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28th March 2024
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HomeLegal MattersEU funded scheme to make property purchasing safer

EU funded scheme to make property purchasing safer

ESTABLISHED by the European Land Registry Association and funded by the European Union, the Cross Border Electronic Conveyancing (CROBECO) scheme allows for the procedure for buying property to be settled in the purchaser’s home country and protected by the laws of that country.

CROBECO, which is currently being piloted in Holland & Spain, means that a Dutch buyer of Spanish Property can apply Dutch law to the contract and ask a Dutch Court for compensation from the vendor if they later find there are unknown public limitations, such as retrospective planning laws, affecting the property.

Further pilots are expected to take place in other countries later this year.

In a statement to the Daily Telegraph Liberal Democrat MEP Diana Wallace, a keen supporter of the development and expansion of the scheme, said: “The EU has a role to play in helping to facilitate property deals across borders and at the very least provide a framework of legal certainty.

“In practice, this means we must ensure that there is full access to information on the state of a property, the conditions attached to it and any other legal obligations or obstacles.

“This must go hand in hand with a transparent administration of the property deal and a quick and clear judicial process in case something goes wrong.”

It will take a long time and a lot of legal framework building to reach this point; but the fact that a pilot scheme exists, has EU backing and funding and appears to work means that buying property in Europe could become safer and more transparent sooner rather than later.

Details of the CROBECO project were unveiled on June 14 at the EU parliament at a seminar hosted by Diana Wallis in a bid to find a way forward in overcoming legal uncertainties when buying property abroad.

A spokesman for European Land Registry Association said: “The fact that the deed is processed in the buyer’s own language by a conveyancer from their own country, [means] they get the feeling that they are better legally protected and will be less reluctant to buy real estate in foreign countries where the real estate market has collapsed.”

The scheme is likely to be welcomed by countries such as Cyprus and Spain that have thousands of unsold holiday homes littering their landscapes, faltering economies, and tarnished reputations – and who are desperate to attract overseas buyers back to their property market.

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10 COMMENTS

  1. Nigel,

    I’ve written back to the Land Registry / eulis team outlining what I see as the the key role that the ‘closed’ and ‘opaque’ Cypriot Land Registry system plays in the ability of Developers, with the aid of ‘helpful’ Lawyers, to sell property which has dual ownership or other financial encumbrances to property buyers who find it extremely difficult or almost impossible to find information about this before they buy.

    I’ve asked the Land Registry / eulis team to raise this, and several other issues relating to the outstanding Title Deeds situation in Cyprus, with their Cypriot counterparts and feed back any responses they get to me, if they are willing to do so of course..

  2. @Costas Apacket – thanks for posting that information.

    “The Cyprian land registry organisation has been involved in discussions with us for a couple of years now” – nothing new there then!

  3. Hi Nigel,

    As promised, please see response from landregistry.gsi.gov.uk on behalf of eulis below:

    Many thanks for your email. The Cyprian land registry organisation has been involved in discussions with us for a couple of years now and participates in discussions on the EULIS service and in Project LINE.

    At the moment, the Cyprian land registry ‘book’ is not open for the public and therefore they cannot connect or allow access into the information. It may well be, as in other countries, that the information becomes more accessible in the future. If this becomes the case, then we hope that they will be enabled to connect into the service.

    Best regards
    The EULIS Team

  4. I’d be surprised if everybody here doesn’t really believe that there’s absolutely no way that this system will ever be implemented in Cyprus.

    If it was then surely the whole, previously lucrative, Developer/Banker/Lawyer/Politician property scam would come crashing down overnight. The status quo has revolved around obfuscation and deviousness for decades. Who are we kidding folks, ourselves?

    It just needs to die a natural death from buyer starvation, which appears to be happening.

  5. @Nigel; if this scheme is found to work in the pilot countries, then – presumably it will become an EU Directive and Cyprus will just have to comply:)

    After ‘protectionism’ the next stumbling block is the technology; seeing as they don’t even link-up terminals in the same building (e.g. hospitals), it will take more than my lifetime to enact this wholly worthwhile procedure.

  6. @Costas Apacket – I will be interested to hear the response you get from ‘eulis’.

    One of the problems here in Cyprus is that information or documents in the public register of Titles connected with the ownership of immovable properties and charges or encumbrances lodged against them are treated as confidential and unavailable for public inspection.

    I suspect that this may prevent Cyprus joining the eulis club unless it is prepared to change the way its Land Registry operates.

    The other counties who have signed up for the scheme appear to operate ‘open’ land registries rather than the ‘closed’ system adopted by Cyprus.

  7. Having followed the link above to the European Land Registry Association, (http://eulis.eu/), I found the content very interesting.

    ‘Project Line’ seems a very admirable goal and is exactly what we could do with in Cyprus.

    I just wonder if the Cypriot Government is even aware, or indeed all that interested, in linking their Land Registry information systems to this transparent system for EU Consumers and professionals?

    I know it would be a bit like trying to connect a Triang train set to a Hornby-Dublo one, but, hey, let’s give it a go!!

    I’ve sent eulis a personal plea for them to contact the Cypriot Government for their views on this.

    Not holding my breath at all of course!!

  8. Very good if it ever happens. Now how about some rapid, retrospective laws for those who have already been duped.

  9. If this is true, there will be some very unhappy Lawyers and developers in Cyprus — imagine them having to abide by the law for once.

  10. “The scheme is likely to be welcomed by countries such as Cyprus”

    I’ve seen some tongue in cheek comments in my life, but this takes the biscuit!

    The EU Land Registry Scheme sounds almost too good to be true! Bravo if it works!!!

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