Inspection of the apartment upon purchase: what to look for?

Buying a home is a responsible and serious step for a buyer. Before purchasing an apartment, it is necessary to conduct a thorough inspection of all, what's in it. Any housing can be at risk, no one is immune from this. What to look for when buying an apartment – a real estate expert will tell Alexandr Tsvigun, realtor real estate agency in Odessa “1REALTY” with over 28 years of experience in the real estate market.

At the time of buying, the buyer should be wary of not only scammers, and possible pitfalls in the acquired housing. Regardless of the area, condition and value of the secondary property has a history. It may have dark pages - arrests, illegal judicial redevelopment, heirs, registered relatives, etc.. d. Recommendations of specialists will help to avoid possible risks.: experienced realtors or lawyers.

Inspection recommendation #1: pay attention to the history of the apartment

When inspecting a home, you must order an extract from the State Register of Real Estate Rights. This is the first, what you need to pay attention to when buying an apartment. An extract will allow you to check the history of the property, beginning with 1998 y. Thus, the buyer can find out how often the living space was sold., whether there were litigation or disputes on it. The statement will contain information, whether this property is in a mortgage or in seizure.

If it turns out, that the arrest from the home was lifted shortly beforedeals, it is recommended to postpone the signing of the contract. If this happened on the basis of a decision of a judicial authority, then in the future it can be challenged and canceled. In this case, the contract will be invalidated. Better to conclude an agreement with a verified notary, since he has full access to the registry and can check the history of the apartment.

Advice: when coming for inspection, check all judicial and commercial (change of owners) housing history, involve experienced lawyers, this will prevent you from problems after purchase.

We recommend that you familiarize yourself: Taxes on transactions with real estate in Ukraine in 2021 year

Inspection recommendation #2: check when buying homeowners

When choosing housing, you need to pay special attention to the owner of the living space. The buyer's task is to determine, do the owners ownilya to the risk group. If the owners are drug addicts, alcohol addicted or mentally ill, this may lead to the termination of the transaction (when, if the owner at the time of the transaction was under alcoholic or drug influence).

Same, should know, is there an invalid registration of the former owners of the object or temporary registration of third parties. Before buying, the seller is obliged to provide the realtor and the buyer with the necessary documents. The future owner should carefully study the documentation, check the authenticity and validity of powers of attorney.

What should be alarming in the actions of the seller:

• If the owner is hidden from the buyer or the property is offered to be sold by proxy. In this case, the selected property and its owner must be carefully checked, as this may turn out to be a problem transaction.
• Frequent sales of this residential property. A large number of owners for a short period of time should alert the buyer of the apartment. He must check the history and, in particular, find out the fate of all previous owners..

Advice: during the inspection, evaluate the owners in detail, not only at the time of communication with them, but also according to documents. Additionally – you can ask the neighbors.

Inspection recommendation #3: check, who is registered on the living space

Need to know, are there persons registered on this living space. In some cases, they have the right to claim the use of the living space. Therefore, before concluding the transaction, the buyer should order a certificate of registration of the place of residence / stay of persons in the apartment.. Otherwise, after the conclusion of the contract, you will have to write them out through the court..

It is worth assessing the risks of the transaction, if persons of an age or with an unsatisfactory state of health were registered in the housing. Especially should be alarming, if they are the former owners of the apartment, who donated it to the seller. At the request of the former owner, the transaction can be declared invalid, and the housing will be taken away in court.

Advice: this point is extremely important – check the house register for registration of strangers.

Inspection recommendation #4: find out applicants for an apartment

When buying a home, you need to find out, whether other persons apply for the living space. Should check, whether someone was discharged from the apartment in connection with serving a sentence in places of deprivation of liberty. By law, he has the right to a part of the dwelling.. Therefore, after returning from places of detention, he can again register and live in an apartment..

What to do, if the property was purchased, when the owner was married? 

In this case, for the sale of residential property, it is imperative to obtain the consent of the spouse. This rule applies to the case, when the seller is not married at the time of sale. Without the consent of the former spouse, the buyer will have to share the living space with him.

You should also pay attention when inspecting the apartment, if the seller received her inheritance. Before you make a purchase and close a deal, the future owner of the property needs to find out some information. By contacting specialists, it is necessary to clarify whether other heirs apply for the living space and whether there are lawsuits, in which the seller is involved.

Advice: this point is extremely important – check the house register for registration of strangers.

Inspection recommendation #5: condition of furniture, equipment and devices

Buying an apartment – it is important to consider and check every detail in detail, which is in it. There are cases, when you see an acceptable repair, the quality of which does not make you doubt. After a week of stay – it turns out that: some cabinet doors are on the verge of breaking, plumbing is outdated, plastic windows do not open well and so on. All the little things, which were not noticed at inspection – these are your expenses of money and time in the future.

Advice: when examining a home, do not rely solely on the appearance, carefully check the technical condition of all the little things. If you find flaws – use them as an argument to reduce the cost or ask them to fix them before selling.

Inspection recommendation #6: what of the property remains in the apartment upon sale, and what – No

Discuss with the owner, what property does he leave when selling. According to the legislation, the premises must meet the accepted requirements, established sanitary and technical standards. It means, that the apartment being sold should remain:

• plumbing equipment: bath, sinks and toilet;
• gas or electric stove (whichever, what the living space is equipped with);
• entrance and interior doors.

Kitchen set, furniture for different purposes, interior items, Appliances, lighting fixtures and the rest of the property of the previous owner do not become the property of the home buyer. All things must be removed from the sold premises within the agreed time frame.

Part of the property can only be left by prior arrangement. The buyer, together with the seller, must draw up an inventory of things, which are sold with housing. The list may include: repair elements, furniture, lighting, plumbing, Appliances.

To avoid future misunderstandings, the buyer must adhere to the following rules:

• Each item, listed, must be identifiable (manufacturer, a type, brand, model, the size, Colour, condition, etc.. d.).
• Expensive interior items are best photographed. Photos are printed on paper and signed by both parties to the transaction from the reverse side. Then he is assigned a serial number and attached to the application with an inventory of property.
• In the Purchase and Sale Agreement, a separate clause specifies, that the apartment is being sold together with the furnishings, the list of which is given in the annex to the agreement. The application should say, that it is an integral part of the contract. The application and the contract are signed by both parties to the transaction.

Outcomes: checklist for checking the apartment before buying

Let's sum up – what you need to pay attention to when buying an apartment? Checklist from the 1REALTY company:

1. We assign, insisting on the presence of the owner of the property.
2. We clarify, on what basis did he receive the ownership of the living space.
3. Find out, who is registered and discharged from the property.
4. We check the documents of the owner: does he have minor children, spouse(but).
5. Clarify the presence of 3 persons, who may in the future claim ownership, as well as the use of residential property.
6. Examine the documents of the BTI and verify them with the technical passport of the object. Any change in the layout of the living space must be agreed and officially documented.
7. We examine the condition of the apartment in detail for the presence of hidden defects.
8. It doesn't hurt to ask the seller about the neighbors in the stairwell.: is it easy to communicate with them, were there any conflicts about living together on the floor, etc.. d.

Important! Attention should be paid, that all the seller's answers to your questions during inspection are worth checking. Owners information, registered and the presence of third parties must be supported by official documents.

Additionally, we recommend reading the article of the real estate agency "The first real estate company" about – How to buy an apartment: real estate expert advice.