Property
Buying real estate in Czechia
Foreign nationals can buy Czech real estate in their own name since 2011. The purchase contract must be in writing with certified signatures, and ownership transfers only when the Cadastral Office (Katastralni urad) records it, usually 30 to 60 days after filing.
Standard workflow
- Signed reservation agreement with the seller or agency.
- Legal check of the cadastre extract (list vlastnictvi) for liens, easements and disputes.
- Purchase contract signed with certified signatures at a notary or CzechPOINT.
- Deposit into an escrow account (notarial, bank or advocate escrow). Never wire the price directly to the seller before cadastre registration.
- Application to the Cadastral Office with the contract and a proposal for entry.
- 30 to 60 days later, ownership entry is completed and funds are released to the seller.
Taxes and fees
- Real estate transfer tax was abolished in 2020.
- Cadastral filing fee: 2,000 CZK per contract.
- Notary escrow: 0.5 to 1 percent of the purchase price, cheaper than bank escrow in most cases.
- Advocate or estate agent fees: negotiable, typically 3 to 5 percent for full-service brokerage.
Common disputes
The most common disputes involve returned deposits, hidden defects discovered after handover, and neighbour issues around noise or shared walls. For hidden defects, the Civil Code allows a claim within two years, or five for buildings. For deposit refusals, a small-claims lawsuit is often faster than negotiation.