PURCHASE PROCEDURE – Information for Buyers

PURCHASE PROCEDURE – Information for Buyers

This document is intended to inform potential buyers of the general procedure. Each case will be different, but those are very good guidelines of what to expect. This document was updated last 29/10/2024.

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Welcome, and thanks for your trust in our company. Hopefully you will find (or have found already) the property of your dreams.

Buying a property in Greece is an adventure, and we’re here to guide you and to make sure that everything goes as planned.

With this document, you will be informed of what to expect, both regarding expenses as well as timescales.
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Negotiations, Offers, and Options

So, you have found a property that interests you, congratulations! negotiations can start!
You will be given the choice to negotiate directly with the seller if you wish to do so, but we are as happy to step in as your representative and/or interpreter. Negotiating, especially with Greek sellers, can be tricky, keep that in mind.
Generally, published prices are asking prices, so, usually, there is room for negotiation. By how much is always depending on several factors, too many to include in here, and will be different every time.
Making an offer too far below the asking price is usually not a good idea, because this can provoke an abrupt end of negotiations. A reasonable offer (10, 20, or even 30% under the asking price), will have a better effect, and will often result in a counteroffer.
The important matter is that before you offer (or accept) any amount, make sure to account for all the expenses involved (which you will find below), and make sure that you agree upon who will bear which expenses.

Please do not take lightly when a verbal agreement has been reached. Both ourselves and the seller(s) will start taking actions and making expenses, even before the pre-agreement is signed.

Once you made an offer, and the seller(s) accept this, to ensure that both parties are on the same page, we will make a “letter of intent” in which all the details of the agreement will be written. When both parties have signed this, we will effectively start the procedure.
We will put an “option” on the property during a period of 3 weeks, which should be plenty for us to do the necessary property checks and prepare a pre-agreement, to be signed by both parties. During this period, we will hold off other potential buyers. Keep in mind that sellers can also have other representatives (brokers) or find other candidates by themselves.

About the agreed purchase amount,

which usually would be divided in two parts:

1. An advance payment (pre-agreement)
2. The rest of the amount to be paid at the day of the signature of the final contract.
An advance payment is not mandatory, but a pre-agreement is. This will trigger (and start) the rest of the procedure. The advance payment is to avoid that during the preparation of the final contract one of the parties could withdraw without consequences. This advance is important, because the seller will have to do some procedures and probably have to pay some small amounts before the final contract can be signed.
The advance usually consists of 10% of the final price (unless agreed differently) and will be registered before a (usually local) lawyer in a legally binding private contract.
Usually, a clause is included that says that the buyer would lose his advance if he withdraws, but also that the seller would have to refund it in double if they voluntarily (!) withdraw.

Transfer Tax, Registration, and Notary Fees

Normally this is +-6% of the declared sale value*. The 6% is the total of ALL the costs for the transfer taxes, notary expenses and registration (Local or in Kos**). It sometimes turns out to be 5.5%, or 6.5%, but it rarely varies much more than that.
* IF (and only IF!) the official tax value of the property is HIGHER than the declared value, it will be calculated on the TAX value instead of the declared value.
** If the property is in the south of the island, a lawyer will need to register the property in the Italian registry in Kos, travel expenses not included.
The tax value can often only be obtained from the tax office in Kos, and this is something only the notary can ask.
In order to obtain this, the seller must provide the papers of the property (previous contract(s), plans, etc).

Our Commission

We call it a commission on the sale, but it actually includes a lot more than finding your property and negotiating the sale.
We provide full assistance through the whole process. We will be there for you at each step of the process, until the last. From information, arranging appointments, lawyers, accountants to architects … whatever is required to bring the deal to a good end.
Upon contract completion, we can also assist with connecting various utilities and similar services, for which you will be billed a fair amount.
The buyer’s fee is 2% of the agreed sale price + VAT. For example, on 100,000 € that would be 2,000 € + 17% VAT being a total of 2,340 €.
Because of the amount of work involved in the procedure, and the value of our expertise and experience, we do have a minimum fee: 1500 € for European buyers and 2000 € for non-European buyers.
For European buyers, the commission is only payable when the contract is concluded as a result of our activity, unless agreed otherwise.
For non-European buyers, we will request a nonrefundable advance of 25% on the commission at the signature of the pre-agreement, due to different timescales and extra steps in the process, the remaining amount is payable when the final contract is concluded.
Fyi: the seller’s fee is also 2% (which is typical all over Greece). This is important to know in case you agree on taking all the expenses upon yourself. For instance, if a seller accepts your offer, but wants the amount “clean in hand”.

Power of Attorney

Because it is pretty much unpredictable how much time will pass before the signature of a final contract, most buyers will give a full power of attorney to a local and trusted person.
From the moment of decision until the moment of signature a considerable amount of time can pass. The shortest we have experienced was 3 weeks, the longest 7 months. This time frame depends on a lot of factors as a lot of small administrative steps have to be taken, like: are the property papers ok? / is the building according to plan?
More about this later.
A power of attorney is an official notarial document that usually costs between 80 € and 150 € (depends on the number of pages).
In most cases, the authorized representative is one of our team. The reasons for this are simple: we know all the procedures (there are a lot!), we’re always here, and we provide this service for free. We have a good reason not to abuse the trust of our clients: we have built up a respected business and don’t want to lose this good reputation.
As from there, of course, you are allowed and invited to stay here and do everything yourself or appoint anyone else.

Lawyer

Before you sign ANY agreement, you want a (usually local) lawyer to check out the property documents. This is not mandatory, but VERY MUCH advisable, if not crucial.
They will check if the seller is indeed the real and only owner, if the property has any debts, and if there are any court cases in which the property is involved. After his check, they will provide a written report that the lawyer will include in the pre-agreement and the notary in the final contract. The lawyer will also draw up the preagreement.
The cost for all the above is also variable, but rarely surpasses 500 € (only in case they have to travel to other islands, which sometimes happens). Be aware that the cost of the lawyer will have to be paid regardless of the result.
If the buyer(s) do(es) not have a European passport/ID, they will need to apply for a license to buy. This also needs to be done by a lawyer, requires quite a lot of (officially translated) paperwork and time. The cost of this will be determined by the lawyer.

Accountant

You will need an accountant, at your choice, but I’ll give the example of the one we usually deal with (Manolis Soulos in Lakki).
They do several things:
– Request and provide a tax number for each buyer
– Open a bank account in Greece
– Apply for a name change for the electricity bill (Kos)
– Declare the property at the tax office after the purchase
– They can also declare your property before the tax office yearly.
The cost of the above can vary per situation. Usually for the whole procedure around 500 €.

Electrician

An electrician may have to make a new electrical plan for the above application (once) (if the old one is not recent enough or lost). Usually 150 – 200 €.

I) Translations

At certain moments you will need a translator (e.g. at the signing of the final contract or the power of attorney).
This is because, by law, notarial documents must be written and read in Greek.
Translators usually cost 50 € per session.
If you want also certain documents to be translated (before of afterwards), there are possibilities (official and unofficial translations).

Water Connection

There is a fee to be paid at the water company for changing the name on the invoice for water, and a warranty fee for the meter. Together around 160 €.

Architect/Engineer

An engineer will have to make a declaration that the building is in accordance with the building permit and provide an energy certificate. Often a new topographic plan needs to be made too. Since May 2022, also an “Electronic ID”. This is a digital file that includes all the past and present information, such as licenses, history of the property, etc. Those are necessary for the contract.
The cost for this depends on the size of the property, and is normally borne by the seller, unless agreed differently.
It is advised (but again not mandatory) to have the architect check out the property before you sign an agreement. This would assure you that there are no hidden surprises (legal or technical). Even if that means you would pay him even if the deal would be off. At least you would have saved yourself from more trouble.
P.s. If the building is not in accordance with the building permit, there is the possibility of a procedure to legalize it. It is the full responsibility of the seller, including fines (again, unless agreed differently).
If the buyer(s) do(es) not have a European passport/ID, they will need to apply for a license to buy. In this case, the engineer will prepare some documents for the lawyer who is in charge of your application. The cost for this paperwork is about 300 euros and is borne by the buyer.

TAP

A declaration from the municipality that there is no debt on the electricity bill. The official stamp(s) on this document cost(s) a small amount of money, in total usually less than 100 €, normally borne by the seller.

Lifting mortgage

(if applicable)

If a seller has a mortgage on their property, lifting this mortgage can also cost a certain amount. In our experience, between 500 – 1000 euro. Normally borne by the seller.

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A bit of extra information: the notary will have to check if the property has been properly declared to the tax office in the past. Any corrections and additional amounts that would have to be paid would be the responsibility of the seller.

Disclaimer: The above information is provided as accurately as possible. Sometimes laws and rules change. We cannot be held responsible if a real-life situation turns out differently than what is described above. This document can not be shared or distributed without specific permission of Dirk Brixhe, manager of Immoleros.