Process of buying a property

Every country's property market appears different from the next but most of them, excluding a handful! of exceptions, share basic similarities in their buying processes

A detailed guide to the buying process in every foreign land would be as long as this handbook as each nation has its property-buying foibles including rates of Stamp Duty and Capital Gains Tax, legal process, planning, land registration, fee levels plus often different professionals do different jobs; one country's notary is another's lawyer or settlement agent - and so on.

Therefore, this article is not designed to fill you in on the nitty gritty of each nation's buying process but rather lay down the basics that need to be remembered when you are buying a property overseas, and some of the common mistakes that many people make when buying abroad.

Am I allowed to buy?

In Britain and Ireland we are allowed to buy any property we fancy pretty much as long as we pay the asking price and taxes and do the paperwork. In many countries, however, foreign buyers are not given such a free rein. Many well-known property hotspots still require foreigners to be apply for purchase permits; restrict where they can buy; or even stop them owning freehold property and restrict them to leasehold ones instead. So before jumping in, do some research on this legal question.

Make an offer

It's essential you understand how this first move in the property buying process works - mainly because it varies so much from country to country. In some it is regarded merely as an opening gambit; a suggested starting prices for the negotiation process. In others it is seen as a firm commitment to buying and hard to reverse out of- particularly if you have already paid a holding fee or deposit.

Attitudes to offers also vary from country to country, so get advice on the best way to approach it. For example, in France vendors don't take kindly to British or Irish buyers coming in with 'cheeky' offers that are dramatically below an asking price.

Sign the contract

In almost all countries it's usual practice to draw up a contract of sale between you and the seller but these vary in form and effectiveness. The most important point about all contracts is that your lawyer must check them. You would do this at home so do it overseas.

Pay the money

Although it sounds straightforward, remember that it's a time to be most careful - mainly because it's when a contract or agreement to buy a property becomes binding and hard to back out of. And therefore if you're paying staged payments on an off-plan property, equally take time to establish when the payments make the contract binding.

Land Registry

One pitfall of buying abroad is not spotting that a property's Title Deed (i.e. the legal document that sets out who owns it and where it is) has not been registered correctly. This usually happens when a buyer purchases a property without using a lawyer or uses one recommended by the vendor - an independent, bona fide one should spot a problem like this.

Chosing a solicitor

The person who processes and completes the legal process ot purchasing property has many forms and many different roles depending on where you buy your home overseas.

But regardless of the local variations in ability and responsibility, the most important factor to consider is their relationship to you. Many overseas property buyers become unstuck because they assume a lawyer is working on their behalf - when in fact they have the vendor's interests at heart. You can often use a lawyer in your home country or you may use a local one - either way you need one!

Their work will include searches to find out if everything is in order locally-e.g. is there a motorway about to be built behind your property - plus checks to ensure planning permission has been granted for both the house and any extensions.

Also, they will ensure that there are no debts still owing or connected to the property. And for off-plan purchases, a good lawyer will double check your contract to see if there are sufficient financial safeguards within it to protect you should your flat not get built - or the build process is delayed.

So it's not hard to see why a lawyer needs to be independent. If they have an axe to grind or a vested interest then they will control a crucial part of the process that, if they want to hide or forget to highlighta legal or contractual problem, will cost you very dearly later on.

This is particularly true for property and land registration. In some countries the way property ownership is recorded is not as clear as the system used in countries such as the UK and Ireland. So it's easier for mistakes - and very occasionally deliberately misleading statements-to slip through. If you have employed a decent lawyer then, of course, they will spot such potential pitfalls, but it can be a weak point in some natoin's property markets.