Procedure of the purchase

First of all it is better to consult a notary (advocate). Generally it is one person. Notary in Switzerland is an official who has right to carry out public functions. That s why notary is responsible for the rightfulness of the transactions. Notary is an independent person and does not take anybody’s side (nor side of the seller neither side of the buyer). But it is important to know that  buyer can choose the notary. So we have notaries. So we have notaries who we have been working with for a long time and who have great experience in the transactions with foreigners.

Usually we organize the meeting with a notary for consultation during the program of visits. It is important when customer can ask a notary himself and can hear the answers. The first meeting with a notary is free. For the transaction you just need a travel passport and data about your registration.

All payments occur through the account of the notary that guaranties the safety of the transaction. Only in case all the obligations of the parties are fulfilled, the notary will register the right of the ownership and transfer money to the seller.

Terms of payment are always different from object to object. First of all, you should transfer 10% of the price to the notary account to reserve the object. But at the same time it is needed to prepare and sign the contract because before this there is no guarantee that this object won’t be sold. Only after the notary register the contract there will be a guarantee that the Seller has no right to sell it to anybody else.

The notary contacts the agency (building company) and finds out all the information he needs. The notary checks accuracy of the documents, cleanliness of the mortgage, encumbrance etc. The notary enters the data into the contract and response for its relevance. But our company coordinate the work of the notary, the Seller and the Customer.

The next steps:

• The notary prepares the contract. As a rule, it is the Right to purchase. The Buyer fixes the right to buy the object  at the price and terms specified in the contract. Terms are very important because if the customer is a foreigner he has to receive a permit – LAFE. There is no permit for the commercial objects, but formal permit is necessary to receive in any case.  The notary should be sure that this object is only for the commercial use, not for the residential one.
• The notary contract is signed. As above, before signing the contract 10% of the price should be on the account of the notary. If it is the property in the complex under construction, the terms of payment will consists of some parts. 10-30% - before the contract, the other part – when the object will be delivered m and the third one – before the registration of the ownership right. It is important: if the Seller refuses to sign the contract, the notary will transfer back all the money of the buyer. And the Seller will pay the fine.
• The notary prepares the documents for LAFE at once. For this he needs the conclusion of the architect that the object requires the law (not more than 200 m2 of the living area and not more than 1000 m2 of the land area). As a rule, the object in the complex under construction has already such documents. All this refers to the residential property.
• Then the notary sends the documents for approval LAFE. There are several authorities: local, cantonal and federal (in Bern). As above, it lasts 2-3 months.
• After receiving LAFE the buyer transfer the remaining amount of money to the notary account. After this the notary begins the process of registration of the ownership right. It is important: if it will be forbidden to give a LAFE to a customer, all the money will transfer back to the account of the buyer. Small amount of money can be deducted by the notary for his work.

The process of the transaction is very individual, so terms of payment can be changed. Process of buying commercial objects has its own peculiarities. Somebody buys buildings, somebody companies etc. This affects the taxes, costs and profitability itself. Our main task is to find object, and during the process of buying we will consult the specialists. And we have such.