| Buying & Legal Issues . . . continued |
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| FISCAL NUMBER AND FISCAL REPRESENTATION |
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| No purchase of property in Portugal can be made without a fiscal number. If you are buying the property in joint or several names then each partner will have to have this number. The same applies for companies and trusts. If you have already taken up ”Residency” in Portugal then you will allready have this number. If you have not taken up ”Residency” or you do not intend to then your fiscal representative will apply for the fiscal number (numero de contribuinte) at your local tax office (Financas). It will come firstly as a document and then later in the form of a plastic card which you will need for payment of rates and all manner of things. All ”Non Residents” must have a fiscal representative. We will direct you to a competent firm of representatives. |
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| CONTRACT OF PURCHASE AND SALE |
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| Your solicitor will draw up the Promissory Contract (contrato promessa de compra e venda), which will be signed by you and the seller at the notary offices. If you have given Power of Attorney then you need not attend. It will include all the terms and conditions of sale. You will have to pay the seller a deposit, usually 10% of the full purchase price, at the time this contract is signed. It is legally binding on both buyer and seller. If the buyer defaults he forfeits the deposit. If the seller defaults he has to pay the buyer double the deposit, this is the law. The buyer therefore needs to be in a position financially to complete the purchase in the agreed time. It is not possible to make the purchase subject to the selling of your own property. If you need to sell a property to finance your purchase in Portugal then ensure you have completed your sale first, or have enough equity in your property to facilitate a bridging loan if your sale takes longer than anticipated. |
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| USAGE LICENSE |
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| Your solicitor will also obtain a copy of the usage license (licença de utilização) from the local town hall (Câmara Municípal) and for residential property a habitation license (licença de habitação). Your solicitor will check that the description on the habitation license is totally in accordance with what you are buying and that non-residential licenses need to stipulate the appropriate commercial or industrial use the property is being put to. Properties that were built before habitation licences were first required (1951) must still be issued with a certificate stating such. This certificate is issued by the local council. |
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| TRANSFER TAX |
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| Formally known as Sisa Tax but has been replaced by IMT tax (Imposto municípal sobre as transmissões onerosas de imóveis) this has to be paid on all property transfers and must be paid by your solicitor before the final deeds are signed, typically one to two weeks before. On residential property there is a sliding scale with a system of rebates. We will calculate the amount for you on any given property in advance. There is a flat rate of 5% of the purchase price for agricultural land without any houses on. |
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| OUTSTANDING RATES |
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| Unpaid rates (contribuição autárquica) attract fines, but may be allowed to mount up for some considerable time without official action. Your solicitor will ask the seller to provide proof of payment for the last five years and while paying the transfer tax will check that the rates have been paid up to date. |
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| FINAL DEED |
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| Proper title to the property comes with the final deed of conveyance (Escritura) which is signed in the office of a public notary. All the relevant documents have to be checked before the final contract is read aloud and, unless the buyer understands Portuguese, interpreted into your home language. If you have given power of attorney then you need not attend. |
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| REGISTRATION |
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| Finally your solicitor will register the property in the name of the new owner at the local land registry and change all the documents at the tax office into your name. |
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| TRANSFER OF SERVICES |
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| Your solicitor will transfer all services, electricity, telephone and water into your names. This will be far easier of course if you have given them power of attorney. |
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| OFFSHORE |
This used to be a legitimate way of owning property in Portugal and was used to avoid transfer tax (Sisa tax), notary and registration fees, inheritance tax and capital gains tax. Recent legislation however has diluted most of these benefits and it is now the general opinion that buying a property in this way is not worthwhile. If the property you want to buy is still owned by an offshore company then we strongly advise that you buy the property from the company rather than buying the shares in the company.
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First Reality Estate Agents is a government licensed real estate agency, “imobilaria” in Algarve Portugal. The directors Nigel Stringer and Beverly Herrington were formerly directors of Alpha Property Centre in Silves, and have years of experience in the selling all types of properties from ruins and cottages to renovate, land and plots for building new houses, farms and quintas to luxury villas and holiday homes.
To satisfy the demands of the expatriate market they have diversified into project management and the construction of new homes and the renovation of older houses. Excellent working relationships have been established with reliable builders and architects to ensure the smooth transition from plot or ruin into your dream holiday home or villa. They can also advise on self build, timber or wooden houses, and the reconstruction by owner builders.
The estate agency always has a huge portfolio of property for sale, including houses and villas with views of the coast, affordable apartments or town houses, farms with land for horses, cottages with barns for conversion, homes with extra accommodation for letting. Homes suitable for buy to let, buy to sell, buy to live. For those who have the time and ideas there are plenty of building plots or renovation projects to see. What ever your property search is, 1streality can find the best properties in the Algarve for you to choose from. They pride themselves in being one of the best estate agencies in Algarve Portugal.
They have property for sale in Monchique and the surrounding mountains with stunning views of the South coast, Aljezur and the unspoilt West coast, Sao Marcos da Serra and northwards to the lower Alentejo, Silves and S B Messines. The villages of Alferce, Casais and Marmelete are typical villages of the Serra da Monchique and offer all the charm of yesteryear yet within easy reach of shopping, beaches and golf courses. If it is a retirement home of holiday cottage they will find it for you.
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