Step 3 – The Compromesso (Preliminary Contract)
As with any property hunt, the first step is to find a property you’d like to purchase – just like in the UK.
If your Italian isn’t up to scratch, try finding an estate agent with good English – there are plenty in most of the areas popular with foreign buyers.
Once you’ve found somewhere you want to buy, it’s time to make an offer. As in the UK, you can offer less or even more than the asking price.
No offence is taken if you try your luck with a low offer and with a bit of negotiation you should be able to find a price that both you and the vendor (seller) are happy with.
Like several other European countries, the Italian property sale process requires the use of a Notaio (Notary public) – essentially a solicitor employed by the state to make sure that property sales are conducted in accordance with the law.
Your Notaio will act for both you and the vendor and may well be recommended by your estate agent.
Although it isn’t compulsory, it is often a good idea to arrange a reservation contract (Proposta irrevocabile d’acquisto) once an offer has been agreed.
This will allow the property to be taken off the market for a few weeks while you arrange for a surveyor and your own Italian-speaking solicitor (an absolute essential – try for a bi-lingual solicitor if your Italian is not very good).
A reservation contract typically requires a down payment of around 3000-5000. If you withdraw from the sale because of a problem with the property, you should get this back. If you simply change your mind however, you will lose this deposit.
Step 3 – The Compromesso (Preliminary Contract)
Unlike the British home-buying process, where buyers and sellers can pull out without penalty right up to the time of completion, the Italian property-buying process requires financial commitment at a much earlier stage.
Assuming your surveyor (Geometra) has not found anything amiss with the property and the searches of the local land registry have not revealed any outstanding debts, boundary disputes or other such problems, the next stage is to sign the preliminary purchase contract, known as the Compromesso.
Your commitment to this purchase is now extremely serious, as you will be required to pay a deposit of up to 30% of the purchase price.
In the event of you withdrawing from this point onwards, you will lose this deposit. If the seller withdraws for any reason, you are entitled to damages of twice the value of your deposit.
The Compromesso sets out the terms and conditions of the sale and binds both the seller and the buyer to complete the transaction – other sellers cannot just come in and outbid you at this stage, as might happen in the UK.
There are one or two situations where you could still lose the property, however – we’ll take a look at these later.
Step 4 – Rogito (Completion)
Just like in the UK, there can be some delays between agreeing the sale (Compromesso) and completion (Rogito). During this time you will need to complete your mortgage application and ensure that all necessary checks have been carried out on the property you are purchasing.
Once you have completed the purchase of a property, any outstanding debts or disputes attached to it become yours – and just because a property has been sold doesn’t mean it is mortgage free. So check everything carefully, and use a translator or bilingual solicitor if your Italian isn’t excellent.
The actual process of completion is fairly straightforward. You, the vendor, your estate agent and the Notary will meet to sign the deed of sale (scrittura private autentica).
You will need to take along your passport or a similar form of ID, a bankers draft for the remaining balance of the purchase price and a tax code (codice fiscale) which your estate agent or solicitor should be able to arrange for you.
Once the deeds are signed, your notary will register the deeds with the local Italian land registry – the Ufficio Dei Pubblici Registri Immobiliari.
At this point, you will have to pay all the fees and taxes relating to the purchase – which may seem high compared to those in the UK. These will include:
- Stamp Duty
- Estate agent’s fees
- Local Taxes
- National real estate tax
- Solicitor’s & Surveyor’s fees
- Notary’s fees
- Utility transfer fees
In total, budget around 15% of the purchase price to cover all of the fees you will have to pay, as exact costs vary from region to region.