You should prepare carefully before buying a property, an unseparated parcel or a designated share of a property.

Before the purchase

• Always check the certificate of title and the certificate of mortgages and encumbrances. Ask the seller to provide you with the certificates or order them from the National Land Survey. The certificates are subject to a charge. Certificates of title and certificates of mortgages and encumbrances need to be as new as possible.
• Visit the property that you consider buying, make sure you know where its boundaries are and the condition it is in.
• The municipal building inspection authority can provide you with information about buildings, such as building permits, zoning, and building rights.
• The Official purchase price register provides information about actual purchase prices. If you wish, you can compare the property you are buying with information in the register. Information about individual property purchases is available from our customer service.
• If you come from outside the EU or EEA, you may need permission from the Ministry of Defence to acquire property. Apply for permission before acquiring the property.

Make the purchase

1. Draft a bill of sale
   a) As the buyer, you can together with the seller draft the bill of sale in the Property Transaction Service. (in Finnish)
   b) It is also possible to draft the bill of sale on paper. In such cases, both the buyer and seller must be present in one location to sign it and have it witnessed by a public purchase witness.
2. The municipality or state may have the right of pre-emption in a property sale. The right of pre-emption is valid for three months following the date of sale.
3. Register your right of ownership that is apply for registration of title within six months of signing the bill of sale. 
   
   Fill in the transfer tax report and pay the transfer tax to the Tax Administration at the very latest when you apply for registration of title. More information on the Tax Administration's website. 
4. If you use a public purchase witness to complete a transaction, you do not need to apply for a title registration yourself. You can ask the public purchase witness to apply for a title registration on your behalf in conjunction with a transfer notification.
5. When the registration of title is complete, the unseparated parcel is converted into a new property in a parcelling procedure, which is initiated automatically.
6. If you need mortgages for your property, you can apply for such in the Property Transaction Service.