Buying A House In Cyprus…The 10 Steps You Need To Take
Posted on August 26, 2008
Filed Under Travel |
The tiny Mediterranean island of Cyprus has an appeal out of all proportion to its size. Especially for English speakers looking to buy an overseas property - for investment, retirement, holidays or holiday rental - Cyprus seems to come near the top for choice.
So you may be asking yourselves what is it then that makes Cyprus so appealing to investors. Well apart from the fact that is was a British colony for a number of years; meaning that the island’s basic infrastructure was set up and the English language was soon leaned by the islanders, it also offers a sense of mystery and beautiful that is unique and the all year round mild climate helps the sun to shine almost permanently.
But what’s involved in buying a house in Cyprus? Well, it’s not especially difficult, but there is a procedure you have to go through. (This process of course applies to the Republic of Cyprus, which excludes Northern Cyprus where the legalities are quite separate.) So these are the main steps you need to take to purchase your property:
1. Every foreign national has to obtain approval from the government before buying a house in Cyprus - specifically from the Council of Ministers. This can take 8-14 months so you would be well advised to begin the process before you even start choosing your property.
2. The first thing you really need to do is to find an English Speaking lawyer and if you need a recommendation then just have a chat with a few of the local ex pats as they normally have plenty to say for themselves and usually are able to give good advice on these issues.
3. As soon as you have got the necessary approval from the Council of Ministers and the property has been correctly identified, you may proceed to sign an initial contract and the holding deposit may be placed with a notary or your own solicitor. The amount placed as a deposit may be a little as just 1 percent of the total purchase price.
4. A secondary reservation deposit agreement will then be executed and the property will be taken off the market. As long as you stick to the agreement, it won’t be put back on the market again. 5. The lawyer will then investigate the title through the District and Registry Office.
6. Meanwhile you need to obtain your financing. Probably the easiest way is to finance through a bank in Cyprus. Most banks are quite westernized and will accommodate US and UK mortgage clients. Alternatively you may wish to refinance your existing home, or in the case of a new build the developers may offer their own mortgage facilities.
If you are one of those people who are considering selling up shop at home and starting a new life in Cyprus, then you should have plenty of change to start enjoying a new life of luxury. Your money will stretch a lot more on Cyprus so when I say luxury, I mean luxury.
7. The final contact is drawn up and signed before the notary once your lawyer has completed the investigation work into the property and that the finance for it’s purchase is in place. As soon as the signing is finalised the relative documentation is filed with the Land Registry Office.
8. Should one of the parties be a subject of Cyprus it will be necessary to get official approval from the Bank of Cyprus in order to conclude the transfer of funds and consequently the property purchase. This final step would not be necessary should both parties be foreign nationals.
9. If the property is not new, the title will be transferred to you and you are now the owner. If it’s a new build, the title will not be transferred for three years, though you are fully protected since the final contract is filed with the District Land Registry.
10. Now you can just get on with life as usually and start to get into the Mediterranean lifestyle as you will certainly want to start relaxing after a stressful time at the notary. As you know you can get by only speaking English but if you want to enrich your experience on the island then try and learn a bit of Greek.
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