Glossary
Property purchase from A to Z.
Key terms of Austrian property purchases explained in plain language: land register, escrow, registration consent, discharge of encumbrances, warranty and handover.
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Salzburg law firm for real estate, property and corporate law
Every matter is handled by a coordinated team of lawyers, legal staff and specialists. In property purchase matters we look at the contract, land register, escrow and tax consequences together.
C
D
- Declaration of Registration Consent (Aufsandungserklärung) The seller's express consent to the registration of the buyer's ownership right (the intabulation clause), without which registration cannot be granted.
- Discharge of Encumbrances The removal of existing register burdens so that the buyer receives an unencumbered property, in particular the deletion of mortgages.
E
- Easement (Servitude) A limited right in rem to use land belonging to another, such as a right of way, a utility-line right or a right of residence.
- Energy Performance Certificate A document on the overall energy efficiency of a building; the seller must present and hand it over, otherwise at least an average efficiency is deemed agreed.
- Escrow Agent (Treuhänder) An independent person of trust (usually a lawyer or notary) who holds the purchase price and releases it only once the agreed safeguards are in place.
- Expectant Right (Anwartschaft) The secured legal position of the buyer between conclusion of the contract and registration, from which the acquisition of ownership can no longer be unilaterally frustrated.
L
- Land Register The public register of land and the rights attached to it, kept by the district courts; it enjoys public faith, so a good-faith buyer may rely on its contents.
- Lease Agreement (on Purchase) A tenancy or lease over the property; on a purchase the rule "sale does not break lease" applies, so the buyer steps into the existing lease relationship.
M
- Maturity of the Purchase Price The point at which the buyer must pay the purchase price; in a property purchase usually tied to securing the unencumbered transfer of ownership.
- Mortgage / Lien (Pfandrecht) A right in rem securing a debt against the property; it entitles the creditor to satisfy the claim from the land if the debtor fails to pay.
P
- Priority Ranking Notation A land register notation that secures the rank for a future sale or pledge; it reserves the order of entries for one year.
- Prohibition on Encumbrance and Sale A register entry prohibiting the property from being encumbered or sold; against third parties it is effective only between close relatives.
R
- Real Charge (Reallast) A registered burden obliging the respective owner to recurring positive performances, such as maintenance or support payments (e.g. a farming retirement charge).
- Real Estate Capital Gains Tax (ImmoESt) The tax on the gain from the sale of private real property; it is generally owed by the seller and amounts as a rule to 30 % of the capital gain.
- Real Estate Transfer Tax The tax on the acquisition of domestic real property; on a purchase it generally amounts to 3.5 % of the tax base (usually the purchase price).
- Registration of Title (Einverleibung) The unconditional entry of a right in the land register; through it ownership or another right in rem is definitively acquired.
- Right of First Refusal The right to acquire a property in the event of a sale with priority on the same terms that a third party has offered.
This explanation gives a general overview of Austrian law and does not replace advice in an individual case. The specific circumstances of your property purchase are always decisive.
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