Home and mortgage

The notary takes care of all legal aspects of the sale or purchase of a house. His work includes ascertaining the background of the transaction and of the parties involved in the transaction. The notary is also responsible for overseeing the financial arrangements, ensuring that funds are transferred to the bank, the seller and any creditors and, for example, that property transfer tax is paid. The notary ensures, of course, that an equal exchange is made: the purchase price is paid over to the seller only when it is certain that ownership of the property is transferred to the buyer.

The notary will conduct a land registry search and will consult other public registers, such as the insolvency register, the marital property register and the Chamber of Commerce registers. This assures the buyer that the property will indeed be in his legal ownership and that there are no nasty surprises.

If the buyer is financing the purchase by means of a loan, the notary will draw up the necessary mortgage deed. He will arrange for the lender (usually a bank) to make the mortgage amount available on the day that the sale is completed.