What a would-be property owner in
Krakow should know.
Land register, ksiegi wieczyste in Polish, is an
indispensable tool to any would-be Krakow landlord,
providing such crucial information about real estates as
names of their actual owners, mortgages, restrictions, etc.
Land registry constitutes a department of the district
court. It's available also online at http://ekw.ms.gov.pl To
access the database one needs to know the land registry
number given to the property in question. The service
is provided in Polish only.
From January 1st, 2019 only the full ownership of
real property, wlasnosc hipoteczna in Polish, and
a limited ownership of flats within housing cooperatives are
legal in Poland. The perpetual lease or dzierzawa wieczysta,
which was fairly common in the past, has been abolished.
How to buy property legally in Krakow.
It’s most important to remember that in the case of
purchasing real estates in Poland the deal need to be
completed at a local notary public because otherwise any
such transaction is null and void. Also, the notary collects
the deed tax (stamp duty) when applicable and the court fee
for an entry in the land register in addition to his/her
remuneration. Plus he/she is responsible for placing the
correct entry in the land register.
Citizens of the European Union, Island, Norway and
Liechtenstein may freely purchase and own any real estate in
Poland other than farmland and forests, though in the case
of
residential property
they should pledge to make it their fixed abode. Other aliens
can buy apartments or plots up to 0.4 hectare (i.e. about an
acre) in urban areas with the same intent to take up
residence. Otherwise the purchase of real estate by a
foreigner requires a permit from the Interior Ministry (Ministerstwo
Spraw Wewnetrznych), usually easily achievable. The above
applies both to individuals and to companies whenever
foreigners have the controlling interest.
The historic
Podgorze district on the right bank of Wisla river
has
become newly fashionable address in Krakow.
Significance of real estate agents.
In Poland people often bypass
real estate agents and sell property directly through
classified ads, usually those published in local newspapers,
though the Internet is an increasingly popular alternative.
At the same time expert services of a diligent realtor seem
most useful to somebody foreign to the country, its legal
niceties, and the ways of the natives.
It’s advisable to employ only the
licensed estate agents,
since they alone under the Polish law may act legally as
middlemen in the business of selling and buying real
property. To obtain the license they need to pass state
examination and they may lose it through malpractice.
When you buy brand-new property from a developer.
Value Added
Tax
(VAT) on newly built
property
is currently eight percent for
flats of 150 square meters or less and houses of 300 sq m or
smaller. Excess surface area beyond the above limits is
taxed at 23 percent.
Additional costs are the fee of
the notary public called “taksa notarialna” complete with
the 23-percent VAT on it and the land-registry fee.
New residential property in Krakow often sells in the early
stages of development with the legal transfer of the
ownership postponed till the completion.
When you buy a second-hand real estate through an estate
agent.
Realtors charge the buyers commissions from two percent
(seldom) to three percent (usually) of the sale price and
their fee incurs the 23-percent VAT tax. Also the
two-percent stamp duty called “podatek od czynnosci
cywilnoprawnych” as well as the fee of the notary public (taksa
notarialna) with the 23-percent VAT on it and the court fee
for an entry in the land register – all traditionally fall
on the buyer.
For instance, on the purchase of real property worth million
zloties (see more about the
Polish currency)
one should expect to pay a stamp duty of 20,000 zlotys,
notary’s fee to the tune of 5,800 zlotys plus 1,334 zlotys
VAT tax, another 200 zlotys for the entry in the land
register, and the commission of the estate agent amounting
to 30,000 zlotys plus 6,900 zlotys VAT.
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Guide to real property in Krakow
Krakow's Real Estate
List of Krakow's Real Estate Agents
How to sell real estate in Krakow
Commercial property in Krakow
Residential property in Krakow: flats, condos, and houses
Investing in
Krakow
Taxes in Poland
Business in Krakow
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