Russians warned against buying housing from citizens with financial problems

The purchase of an apartment from a seller who is in a difficult financial situation, if declared bankrupt, may be declared invalid by the court. Andrei Spivakov, Managing Director for Retail Credit Products at Raiffeisenbank, warned about this in an interview with RIA Novosti.

“If the seller has obvious financial problems, then it is better to refuse the transaction or suspend it yourself. After all, if the owner is declared bankrupt or is still in the process of enforcement proceedings (for example, courts with other banks to collect debts), then third interested parties will be able to challenge your transaction. And the court may declare it invalid, ”the expert noted.

According to him, you can check the seller on the website of the Unified Federal Register of Bankruptcy Information and the official resource of the Federal Bailiff Service.

In addition, when buying an apartment on the secondary market, it is worth checking the documents of the owner. For example, a passport may be invalid due to missing a replacement due to age or be considered lost. A transaction on an invalid passport may be suspended by Rosreestr at the stage of its state registration.

At the same time, Spivakov pointed out that if the seller of the apartment is married, it is necessary to obtain permission from the spouse for the sale. You should be especially careful if maternity capital was used when buying an apartment, and there are shares of minors. Children’s shares are checked by a certificate from the Unified State Register of Real Estate (EGRN), you can order it on the Rosreestr website.

In addition, it makes sense to check how many owners the apartment had, the expert advises. Frequent change of owners and too many transactions for one object is a reason to think. Fraudsters often confuse their tracks in this way. If you doubt that you can cope with such checks on your own, it makes sense to seek the help of a lawyer or insure against loss of property rights.

The expert advises checking the seller’s utility bills as well. Although they do not deprive the buyer of ownership, they can cause additional trouble and lead to unnecessary expenses. “Feel free to ask the salesperson for receipts. After all, if the apartment has a communal debt, after the purchase it is you who will have to pay for it, ”Spivakov emphasized.

Ideally, when the seller himself is present at the transaction. If this is not possible, it is worth checking the validity of the power of attorney. This can be done on the website of the Federal Notary Chamber. You need to pay attention to the expiration date – whether it has expired. The trustee should have the right to conduct transactions, sign documents and submit them for state registration. The right to receive money in the power of attorney must be specified in a separate clause, otherwise it is worth transferring the amount only to the account of the seller himself.