What are you permitted to buy?
 Compared to many countries, buying property in Cyprus is very easy. As a non-Cypriot you are entitled to buy a freehold property, which will usually be:
- An apartment or townhouse (the latter is often called a ‘maisonette’ in Cyprus)
- A villa (the regulations allow you to buy a villa on a building plot not exceeding 4012.50 square metres). The reason for the rather strange amount of land is that it is the equivalent of exactly three Cyprus donums, a donum being a measure of land area prior to metrication.
- A piece of land not exceeding 4012.50 square metres for the purpose of erecting a house within a reasonable time frame. For our in-depth advice on buying land and building on it, please see our ‘Design and Build’ section.
- Note: The amount of land and size of plot it is permissible to buy, will be reviewed in 2007
Freehold or Leasehold?
Your property, even if it is an apartment, will be freehold. Leasehold is virtually unheard of in Cyprus.
Title Deeds
 Transfer of ownership (from the developer to the buyer) takes place by a simple process of registration of the contract of sale at the Land Registry Office within 30 days of the date of the contract. Your lawyer in Cyprus will carry this out, and will also provide the necessary evidence that the property will be paid for in foreign currency. The lawyer will also make the application to the Council of Ministers for approval of the transfer of the title deed, the granting of which is a formality.
What tends to confuse and concern some buyers is that the actual title deed itself may not be issued for a considerable length of time after the above process – two or more years is not uncommon. (This, of course, is understandable if you are buying a villa ‘off plan’ and it now has to be built, but even in the case of new apartments that are ready to move into, you are still likely to be waiting a long time). However, buyers can rest assured that the act of registering the contract as above (a process known as ‘specific performance’ in Cyprus legalese) is accepted as legal proof that you are the rightful owner. An added bonus is that you do not have to pay the transfer tax until the title deed is issued, so if you included the tax in your budget, thinking that it was payable with the contract, you can earn some interest on it whilst waiting for the title deed. Furthermore, if you decide to sell the property before the title deed is issued, you can do so – the new contract (between you and your buyer) simply replaces the original one at the Land Registry Office, and the new owner is now liable for the transfer tax when the title deed is issued.
Lawyers
We would strongly advise you to use an independent lawyer. Some developers will offer to save you the legal fees by providing their own lawyer free of charge, but the concept of a lawyer acting for both parties is somewhat alien to the British mentality! There are plenty of fully qualified lawyers in Cyprus, who speak perfect English. (All property contracts in Cyprus are in English). Beware of recommendations from waiters and hotel staff etc., unless you are prepared to accept that the fees will be bumped up with a ‘thank you’ payment to the referrer, who will no doubt be a friend or relative! If you need some free legal advice before travelling to Cyprus, completely without obligation or cost, we will happily put you in direct contact with lawyers in Paphos who have helped many of our previous clients. We take no payment for this service, whether you end up using that lawyer or buying a property from us. Contact Us
Important Note
The information on this website is based on our interpretation of the current regulations in Cyprus. Whilst we make every endeavour to provide accurate information, we cannot accept liability for any loss incurred due to inaccuracies or omissions on this website. Prospective buyers are strongly recommended to take independent legal advice before entering into any agreements or parting with any money. |
