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Documents transfer of property

Our clients choose us because they know we understand their objectives and offer them legal support by getting the documents transfer of property.

We regularly handle transactions for the world’s leading investment banks, private equity funds, hedge funds, pension funds, REITs and sovereign wealth funds.

Increasingly they are cross border, highly structured and involve sophisticated financing arrangements.

These transactions are increasingly cross-border, highly structured, and involve sophisticated financing arrangements.

We support our clients in their most critical real estate projects on an international basis, ensuring compliance with local regulations and seamless execution.

List of Documents for Transfer of Property in Bulgaria:

1. Property Title Deed (Notary Deed): This essential document proves ownership and must be signed before a notary and registered in the Registry Agency.

2. Land Registry Extract: Provides detailed information about the property, including boundaries, area, and any encumbrances.

3. Municipal Tax Assessment Certificate: Confirms that all property taxes and fees are up to date according to local municipality records.

Other Specific Documents: Depending on the property type (e.g., agricultural land, historical buildings), additional documents may be required.

Navigating the property transfer process in Bulgaria requires meticulous attention to these documents to ensure compliance with local laws and regulations, facilitating a smooth and legally secure transaction.

1. Property title documents transfer of property

Most frequent documents of ownership:

• Title Deed, registered with the Registry Agency – title deed for purchase and sale, title deed for donation, title deed for exchange, notarized statement of ascertainment;

• Deed with registration records;

• Sales Agreement executed under the Ordinance on State-Owned Properties;

• Sales Agreement, executed under the Municipal Property Act and the State-Owned Public or Municipal Real Estate Act.

2. Property Tax Evaluation Certificate – issued by the local tax office at the property domicile.

The Property Tax Evaluation Certificate has to contain an address identical to the address of the property as per the title deed.

Property co-owners may not have any outstanding debts concerning the property, which shall be indicated in the Property Tax Evaluation Certificate.

3. Certificate of Marital Status of the seller(s), indicating the marital status of all owners as of the date of acquisition of the property.

4. Marriage Certificate of the seller, if applicable.

5. This property is not acquired as marital property, it shall not be considered matrimonial property community;

6. The property has any real rights registered, in order to execute the sale transaction, the user shall abandon all the real rights, established in their favour.

The waiver has to be signed in the presence of a Notary Public and shall be registered with the Notary Public’s file.

7. In case the property is subject to partition – the document in question (contract, ruling), registered with the Registry Agency.

8. Plan of the plot, in case of transfer of land (land plot, yard or part of yard, where the property/apartment is built).

9. In case the property has been received as inheritance

10. If the seller is divorced, the court ruling dissolving the marriage in divorce shall be presented.

11. Specific cases require different documents, which follow the property history and proves the title of ownership.

12. Certificate of Burdens for the property – to be issued by the Registry Agency

13. In case the seller is unable to perform the transaction personally, he needs to appoint another person with a Power of Attorney.

This Power of Attorney shall be notarized, and both the signatures affixed and the content of this Power of Attorney shall be certified.

14.A declaration under article 25, paragraph 7 of the Notaries and Notary Practices Acts and a declaration under article 264, paragraph 1 Tax Code

15. An identity document, which confirms the identity of both the buyer and the seller

16. In case the transaction refers to transferring developed buildings – the respective documents issued by the builder/investor

17. Other documents, according to the specifics of the transaction.

Due to the diversity of documents possible, we recommend that the documents under this transaction be checked by a lawyer.

June 24, 2018/by lawyer

Legal advices, News, Personal

Registration of a branch

The dynamics of modern business relations can easy switch to another country of doing business in different settlements by registration of a branch.

If you have such a need, you are generally faced with three options for doing business:

A) register individual “subsidiaries” of trading companies and through them to carry out your business.

With this option new companies are emerging and they have separate business enterprises.

The common between them is in the owner who owns them, but in the case of third parties they are completely independent subjects;

B) to disclose retail outlets (warehouses, shops, etc.) in the different settlements, without creating new companies and operating in them.

In this situation, no new legal entity emerges – a company, the trader himself engages in legal relationships with third parties.

B) register a branch through which to separate the performance of part of your activity in a settlement other than that in which your company has its registered office.

The branch is a legal-organizational form for carrying out a business activity in which a trader (firm), through a relative separation of part of its activity, carries it out in a settlement other than that in which its seat is located.

In the internal relations, the branch is dependent on the trader and this dependence is manifested in different directions, for example in:

A) the lack of an independent firm, and the branch company includes the trader’s firm and the branch add-on;

(B) the branch is part of the trader’s business (and, if transferred, the branch is transferred).

In disputes arising out of a direct relationship with a branch, claims are brought against the firm (as may be done at the headquarters of the branch);

B) the termination of the trader also leads to the termination of the branch (the same applies when the bankruptcy is declared);

D) the branch does not compile a stand-alone balance – the branch leads commercial books as a sole trader without compiling a separate balance sheet.

Registration of a branch

Branch registration is the result of the following procedure, which includes:

1. decision on the establishment of a branch;

2. election of a branch manager;

3. Entry in the Commercial Register (TP).

The decision to register a branch is taken by the competent corporate body under the rules of the relevant commercial company:

The decision should contain a clear intention to establish a branch and its headquarters, address of management, subject of activity, manner of management.

Setting up a Bulgarian branch by a foreign company is one of the legal forms for establishment of a business presence in Bulgaria.

Usually the branch office is considered to be an alternative to being a (sole) shareholder of a Bulgarian company.

The Bulgarian branch office is not a separate legal entity but a part of the foreign company.Registration of a branch

As a result, share capital of the branch is not required and the foreign company is liable for the liabilities incurred by the branch.

Legal Representative of the Bulgarian Branch

Though the Bulgarian branch office is not a separate legal entity and appointment of a director is not required, the authorization of a legal representative of the branch is mandatory.

The representative powers of the legal representative are determined by a power of attorney granted to him by the foreign company.

Registration with the Bulgarian Commercial Register

Under Bulgarian legislation branches are required to be registered with the Bulgarian Commercial Register. The necessary documents to register a branch in Bulgaria include:

official certificate of good standing of the foreign company;

official incumbency certificate containing the particulars of the persons authorized to represent the foreign company and their representative powers (if not contained in the certificate of good standing);

resolution of the foreign company to establish a branch in Bulgaria (the persons competent to adopt such a resolution are determined by the national corporate law of the foreign company);

constituent act/articles of association of the foreign company;

notarized power of attorney granted to the legal representative of the Bulgarian branch;

notarized written consent and specimen signature of the legal representative of the Bulgarian branch;

declaration under art.13, para. 4 of the Bulgarian Commercial Register Act.

Accounting

Under the Bulgarian Commerce Act following the successful branch office registration, the branch is required to maintain its own bookkeeping as well as to prepare a balance sheet.

Taxation

Under the Bulgarian tax legislation the profit generated by a foreign company’s branch established in Bulgaria is subject to corporate income tax.

June 24, 2018/by lawyer

Legal advices

Changing manager LLC Bulgaria

Change in the manner of management and representation or change of the person (s) representing the company

A change in the management of a company may occur when two or more persons are elected in the place of a manager to represent and manage the company together or separately, as well as the appointment of a procurator.

I. In the Commercial Law an option is provided by the manager of the company aloneto request it to be removed from the Commercial Register by giving written notice to the company.

Within one month of receipt of the notification, the company must declare its release in the Commercial Register for entry.

If the company does not do so, the manager may himself file for registration the fact that is entered, whether or not another person is elected in his place. In a nutshell, in order for the manager or the liquidator to declare the deletion alone, the law provided for the existence of two prerequisites – the manager / liquidator / requested the deletion by written notification to the company and the company had not declared its deletion in within one month of receipt of the notification.

The second and more frequent reason for change of manager in OOD is

Election of a new governor after the expiry of the mandate of the old governor or
Withdrawal of the manager’s authorization at any time during his term of office,
Resignition of the manager.

Empowerment of the manager may be withdrawn at any time and his name deleted from the commercial register.

The freedom of the general assembly to free the governor at any time, respectively to elect a new governor, is imperatively regulated by the legislator, and it results from the free withdrawal of empowerment (including empowerment).

There is a complete correspondence between the possibility of the general meeting of the company to withdraw the authorization of the manager / for the dismissal of the manager / as provided in Art. 141, para. 5 of the Commercial Act, the unilateral withdrawal of the manager, with a written notification to the company. The possibility of a free change of the manager is related to the fact that the legislator did not introduce grounds for the dismissal of the manager.

Even in cases where such a foundation is provided in the company agreement, they could not overcome imperatively the art. 141, para. 4 of the CG freedom of the General Assembly to withdraw the authorization, but such grounds would have significance in the search of the manager’s responsibility.

The change of the manager of the company should be entered in the Commercial Register.

Upon the change of the current manager, it is necessary to conclude a new written contract for the assignment of the management on behalf of the company, also the general meeting must take a decision to amend the company contract if the management and representation of the company change are the essential elements of the contract.

This decision must be taken by a majority of more than three-quarters of the capital unless a majority of the company’s agreement is provided.

The decision shall be drawn up with a notary authentication of the signatures and the contents made at the same time, unless a written agreement is provided in the Articles of Association.

The decision shall be entered in the record book. In LLC, a change in the way of management most often means assigning the management of EOOD to a procurator, but it is possible to appoint a governor if the constitutive act does not exclude the possibility of appointing a third party manager.

The procedure for entry in the Commercial Register and the register of non-profit legal entities lasts three working days.

Our legal services includes:

1. Drafting & preparation of the necessary documents, according to the requirements of the Commerce Act;

2. Drafting of applications of the Registry Agency – Commercial Register and all other necessary documents;

3. Transfer & payment of Register state fee for recording changes in circumstances;

4. Transfer of all state fee for Commercial Register, bank Fees;

With our service we will save you valuable time, with our knowledge and skills we will complete the entire procedure for you at moderate competitive prices.

June 24, 2018/by lawyer

Legal advices, News, Personal

Legal documents apostiles

A huge part of our job is preparation and assistance for Legal documents apostiles

Our team is here to help you navigate through the complex legal landscape and documents, related to your case.

Notary Services in Bulgaria

When it comes to real estate transactions in Bulgaria, a notary is essential.

Notaries play a critical role in these transactions, ensuring that all legal requirements are met and that the transaction is conducted smoothly and lawfully.

They are responsible for verifying the authenticity of signatures on various documents such as contracts and Powers of Attorney, making them a crucial component in maintaining the integrity of legal processes.

Additional Notarial Services

In addition to real estate matters, Bulgarian notaries offer a range of services:

– Will Deposits: Notaries can securely deposit wills, ensuring they are preserved and legally recognized upon execution.
– Vehicle Transfers: They oversee the legal transfer of vehicle ownership, ensuring all necessary documentation is correctly completed and filed.
– Certifying Signatures: Notaries certify signatures on documents, providing an added layer of verification and trustworthiness.

The Role of Notaries Versus Solicitors

In Bulgaria, notaries and solicitors (known as Bulgarian advocates) have distinct roles.

Notaries are public officers appointed to act as impartial witnesses to the signing of documents and to ensure that the parties involved understand the contents of the documents they are signing.

Unlike solicitors, notaries cannot provide legal advice or prepare documents on behalf of their clients.

However, they serve as trusted authorities in formal business dealings, ensuring the legality and authenticity of documents.

Bridging the Gap: Our Services

While notaries in Bulgaria are limited to their specific functions, our team is here to bridge the gap between needing notarization and understanding the full scope of your legal needs.

We provide comprehensive assistance to help you navigate through the legal processes, ensuring that your documents meet all necessary requirements, including obtaining apostilles.

Apostilles for International Use

An apostille is a certification that authenticates the origin of a public document, such as a birth certificate, court order, or any other document issued by a government agency.

Our team can assist you with:

– Obtaining Apostilles:

We guide you through the process of obtaining an apostille, ensuring your documents are recognized internationally.
– Document Preparation:

Ensuring that your documents are correctly prepared and formatted for apostille certification.
– Streamlining the Process:

Helping you navigate the bureaucratic steps involved in securing an apostille, saving you time and effort.

Comprehensive Legal Support

Beyond notary and apostille services, we offer a range of legal support to meet your needs:

– Document Preparation:

Drafting and preparing legal documents to ensure they meet all legal standards.
– Legal Advice:

Providing expert legal advice tailored to your specific situation and requirements.
– Representation:

Representing you in legal matters to ensure your interests are fully protected.

Our dedicated team is committed to providing you with the highest level of service, ensuring that all your legal documents are handled with the utmost care and professionalism.

Whether you are dealing with real estate transactions, vehicle transfers, or international document certifications

We are here to assist you every step of the way. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you with your legal document needs.

Scope of Notary Related Services

We draft and finalise all types of notary deeds — e.g. for the transfer of real estate through sale and purchase contracts, through gifts, by inheritance, etc.

We are also in a position to advise you , concerning the Legal documents apostiles, when and how to use the notarial form of contract to your advantage.

Because of our extensive experience and network of contacts among Bulgarian notaries, where more than one is available

We are able to liaise with them for you and ensure that you obtain the best service.

Verification of documents with an apostilles

Sometimes, if a document is required to be presented in Bulgaria but was signed or otherwise prepared outside Bulgaria, the document would need to be:

(a) certified; and/or

(b) apostilled

Apostillisation is designed to replace the older procedure of legalisation, and is governed by an international convention (we refer to this as “the Apostille Convention”).

An even simpler procedure may apply where the document was prepared in one of a small number of countries enjoying agreements for special assistance in civil and judicial matters with Bulgaria:

contact us to find out if your country of interest is one of these.

By far the most common situation involves documents which do require an apostille.

Apostilled documents are immediately recognised in all other Apostille Convention states simply by having a special seal (‘apostille’) attached, and can be used (subject to a certified translation) in place of notarised documents.

In property transactions, apostilles may be needed on Powers of Attorney and on several of the documents in the procedure for company registration (if a company is used).

We can help you obtain Legal documents apostiles.

You just need to visit, getting the draft of documents HM Government’s office for apostille processing.

This allows us to prepare an apostille for you and deliver the certified POA, etc, to Bulgaria within several days of your instruction.

In EUROPEAN countries, we maintain relations locally to allow us to apostille your document for use in Bulgaria as fast as possible.

Equally, we can procure legalisations, certified and sworn translations of documents and certifications of documents produced or executed in Bulgaria for use in other countries.

June 2, 2018/by lawyer

Legal advices

Purchase property in Bulgaria

Our law office D.Vladimirov & Partners provide a professional legal services to purchase property in Bulgaria.

The entire process of buying a property in Bulgaria is complicated so we need to check the ideal parts of the ownership right and also the land plot for lack of encombrances.

Once you’ve found a home you plan to buy and agreed the selling price, you will need to take the following steps:

Signing a preliminary contract and pay a deposit.
Signing the notary deed and make the final payment.

The buying process is generally straightforward and is often completed within a month. EU citizens can purchase and own property in Bulgaria in the same conditions as locals.

The process of property acquisition and disposal can be lengthy and complicated and we advise our clients on the significant commercial implications that might arise.

We advise on and draft development agreements, provide legal assistance in construction, planning and site disposal matters, fund-raising arrangements, freehold transfers and any associated due diligence reports.

We assist in the acquisition of real estate in Bulgaria and in the subsequent implementation of investment projects in the field of hotel management and tourism, golf courses, office and commercial buildings, industrial construction works in Bulgaria

Please note we are chariging you for real costs and legal fees, state fees and the tax for transferring of ownership). If a travelling out of Sofia is needed, this would be calculated additionally.Purchase property in Bulgaria

Property legal check-up

Working with many international clients & corporate, our law office D.Vladimirov & partners has created a stable legal work policy for checking of the legal status of your property in Bulgaria.

Acting as a qualified property lawyers in Bulgaria, we performing the legal check services for our clients, depending on complexity of every case in the Bulgarian property register.

We check in the Bulgarian property Register the status of the certain property and report to our clients the final results and warnings, if there are any.

This information would allow you to check whether there are any encumbrances upon your property, for which you do not know, for example: a mortgage for a loan, which is already repaid, interdiction, imposed by the tax authorities for unpaid tax obligations, or any other rights of third persons.

Bulgarian land investment no longer requires company !

As a result of the contractual obligations, undertaken by the Bulgarian government in relation to Bulgaria’s membership in the European Union, an important part of the Bulgarian law was recently changed.

From 1 January 2012 citizens of the EU are no longer prohibited to purchase Bulgarian land, which is in regulation.

Until this date they had to set up a Bulgarian company and purchase land through the established legal entity, as according to the old law only Bulgarian individuals and companies had the right to acquire Bulgarian land.

This led to many unfavourable consequences for foreign investors, such as paying additionally to a lawyer to establish a Bulgarian company, appointing an accountant for the relevant services and making other expenses, related to having and maintaining a company.

Preliminary Contract

The first stage in buying a home in Bulgaria is the signing of a preliminary contract. Your lawyer is responsible for ensuring that this is drawn up correctly and you shouldn’t rely on an estate agent to do so.

It’s important not to pay a deposit or sign a preliminary contract prior to performing an in-depth due diligence of the property.

Check that the property has the same dimensions as advertised, if there are any undisclosed encumbrances (i.e pending costs) and that all the necessary permissions and documentation are in place.

While some agents or developers will provide a properly-drawn up contract, some won’t – and unless you’re a Bulgarian-speaking lawyer you won’t be able to tell which is which!

For peace of mind it’s recommended that you have the contract drawn up or at least checked by a Bulgarian property lawyer.

There are a number of types of preliminary contract, depending on whether you’re buying an existing (built) property or a new property off plan (i.e. yet to be built or under construction).

Signing the Notary Act

Signing the notary act (sometimes referred to as the notary deed, purchase contract or final contract, which is equivalent to a title deed) is the final step in taking ownership of your property.

If you’re unable to be present at the signing, you can have your agent or lawyer sign it on your behalf if you’ve given him power of attorney.

You should always sign the notary act in person if you’re buying a brand new or off-plan property, to make sure that all the requirements of the preliminary contract have been met.

The signing of the notary act takes place in front of a notary public, who first checks that all the conditions contained in the preliminary contract have been fulfilled.

It’s normal for all parties concerned to be present when the final contract is read, signed and witnessed by the notary, including the estate agent, developer (for new or off-plan property), your lawyer and your translator.

Either party (buyer or seller) can give a representative power of attorney. In the case of an off-plan purchase, the final contract isn’t signed until the building is complete.

Find independent legal advice for purchase property in Bulgaria

Numerous property owners are now experiencing problems with their property because they did not seek independent legal advice and instead used lawyers and translators which were recommended by the estate agent or developer and they were acting for both parties.

Appoint a qualified lawyer, who is experienced in property conveyance and fully independent of anyone else involved in the transaction, eg the estate agent, vendor or developer.

If you need our legal assitance, do not hesitate to contact us immediately

May 20, 2018/by lawyer

Legal advices, News, Personal

Recovery of Unpaid Invoices

Many corporate clients comes to our office with the legal inquiry to support for Recovery of Unpaid Invoices.

Recovering unpaid invoices can be a frustrating and time-consuming affair for any business, especially when dealing with international clients.

At our firm, we recognize the critical importance of swiftly and effectively pursuing outstanding debts to maintain your cash flow and business stability.

We have tailored our Debt Recovery Service specifically to meet the needs of our commercial clients in Bulgaria, ensuring a vigorous yet cost-effective approach to debt collection.

Why choose our debt Recovery of Unpaid Invoices service ?

Our Debt Recovery Service is not an automated system;

it’s a comprehensive solution operated by a specialist team of solicitors with extensive experience in Bulgarian law.

We understand the unique challenges businesses face in debt recovery.

Expertise: Our team comprises highly skilled solicitors who are well-versed in Bulgarian debt recovery laws and practices.
Efficiency: We aim to recover debts of any size quickly, minimizing the impact on your business operations.
Cost-Effective: We provide transparent and competitive pricing to ensure that the cost of recovery does not outweigh the benefits.

Our proven debt recovery process

The legal debt recovery process is streamlined to maximize results while minimizing the time and effort required from your side.

1. Initial Step – Suprizing the debtor with freezing his assets

The process begins with the claim in the court.

The urgency and seriousness conveyed in the letter often prompt a quick response from the debtor, leading to the resolution of the debt without the need for further action.

2. The issue of legal proceedings

If the debtor fails to respond to the ‘letter before action’, we proceed by issuing a County Court claim form.

This formal legal action includes claims for the original debt, court fees, costs, and interest.

The initiation of legal proceedings often serves as a significant motivator for debtors to settle their accounts promptly.

3. Interest debt collection

We understand the importance of recovering not just the principal amount but also any interest that is due. Interest can be claimed in several ways:

Statutory Interest: Currently 10% from the due date of the invoice until Judgment.
Contractual Interest: As stipulated in your terms and conditions.

Tailored Solutions for Bulgarian Debt Recovery

We pride ourselves on providing more than just a computerised system.

Our debt recovery service is personalized to meet your specific needs, and we are committed to providing the highest level of client service.

Whether you are dealing with a single large debt or multiple smaller ones, we support you in Bulgaria.

We have the tools and expertise to ensure you recover what is owed to you, with minimum hassle and expense.

How Can We Help You?

If you are facing challenges with unpaid invoices, don’t let them drag on.

Our team is ready to act swiftly and decisively to protect your interests and improve your cash flow.

Get in Touch Today

Fill out our online form, and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible. Alternatively, speak directly to one of our debt recovery experts by calling

December 11, 2017/by lawyer

Legal advices, News, Personal

Real estates lawyer Bulgaria

Our professional property lawyers team and assist the customer through the whole purchase or sale procedure from real estates lawyer Bulgaria.

Our Bulgarian lawyers, even they are real estate company’s lawyers guarantee and makes you sure that the transaction is legal,

The seller or the buyer understand each legal action

He works with purchasers, buyers and sellers of apartments, houses, plots of land, agricultural land, mortgages, bank loans, loan applications, tenants.

We advise always to use a property lawyer services because the past two years a lot of problems occurred with the real estates properties in Bulgaria.

Before it was believed that the real estate agent was enough to assist you.

+LEGAL CHECK OF DOCUMENTS

If you are a seller in a real estate transaction, our law firm can offer full legal services, including the following:

– we prepare a project and coordinate amendments to the text of a preliminary contract for sale and purchase of real estate;

– we inspect, advise and assist you in obtaining the necessary documents for the sale, including, but not limited to:

a certificate of tax assessment of the property;
certificate of marital status;
certificate of marital regime;
certificate of presence/absence of material encumbrances;
previous property acts;
cadastral scheme of the property by the GCCA, and others;
Filing a corrective declaration under Article 14 of the LTFA;

– we perform a check on the buyer – their representative power, availability of information about court cases against them, and other relevant information;

– we prepare and make amendments (if needed) to the draft title deed, assist our clients before the notary public and accompany the client on the day of the transaction;

– we assist our clients in obtaining possession of the property, including the preparation of a acceptance and delivery certificate, if such is needed and agreed;

– we coordinate the communication with the lending bank, if the buyer is going to use a loan for the purchase, we monitor the issuance of a letter of engagement;

– we cooperate, if the sale price will be paid through a trust account contract/escrow account;

In addition, although we are not financial advisers, we can provide you with guidance on the approximate real market price of the property, which you can receive from eventual sale.

We can represent you as a client in property issue throughout the whole process

If necessary, we can sign the new notarial deed on your behalf as seller and deliver possession of the property to your buyer.

We also offer legal assistance in solving problems related to the Cadaster and Property Register Act, problems with property boundaries, unresolved regulatory bills, precise registration of apartments, houses and plots in the schemes issued by GCCA, as well as with the preparation and supply of all the necessary documentation.

Should you have any questions or need information on the above legal services, please

But the Bulgarian property lawyer is the attorney who will be useful in practically all cases, including any legal stops in Bulgaria, contract negotiations and mortgages.

Some of the purchase contracts are standardized, others have ambiguous terms

In that case you need a property lawyer who is profound into the Bulgarian property legislation.

Our legal services include legal activities in following activities like:

Legal representation during sale and purchase of real property;
Provision of any documents required for the purposes of legally confirming property status;
Obtaining a certificate for entries, recordations or deletions;
Performing checks within the archive records at the Registry Agency
Legal check for the choosen property – a legal entity and clarifying circumstances that are vital for the transfer of the real property,
lawsuits against the seller, which may affect the property.
Drafting, preparation, signing, termination, and rescission of contracts for purchase and sale of real estate.

Preparation of notary notices for cancellation of preliminary contract for the sale of real estate.

Full legal assistance and representation in court during court cases for a refund of paid deposit as per a signed preliminary contract.

Legal representation by real property lawyer during legal proceedings under Article 19 of Contracts and Obligations Act for the announcement of a preliminary contract as final.

Full representation of a seller or a buyer during the signing of a title deed and the related procedure of declaring the property at the local municipality.

Legal representation during court proceedings for property aqusition.

Valuation of real estate properties by a competent licensed appraiser and obtaining the relevant valuation within a period of up to few days.

Our work for investor clients is at the heart of our real estate lawyers group.

We are committed to all aspects of the real estate law and we are able to service all requirements of our real estate investor clients. Real estates lawyer Bulgaria

Our experience includes not only the preparation of straightforward sales, purchases and leases but also the preparation of most complex deals

Legal advice on the structuring and financing of such deals.

Our real estate lawyers work in close cooperation with our tax law experts in order to provide you with a working solution that is to meet all your requirements and to cover all aspects of your deal.

In particular, our work in this area includes:

Preparation of due diligence reports related to prospective purchases or leases of real estates;
Preparation of sale agreements;
Preparation of short or long term lease agreements;
Advice on the organization of the design and construction processes;
Preparation of construction agreements;
Preparation of design agreements;
Review and preparation of agreements with supervision companies;
Organization and preparation of deals that require an escrow payment;
Provision of tax advice on all aspects of the real estate deals.

December 10, 2017/by lawyer

Legal advices

Management of Condominium Buildings

Public relations regarding the management of common parts of buildings under condominium ownership arrangements and rights and obligations of owners, tenants and occupants of individual units or parts thereof, are regulated under the Condominium Ownership Management Act (COMA), (effective as of May 1st, 2009, published in the State Gazette, issue 6, dated January 23rd, 2009, amended in SG, issue 15 dated February 23rd, 2010, amended in SG, issue 8 dated January 25th, 2011, amended in SG, issue 57 of July 26th, 2011).

The special regime of management of the common parts of buildings under condominium ownership arrangements is introduced for buildings in closed residential complexes shall be arranged with a written contract, with notarized signatures, with the investor and the owners of individual units, which are parties thereto. The agreement has to be registered with the Registry Agency on the lot of each individual unit by the investor, and shall be referenced to subsequent purchasers.

Exceptions to the management of the common parts of buildings under condominium ownership arrangements are introduced for buildings, which contain up to three independent units, which are property to more than one owner. In these cases, the provisions of article 30, paragraph 3, article 31, paragraph 1 and article 32 of the Property Act shall apply.

Condominium Management shall cover procedures and shall supervise the use and maintenance of the common areas and compliance with the building internal regulations under condominium ownership arrangement, and the supervision over the fulfilment of the obligations of the owners, users and residents.

Forms of Condominium Management are the General Meeting and/or the Association of Owners.

The management bodies are: the General Meeting and the Managing Board (Manager).

The General Meeting of the Association shall be authorized to make a decision, adopted by a majority of more than 50 percent of the represented shares in the association, to assign the powers of the Management Board (Manager) to non-owner individuals. The contract for authorization shall be executed by a person, authorized by the General Meeting of the Association.

Expenses for the management and maintenance of the common parts under the condominium ownership arrangement will be equally shared by owners, users and residents.

Repair, renovation, reconstruction and rehabilitation of common parts or replacement of common facilities and equipment shall be carried out under the decision of the General Meeting of owners. The General Meeting of the owners or the Association establish and maintain a Repairs and Renovations Fund. Expenses for repairs, renovation, reconstruction and rehabilitation of the common areas, referred to in the respective decision of the General Meeting of owners, shall be distributed among the owners of the individual units, proportionate to the notional shares of the common parts of the building, held by them.

For any issues, not covered by the COMA, the provisions of the Ownership Act will apply.

The list of main obligations to be complied with includes, but shall not be limited to: to not prevent all other owners, operators and occupants from using all common areas of the building; to not cause damage to common areas; to not rent them; to not participate in activities, which cause excessive disturbance and inconvenience to other occupants; to fulfil the decisions of the General Meeting; to make payments for the expenses required; to comply with the sanitary and hygiene standards, et al. A Condominium Log has to be organized, kept and maintained in each building which should contain the relevant information on the property, owners, users, et al. The decisions of the governing bodies, adopted in accordance with the condominium ownership arrangements, shall be absolutely mandatory for all building owners.

Often, property owners who are foreign nationals employ management and maintenance companies to perform all internal organization works for the building, pay bills, collect payments from owners, rent apartments on their behalf, et al. Services of such companies can be easily found through the internet. It is strongly recommended to sign a contract with such a company and follow the advice of your legal counsel.

December 9, 2017/by lawyer

Legal advices, News, Personal

Preventing property Frauds

Preventing Property Frauds

In the wake of the global financial crisis, the rise in unemployment and the drop in consumption in Bulgaria, crime levels are on the rise, property related fraud in particular.

The bad actors range from educated professionals to poorly educated individuals.

The National Police Directorate General has classified different types of crime into the following main sub-types:

Acts or failures to act by legal entities /investors and contractors for residential building developments/ and public administration officials responsible for the approval of architectural designs, development plans, et al. This exists due to the information gap about local laws and mediators’ malpractices. These types of fraud most often involve violations of the zoning and spatial planning legislation and/or civil law.
The second group involves individuals who, acting unlawfully, acquire or dispose of properties of third parties, who are bona fide owners. This type of fraud is perpetrated through embezzlement of proceeds from time share, misuse of personal data and its use to “acquire” the property. The fraud relies on misleading foreign buyers, using the fact that buyers are not familiarized with the domestic legislation. Fake brokers are set up and involved in a “negotiation” and document exchange process.
Buyers often rely on the brokers and fail to investigate the developer of the building. Another sub-type of this fraud involves properties of foreign nationals, who have acquired properties through companies and said properties have been listed on the balance sheet of their company.
Since the information in the Commercial Register is public, fraudsters have access to the identity documents, UCN/PNF, address and other data, in particular – the signatures of the partners/managers of the company. This data is then used to produce false documents in the name of fictitious persons.

Such documents may include:

Last Will and Testament or Donation – widely used for acquisition of property of deceased or mentally incapacitated individuals.

Certificate of Death/Certificate of Inheritance – in most cases used to acquire the complete documentation for further transaction with property of deceased persons.

Abuse of mentally incapacitated persons, who are not placed under guardianship and are in a mental institution.

Often the documents have the authentic signature of the owner, who has been mislead/taken advantage of by the fraudsters, who have created a relationship with them.

Two types of real estate fraud that are on the rise in the past 12 months:

Fraudsters impersonate individual homeowners and use stolen IDs to sell or mortgage properties. The mortgage or sale happens quickly and the fraudulent proceeds are dissipated outside the jurisdiction almost immediately.

The CBC recently reported that a handful of organized crime syndicates are behind these real-estate frauds, in which 30+ homes in the GTA have either been sold or mortgaged without the owners’ knowledge.

Fraudsters dupe unsuspecting homeowners into registering one or more mortgages on their properties at “cut rates.”

The unsuspecting homeowners end up with one or more mortgages registered on title to their properties on terms they never agreed to while failing to receive some or all of the mortgage proceeds advanced by the lender.

Minutes of Meetings with decisions to change the manager of a limited liability company, substituting the real manager with a person involved in the fraud.

Changing Partners in a limited liability company by selling shares and a transaction for disposal with the company property by the “new” partner.
Court rulings for awarded ownership/claim.
Court rulings for recovery of ownership rights.

Our services in property Frauds

Promissory note /frequently falsified document/, used to initiate enforcement proceedings at private bailiffs and enforcement of injunctions on the property of the debtor.

Failure of the debtor to secure the claim means the property is subject to a public auction, and in some cases the property is acquired by a fictitious person at prices several times lower than the market prices.

The National Automated Information Fund for Bulgarian identity documents connection system has the goal of preventing attempts of fraudulent real property transactions using false identification documents.

Furthermore, Notary Publics have access to the Property Register of the Registry Agency and to the National Database “Population” (for data on legal successors of deceased persons).

December 8, 2017/by lawyer

Legal advices, News, Personal

Selling your Bulgarian property

Selling your house, land or apartment is a very important action, particularly if it is owned by a domestic registered limited liability company in your name.

Our legal department has prepared this article in order to lead you through this procedure which may look like a labyrinth , but in fact is quite easy and straight forward when you know what exactly you need and which step follows next.

Real property agents may try to conceal the tax complications which may arise from selling a real property at a price higher than the price of initial purchase under the Title Deed.

Should the occasion arise, the owner of the property, i.e. the domestic limited liability company owes capital gains tax.

Please take into consideration that the legal aspect of the transaction is the one which will ensure the positive financial outcome of it, by ensuring you are not liable for damages due to making misleading statements in the new Title Deed (drafting a Title Deed is one of the services we offer).

Please also note that you will need to do the following before you initiate the sale:

– ensure the property or the company that owns the property is in good standing (cadastre registration, no outstanding payments for taxes, no encumbrances on the property, et al.)

– getting up to speed on the current real property market situation and any possible Capital Gains tax complications after the sale – get information on fair market values of similar properties in the area in order to correctly determine the going price of your property.

If you own the real property through a company, selling a property entails some accounting costs as well.

– marketing the property – make sure any real estate brokers or agents are marketing the property at the asking price; ensure also that you will only pay the requisite fees after the actual signing of a Title Deed.

Please note that in case you are selling a property through a company, you should require a VAT invoice for any and all fees payable.

The full price for the sale should be listed on the Title deed before signing.

Make sure any and all reservation deposits are transferred to your account and not to the real estate agent account, as there is a risk of the real estate agents acting unfairly and keeping the deposit.

We are happy to prepare the relevant documents and act/negotiate on your behalf to protect your legal and financial interests before real property agents and to guarantee you will receive all amounts payable to you and to ensure you get the full benefit from your sale. Consider hiring us to act on your behalf a good move.

How to find the right buyer for your property is easily the hardest part of the process.

We can help you by examining your documents and help you in listing your property for sale.

After having successfully found a buyer, we will collect information from the buyer about their selected method of funding the transaction (by way of example – a mortgage loan).

A crucial element of our job is to ensure a smooth sale process.

We will act in good faith on your behalf and ensure that you received the deposit and mediate in paying the legal fees for obtaining the requisite documents.

– Obtaining the requisite documents for the sale of your property in Bulgaria. Please be aware that this is a lengthy process – application for documents are filed to the Land Registering Agency, to the Cadastral Agency, the National Revenue Agency, et al. Please also be aware that your prospective buyer (or their lawyer) may require examining the documents before agreeing to go through with the purchase.

– Please be advised of the Cadastral Plan particulars as regards to properties. Your property needs to be registered with the Cadastre Agency and prior to selling your property, you need to obtain a Cadastral Plan and present it to a Notary Public.

This is particularly important for properties you own in Sunny Beach, Bansko, Pamporovo, Kavarna, Sozopol, et al., since it is there that a Cadastral Plan is existing already.

For further details on the Cadastral Plan, please visit our section “Cadastral registration”.

– Effectuating the sale: You have two options at your disposal.

You can go for direct signing of the Title Deed for the sale of a property, or you can do a preliminary contract first, against the receipt of a deposit payment.

Naturally this is the key point of the sale process and we will be happy to assist you in creating both the preliminary agreement and/or the Title Deed for sale, based on your existing documents.

We will have those translated and approved by you prior to signing.

It will also be our responsibility to set an appointment with a local notary public acting in for the area of location of your property. You can also authorize us to appear before the Notary Public on your behalf and save yourself a trip to Bulgaria.

– Post-sale: After you complete the sale and sign the Title Deed, we can provide you with a copy and we can help you deregister it from your file with the Bulgarian Revenue Agency to make sure you are no longer paying local property taxes for that property.

We also offer the service of exchanging the public utility company batch registrations.

List of legal documents, needed for the sale of properties in Bulgaria

The main document proving your ownership is the Notary Deed.

You should have received it when you first bought the property. If you by any chance have lost it it doesn’t mean you have lost your ownership. Contact your agent for assistance to have a notarized copy issued from the notary who has initially signed the deal.

You need additionally the sketch for the property – the sketch is issued by the local technical department in the Municipality where your property is located.

The sketch could be ready in 24 hours. In order to put a request for a sketch you will need a copy of the notary deed.

Once a sketch is issued it is valid for 6 months. After that the whole procedure should be done again!

The next documents, which is nessesery for the sale of property in Bulgaria is a valid Tax Evaluation Document, issued by the Local Tax services Office in the Municipality where your property is located.

If you are selling the property as a phisycal person, you will need to have a document stating your Marital Status.

This document you should supply from your own country and get it translated and legalized in Bulgaria.

If the property has been bought during your marriage you will need a letter of attorney by your spouse for the deal. So for this it is important what was your marital status by the time when you have purchased the property.

One of the documents, which will be needed is a legal certificate of lack of encumbrances– this document states that there are not established real rights in favor of third persons for the property you are selling.

This document is issued by the Registry Service in your Municipality.

When submitting a request you have to provide the notary deed for the property. If the property has land you have to supply a sketch as well.

This document is valid only 24 hours. Some notaries do not request this paper as they are checking it automatically at the day of the deal.

Legal declaration for citizenship and marital status as per article 25. 7 from the Notary Law act.

This document should be filled before the Notary public on the day of the transfering of the ownership over the property.

Legal declaration stating that you don’t owe any taxes to the Republic of Bulgaria.

In case you as an owner will not be present at the deal , make sure that you have an accurate letter of attorney signed and notarized ( apostilled) by you with which you empower a lawyer or someone you trust to sign on your behalf and on your account !

Property is owned by a company

……you need to provide a company decision for the purchase / sale of property If you own the property as a company you will need a written decision of the share holders in the company that you have decided to sell this property which is an asset of the company.

It should be signed by all shareholders and stamped.

By law when providing this paper there is no need all the shareholders to be present at the deal as far as the manager is present but many Notaries will require it!

Please note that in some cases you may need additional papers due to some complicated form of ownership. In each case we advise you to use us for your own security!

We would like to advices you not to forget you passport !

Our law office will represent you and provide guidance in each of the steps listed.

Please contact us if you have any questions or if you need any assistance on the matters detailed herein.

December 8, 2017/by lawyer

Posts

Documents transfer of property

List of Documents for Transfer of Property in Bulgaria:

1. Property title documents transfer of property

4. Marriage Certificate of the seller, if applicable.

Registration of a branch

In the internal relations, the branch is dependent on the trader and this dependence is manifested in different directions, for example in:

Registration of a branch

Legal Representative of the Bulgarian Branch

Registration with the Bulgarian Commercial Register

Accounting

Changing manager LLC Bulgaria

The change of the manager of the company should be entered in the Commercial Register.

Legal documents apostiles

Notary Services in Bulgaria

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Apostilles for International Use

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Verification of documents with an apostilles

contact us to find out if your country of interest is one of these.

We can help you obtain Legal documents apostiles.

Purchase property in Bulgaria

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Signing the Notary Act

Find independent legal advice for purchase property in Bulgaria

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Our proven debt recovery process

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How Can We Help You?

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Real estates lawyer Bulgaria

Before it was believed that the real estate agent was enough to assist you.

We can represent you as a client in property issue throughout the whole process

Our legal services include legal activities in following activities like:

Legal representation during court proceedings for property aqusition.

Legal advice on the structuring and financing of such deals.

In particular, our work in this area includes:

Preventing Property Frauds

Selling your Bulgarian property

We can help you by examining your documents and help you in listing your property for sale.

List of legal documents, needed for the sale of properties in Bulgaria

Property is owned by a company

Any more questions? Call us on + 359 897 90 43 91 !

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