Transaction costs are low in Lithuania, except for new buildings
How high are realtors' and lawyers' fees in Lithuania? What about other property purchase costs?
Transaction Costs |
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| Who Pays? | ||
| Notary Fee | 0.45% | buyer |
| Registration fees | 0.03% - 0.50% | buyer |
| Value Added Tax (VAT) | buyer | |
| Real Estate Agent's Fee | 1.50% - 3.00% | seller |
| Costs paid by buyer | 0.48% - 0.95% | |
| Costs paid by seller | 1.82% - 3.63% | |
| ROUNDTRIP TRANSACTION COSTS | 2.30% - 4.25% | |
| See Footnotes Source: Global Property Guide |
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How difficult is the property purchase process in Lithuania?
Except for agricultural lands, there are virtually no restrictions in foreign ownership of land in Lithuania.
At the initial stage of a property transaction, the notary republic is required to order verification and revision of cadastral and registration data of the immovable property. This document is necessary for the execution of the sales contract. The process usually takes seven days but the buyer can opt for 1-day expedited processing at increased costs.
Every sale agreement of any real estate must be certified by a notary. Failure to notarize an agreement makes it null and void. Transfer of real property is documented by an act of transfer-acceptance signed by both seller and buyer. Notarization of the sales contract usually takes two days.
Registration of sale-purchase agreement is not mandatory. However, to protect the interest of both parties, registration with the Real Estate Register is highly recommended. Registration typically takes 10 days, but it can be expedited by paying a surcharge. It is worthwhile to note, however, that the registration of the agreement on the Real Estate Register is not a precondition to its validity.
It takes an average of 12 days to complete the three procedures needed to register a property in Lithuania.
Notarial fees
Notary fees are generally around 0.45% of the property value.
Notarial fees |
|
| Value of property (in €) | Fee (in €) |
| Up to €8,688.60 | 1% of the value, but not less than € 14.48 |
| from € 8,688.61 to € 28,962 | € 86.89 + 0.7% of the amount exceeding € 8,688.60 |
| above € 28,962 | € 228.80 +0.5% of amount exceeding € 28,962 |
Registration fees
Registration of sale-purchase agreement is not mandatory. However, to protect the interest of both parties, registration with the Real Estate Register is highly recommended.
Registration typically takes 10 business days, but it can be expedited by paying a surcharge based on the table below; 30% mark-up for fast track procedure that takes 3 business days, 50% mark-up for fast track procedure that takes 2 business days, and 100% mark-up for fast track procedure that takes 1 business day.
A cap of €1,448.10 is applied for registration fee. The cap applies separately to building and land so for a property composed of building and land, a total cap of €2,896.20 will apply.
Registration fees |
|
| Market value of Building (in € ) | Rate (in €) |
| Up to €14,481 | €37.65 |
| €14,481 - €231,696 | 0.05% on band over €14,481 |
| €231,696- €868,860 | 0.055% on band over €231,696 |
| Over €868,860 | 0.05% on all value over €289,620, - maximum of €1,448.10 |
| Market value of Land Plot( in €) | Rate (in €) |
| Up to €2,896.20 | €23.17 |
| €2,896.20- €28,962 | 0.30% on band over €2,896.20 |
| €28,962 - €289,620 | 0.30% on band over €28,962 |
| Over €289,620 | 0.20% on all value over €7,240.50 -maximum of €1,448.10 |
Footnotes to transaction costs table
The round trip transaction costs include all costs of buying and then re-selling a property - lawyers' fees, notaries' fees, registration fees, taxes, agents' fees, etc.
Currency:
The currency rate is at: €1 = 3.4528 LTL
VAT:
New buildings, defined as buildings sold within 24 months of completion or improvement, are subject to 21% VAT.
Agent's fee:
Usually, real estate agent's fee is 1.5% to 3.0% of the purchase price, plus 21% VAT.