THE GUIDE TO BUYING AND SELLING PROPERTY IN TUSCANY
by Immobiliare Chianti – Real Estate Agency in Radda in Chianti – Tuscany
BUYING or SELLING a Real Estate property in Italy
How to look for buy or sell real estate in Tuscany.
The purchase, or the sale, of a house is a difficult and costly but important stage, and the consumer who undertakes this should be aware of the many problems connected with it.
First of all, he or she has to decide whether to avail themselves of a professional, a real estate agent, or to handle it themselves personally: doing it personally obviously allows them to save the real estate agency’s commission, but on the other hand it makes it harder to find a buyer or a property to buy.
The tools available today, besides ads in the papers, real estate publications and word of mouth, consist of the Internet, where both free and pay sites can be found,
Secondly, and in any event, one must always move forward and stay alert in order to avoid having the stress and anxiety of looking for a house and the fear of “missing out on a great deal” lead one to make a commitment and sign contracts too hastily. Lastly, one must pay attention to the rules and laws necessary for signing a private agreement between the seller and the buyer for a property sale that protects them from possible risks.
How to buy and sell through a professional agent Real Estate Agent
in the Chianti Wine Region and all around Tuscany
A “mediatore” – broker or agent – is “a person who brings into contact two or more parties in order to enter a contract, without being connected with any of the parties by a relationship of collaboration, employment or representation”.
The profession of Brokerage Agent is regulated by laws that require those who work as a broker of any type to be registered on the List of Brokerage Agents held by the Chamber of Commerce, which qualifies them and is valid throughout the entire country of Italy.
The agent must also be able to give information on the legal, technical and tax aspects before the signing of the preliminary contract, the moment in which the parties mutually bind themselves to the purchase and sale, in order to prevent them from having to face obstacles that may be insuperable.
The law requires real estate agents to take out a professional liability insurance policy for the protection of its clients.
The real estate agent must act in the interest of both the two parties at the same time and, therefore, has the right to a commission from each of the parties, if the transaction is closed through his or her services.
Getting in touch with a real estate agency specialized in the area you are interested in is essential for solving all the problems of searching for the property, assistance in the negotiation, suggestions on technical, legal and fiscal aspects.
All this can be found with Immobiliare Chianti Real Estate Sales & Rentals of prestigious properties in Tuscany.
Our headquarter is located in Radda in Chianti (SI), via Pozzo dei Birri 1 (via Roma).
Real Estate Agency specializing in farms, farmhouses, cottages, exclusive villas with swimming pool, barns, apartments in historic towns. Issuance of mortgage loans on favorable terms in conjunction with the major banks.
Legal services through english speaking lawyers. After sales assistance and property management.
Associate FIAP (Italian Federation of Professional Real Estate Agents), CEI (European Association of Estate Agents), REALTORS (Realtor Association of USA), CIPS (Certified Agency for International Real Estate Transactions).
DOCUMENTS REGARDING THE PURCHASE AND SALE OF REAL ESTATE IN ITALY
in Radda in Chianti - Gaiole in Chianti - Castellina in Chianti - Greve in Chianti
Buying a house is an important investment and therefore it is necessary that the buyer receive all the documentation that can prove that the property is in fact sellable. Let us look briefly at what are the main documents that must always be correlated to a real estate sale:
Title Deed or Provenance
A property may be had by inheritance following a death, by legal decree, by notarial deed (sale, gift, division....). The seller must produce the title that proves ownership.
Town-planning Aspects
It is absolutely necessary to pay very close attention also to the town-planning documents. This is a very important aspect that can prejudice the free sale of the property. If the property in question includes one or more plots of land with an area of over 5,000 square meters, the zoning certifi cate (certificato di destinazione urbanistica), which can be requested at the competent municipal offi ce, must be attached to the deed of sale.
Cadastral Aspects
Cadastral documents are equally important. Every real estate unit must be registered in the Catasto, or Land Register (today called the Agenzia del Territorio). It is an enormous paper and computerized archive in which all the buildings built in the country are fi led and preserved for tax purposes. Every provincial capital has its own District Office. The main document that is needed is the so-called cadastral sheet, which is simply a small scale reproduction of the plan of the property drawn up by a qualified expert and presented to the cadastral offices, which may be checked by means of a “title search” (visura) in which the data regarding the real estate unit (category, class, size, income) are given. If the cadastral plan differs from the actual situation, it must be rectifi ed by submitting a report of variation.
Energy Certification
The energy certification is simply a certificate regarding how the building was built from the perspective of insulation, and therefore in what way the building can help to save energy. It consists of an evaluation of the integrated energy requirements of a building and the resultant certifi cation and attributing of a certain energy class.
TAXES ON THE PURCHASE OF A HOUSE
Whoever buys a house must pay the registration tax, or else VAT, as well as mortgage and cadastral taxes.
The taxes are paid by the notary at the time of the registration of the deed.
The proportional taxes are paid on the price, except when there are the conditions for requesting in the notarial deed of sale the application of the “price-value” clause: the price paid is declared, but the proportional taxes are paid on the cadastral value of the property.
THE STAGES OF THE PURCHASE AND/OR SALE a Farmhouse in Chianti
The Negotiation
The negotiation is necessary for defining the details of a sale, in order to satisfy the interests of both the seller and the buyer. Among the most important elements are: the price and method of payment, the deadlines for the delivery of the property and the stipulation of the deed of sale, the dividing of joint-ownership expenses in the time that passes between the preliminary and the final deed, the extraordinary expenses already decided upon, the buyer’s notification of the possible need to obtain a loan and the seller’s notification of any encumbrances on the property.
The Purchase Proposal
The formulating of a purchase proposal is the most delicate stage of the negotiation, as it binds the proposing party to the purchase for a given period starting from the moment in which it is signed: the signed purchase proposal, which is generally formulated as an irrevocable proposal, is binding for the proposer, but is not yet for the seller, who, until they sign it, is free from any commitment. If the seller has not accepted by the end of the period of validity, the proposal becomes ineffective.
The Preliminary Contract
The preliminary agreement to sell, which contains the commitment to sell and to purchase, is a document divided into articles created jointly between the parties, in which there is the accurate identification of the parties as well as a precise description of the property to be sold. To ensure that the preliminary contract is formally complete and correct, it can be drawn up with the help of a professional, which could also be the notary who will handle the drawing up of the fi nal deed of sale.
The Notary Public
The notary is normally chosen by the buyer, who is charged with the expenses of the purchase. It is the notary’s job to check the full ownership of the property, that it has no encumbrances and to verify the identity of the owners and of the property to be purchased. The checking of whether or not there are encumbrances (mortgages, distraints, attachments, citations, preliminary contracts, liens, third party rights in general) is done at the Land Agency (Agenzia del Territorio), by means of the studying of the deeds regarding the property for a period of over 20 years: very briefly, this involves reconstructing the changes in ownership for at least the last twenty years in order to ascertain the continuity of the transcriptions and the non-existence of encumbrances. The notary also checks on the correct planimetric identification and the correct classification of the property at the Registry Office. Once these things are done, the notary begins to draft the deed of sale. Lastly, the notary handles the formalities subsequent to the deed, such as registration (for payment of taxes) and the transcription (to make the deed opposable to third parties).
an agency that provides guarantees
For all of the above, it is essential that you use an authorized Real Estate Agency, present in the area and which can offer all the guarantees of being able to provide an excellent service both in the purchase phase and also, equally important, in the post-purchase phase with assistance in all those fields necessary to be able to better manage the property.
Excellent reviews from satisfied customers can be read on the agency’s website….Immobiliare Chianti Real Estate Sales & Rentals of prestigious properties in Tuscany.
Our headquarter is located in Radda in Chianti (SI), via Pozzo dei Birri 1 (via Roma).
Real Estate Agency specializing in farms, farmhouses, cottages, exclusive villas with swimming pool, barns, apartments in historic towns. Issuance of mortgage loans on favorable terms in conjunction with the major banks.
Legal services through english speaking lawyers. After sales assistance and property management.
Associate FIAP (Italian Federation of Professional Real Estate Agents), CEI (European Association of Estate Agents), REALTORS (Realtor Association of USA), CIPS (Certified Agency for International Real Estate Transactions).
