Non-agricultural land can be freely bought and sold by anybody. However foreign citizens, companies, or states cannot buy agricultural and forest land, though they can lease short term (1 – 3 years), or long term (5 – 99 years).
All property transactions should be notarized and registered in the Real Estate Registry. The registration of the transfer of ownership of the property makes the transaction valid.
Once a property has been chosen, the buyer’s solicitor needs to obtain a non-encumbrance certificate from the Cadastre. The seller then obtains the cadastral sketch certificate from the Territorial Cadastre Office. A sale/purchase agreement is then drafted and notarized for registration. It is advised that the buyer obtain a tax clearance certificate from the Tax Office to check for any tax liabilities of the real estate involved in the transaction. A public notary then executes the contract for deed transfer. Upon execution of the deed, the state tax is paid to the notary in cash. Finally, an application for the registration of title is submitted to the Territorial Cadastral Office for the transfer of ownership.
Leases of real estate for a period less than three years must be registered at the mayor’s office where the leased property is located. The law does not require the notarization of (land) lease agreements.
Property registration requires five procedures and takes 81 days to complete.
Resource: Global Property Guide
