures 3 and 4)
Tax clearance certificate (obtained in Procedure 5)
Social Security certificate (obtained in Procedure 6)
Municipal tax clearance (obtained in Procedure 7)
Verification of payment of transfer tax (obtained in Procedure 8)
Copy of the building license (already in possession of seller)
Procedure 10.
The deed is recorded under the name of the buyer at the Land Registry
Time to complete:
8 days (1 day for registration and 7 days for issuing the certificates)
Cost to complete:
0.575% of property value (registrar’s rights)+ EUR 25 + EUR 5 for each certificate (4 certificates)
Name of Agency:
Land Registry
Comment:
As per article 369 of the Greek Civil Code, contracts relating to real property (such as a purchase document) must be drafted and executed by and before a notary public. The public deed is delivered to the Real Estate Office to be recorded under the name of the buyer. At the same time, parties request a property certificate, an ownership certificate, a non-opposition certificate and a records certificate from the Real Estate Office. The transfer of deeds usually takes place during the day of application.
Procedure 11.
Registration of the transfer in the Cadastre (ktimatologio)
Time to complete:
5 days
Cost to complete:
€25 (cadastral extract) + 0.575% of property value (registrar’s rights) + EUR 5 for each certificate
Name of Agency:
Cadastre (Ktimatologio)
Comment:
The transfer is registered in the Cadastre. During this period the Registrar checks the legality of the deeds’ transfer by using the cadastral database.