purchasing documents in Italy

You should speak with an attorney but here are some guidelines to keep in mind.

FORMAL OFFER OF PURCHASE

…the negotiation starts with an OFFER. (Similar to LOI)

The offer of purchase (proposta di acquisto) must be in writing. Then, if the offer has been accepted it can be verbally communicated.

Once the vendor signs it accepting the offered price this means that he undertakes not to sell the property to anybody else until a certain date. This letter is to protect the buyer from losing the opportunity to purchase.

CADASTRAL CHECKS

Before going to “contract” the Notaio (notary who you choose and is also looking for your interests investigates the title of the property at the “Land registry” (Conservatoria e Catasto). This would be useful to check that the property is regularly registered, that it belongs to the person who is undertaking to sell it and if there are loans on it.

PRELIMINARY AGREEMENT OF SALE (Compromesso)

The Compromesso is drawn up and this is a legally-binding document which states the agreed sale price, the completion date (Rogito) and any information and rights the property has. [But it needs to be kept in mind that also the offer of purchase, once accepted, is legally binding.]

The Rogito is then drafted and it is usually executed 1 to 3 months after the execution of the Compromesso.

Once this contract is signed and a “caparra confirmatoria” (a deposit) of about 10% of the purchase price is paid, the seller may only withdraw if he pays back to the buyer the deposit plus an amount of money which is equal to the deposit itself.

Example: If you paid a deposit of €5,000 you will get back all the money you've paid for the deposit (€5,000) + another €5,000

Should the buyer wish to withdraw, he will lose his deposit in its entirety.

The non breaching party can either sue the other party for the specific performance of the preliminary agreement or terminate such agreement and seek damages.

Bear in mind that the deposit amount may vary on many factors. However, usually the lower the property price the larger the deposit and viceversa.

Sometimes it may happen that in place of the “caparra confirmatoria” the buyer pay an “acconto” which is a payment on account on the final purchase price.

There are two types of agreement: one is a public document, the other a private contract. The notary can both drawn up public documents or authenticate private deeds.

DEED OF PURCHASE (Rogito)

The deed of purchase, final contract or ‘atto notarile’ is usually signed after the compromesso – which is not mandatory as the definitive contract can be immediate – and only when all the documentation is available. It is signed by both parties, the balance is paid and the property is officially transferred.

Following completion, the notary issues a certified copy of the deed of sale and registers a certified copy of the deed with the Land Registry (Catasto).

@EuroDwell

Hmm,

We signed a purchasing proposal this past summer (never notarised on our part) and were asked to make a significant deposit, as it is a requirement to submit an offer.

We gave a portion of what was asked, but it is still ten times more than a generous "fair faith deposit" in the USA.

The purchasing proposal says, "Upon perfection, the present proposal is to be considered as preliminary contract"/ Una volta perfezionata, la present proposta e da considerarsi contratto preliminary".

Reading it now, it is missing pretty crucial information, which now seems essential.

*No number is given regarding the Agency fees.

* what exactly comes with the house? Kitchen, appliances? It mentions "with all amenities present," but what exactly is it?

*The existing bathroom is in an area it is not supposed to be (as the geometra report indicated). And the place where the bathroom has to be located according to the plans, the bathroom is missing. Can the owner just remove the wrong one?

We are curious to know if all the second steps on your list were completed.

However, we understand that:

*The owner still has an outstanding mortgage (he told us himself),

* Geometra report came with significant inconsistencies with the property layout.

As we had a family health emergency, we neglected some time lines, as an objection to the property condition. So, we can't ask for the bathroom relocation or the process to be compensated?

Thank you.

It is pretty common now for a proposta di acquisto to 'become' a compromesso upon countersigning.  However, it should still be only used if the timeline is short between offer and act of sale.

In your case, you signed a proposta which  was accepted.  The caparra confermatoria is binding on both parties and if you walk you will lose the deposit.  However,  the seller has also legally bound himself to sell you the property as you saw it - and this means he is responsible for doing the paperwork necessary to show that the plan you will sign at rogito is 'the state of fact' of the property.  If it isnt he is in default. 

Houses in Italy are sold empty unless otherwise stated and agreed.  The amenities are light, water, sewers etc - so unless you were specific in the offer and the seller agreed, the house should be completely empties by the date of the atto. 

In the proposta there will be a date by which the atto must be signed.  Has it passed?