Cyprus Property Forum for Buyers, Sellers & Investors

hi can anyone advise me on the registration of property,i have a property by ayia nappa but I have never registered my self personly I have had the property for 8 years. I automatically thought the builders or the bank were I have my mortgage would of done this ,am I right to assume that I am the registered owner ,the authorities send my council tax bill in my name to the address.could some one please advise on this. san.

Hello san and welcome to the forum,

Before you can register the property in your name as its owner, its Title Deed has to be prepared and this can take several years!!

You can read more about the planning process and the time it takes to get Title Deeds issued at Cyprus' planning laws.

Once the Title Deeds have been issued and are available for transfer, you will need to pay the Property Transfer Fees - the Cyprus equivalent of the Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) that you pay in the UK when a property changes ownership. You can read more about the fees at Property transfer fees.

As you borrowed money from the bank to buy the property, this will have been a 'home loan' (not a mortgage). But when the Title Deed has been issued and you have paid the Property Transfer Fees, the bank will convert this loan to a mortgage and register it as a charge against the property - and you will have to pay the Land Registry 1% of the amount advanced under the loan (the bank may have made an allowance for this in the amount you borrowed).

You need to speak with your developer to find out what progress he is making towards the issuance of Title Deeds - the following questions will help:

• When was the application for the Town Planning Permit submitted?
  
  Has a Building Permit been issued?
  
  Have any Covered Permits been requested/issued?
  
  Has a Certificate of Approval been applied for / issued?
  
  Has a Division Permit been applied for?
  
  Has a Certificate of Approval for the Division Permit been issued?
  
  Has an application been made to the District Lands' Office for the registration of the property & issue of Title Deeds?

Regards,