Article
on buying Bosnia Property by Anthony Riley
The good news is that a
foreign national does not need to ask for permission to purchase a
property in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The
emerging property market is similar to other developing countries with high
end construction, and investment opportunities.
Your
estate agent operates in a reasonably transparent and competitive market,
given the newness of the market; most agents only operate in the major
town, handling mostly residential sales along with apartment rentals.
Property
valuation is not regulated in Bosnia and Herzegovina, there is no
national body offering this service, so you’re Agent’s local
knowledge of property and prices will prove invaluable.
At this
moment we are unaware of any mortgage lenders in Bosnia and Herzegovina
that will offer foreign nationals finance to assist with property
purchase.
It is
easier to complete a property purchase if you use the company route ,this
will cost you around €1000 in fees and an initial start up capital of
€2000 Owning a company then has a regular obligation of maintaining your
accounts to present to the tax authorities making life that little bit
easier.
PURCHASE
In
every case engage a trustworthy lawyer, you will pay between 3-5 of the
agreed selling price to the seller.
To be
valid properties must have been registered in the property books within
the local courts. Properties are also recorded in the local Cadaster
(property map) which provides a unified property and cadastral system.
This property law has only just been implemented, as property books are
frequently out of date and many property books were destroyed during the
civil war.
This
is where your agent comes into his own as it is his job to ensure that
your property purchase has a clean title deed.
Registration
procedures allow for a “subscription” which is a temporary
registration of property rights, pending authentication. Once this has
been done, you are then obliged to pay the seller of the property the
balance of the money owed. (Because of court backlogs it can take up to a
year to get the property registered and get title deed)
You
will have to pay 6 property tax and a 1 property tax payable!
At
this moment there is no Capital Gains Tax in Bosnia and Herzegovina for
foreign nationals buying and selling property.
As a
foreign national you can rent out your property in Bosnia and Herzegovina
without any requirement to obtain a rental licence from the authorities.
Sometime
in the future Bosnia and Herzegovina will become members of the European
Community and when it does the prices of property will be considerably
more than they are at the moment.
top
About
the Author: Anthony Riley is a consultant to
www.globespanproperty.com property portal. Please visit our estate agents
directory and this Bosnia property buyer’s guide
www.globespanproperty.com/guides/bosniaherzegovina.html
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