The material below aims to present, as completely as possible, the legal aspects that must be analyzed before buying land for real-estate development. Of course, at the appropriate time, the lawyer\u2019s work will be complemented by input from specialists in fields related to law\u2014architects, surveyors, construction or geodesy engineers, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The land registry extract is the document issued by the land registry office having jurisdiction over the targeted land, for which the cadastral technical works have been carried out and recorded. It contains data regarding the holder of the ownership right as well as any encumbrances burdening the property in question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ideally, the land should have a cadastral number<\/strong> in addition to the topographical number. Assigning a cadastral number means registering the property in the integrated cadastre and land registry system (digital and geometric information received into the OCPI database), and not<\/strong> merely entering it in the land book based on an analog or paper plan. Thus, the existence of a cadastral number should guarantee fixing the location without deviations. See Step 4 on this point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Verifying the land registry extract allows you to rule out the possible existence of encumbrances or notations regarding the property (mortgages, real-estate enforcement, opening of insolvency proceedings, lawsuits, etc.). However, the existence of a dispute concerning the land you intend to buy does not<\/strong> always appear from a simple review of the land registry extract.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the absence of a land-book notation made at the initiative of the interested party, the attempt to exclude disputes will be done by carefully searching the court portal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Such a search starts from the seller\u2019s name and can extend to all other persons who might claim a right over the land. These could be the land\u2019s previous owners, who can be identified by obtaining a full copy<\/strong> of the land book held in the OCPI archive. The land book is opened from the time a property is created and includes all transactions and all owners that property has had.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Additionally, the buyer can approach local authorities to exclude the existence of any restitution claim<\/strong> over the land in question. It must be borne in mind that a favorable result of such an inquiry is not<\/strong> a guarantee that no dispute or third-party claim exists regarding the property. Still, the seller is liable for all of this based on the warranty against eviction<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Under Articles 28 and 29 of Law no. 350\/2001, the urbanism certificate is a mandatory information act by which the public administration authority makes known the legal, economic, and technical regime of properties and the conditions necessary for carrying out the targeted real-estate operation. The application of territorial planning and urbanism documentation is ensured by issuing the urbanism certificate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A distinction must be made between the urbanism certificate for information purposes<\/strong> and the urbanism certificate for building purposes<\/strong>. To have a complete picture of the land\u2019s building regime, our recommendation is to request an urbanism certificate for building<\/strong>, stating precisely the desired investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The information-purpose certificate contains only data regarding the zone\u2019s restrictions according to the urban plans, whereas the building-purpose certificate\u2014being the first step before obtaining the building permit\u2014will include, besides local restrictions, the approvals and consents necessary for construction<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In practice, the usefulness of issuing a building-purpose urbanism certificate has been confirmed in numerous situations:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Further, special attention must be paid to vehicle and pedestrian access<\/strong> to the plot. Building will be permitted only if there is access to public roads, directly or via servitude, according to the construction\u2019s destination and the rules in the urbanism regulation for that territorial unit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If the access road to the plot does not<\/strong> have the width required by the urbanism rules, the local authority will condition building on splitting off a strip<\/strong> from the plot parallel to the road and registering it as road, to ensure the necessary access width. Of course, the strip allocated to the access road can no longer be used for building; consequently, the investment\u2019s value decreases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Another, rarer situation\u2014but which can cause major practical issues\u2014is the expiry of the validity period<\/strong> of the urban plan governing the targeted land\u2019s regime. Under Law no. 350\/2001, the general urban plan (PUG)<\/strong>\u2014the main operational planning instrument at the local level\u2014has a validity of 10 years<\/strong>, with the possibility of extension for another 10 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thus, if the time between purchase and the start of the investment process is long, you might find that new urban rules adversely affect the building regime on the purchased plot. In these circumstances, you should check whether the PUG is being updated locally and, if so, make sure the new rules\u2014or at least the transitional regulations\u2014are favorable to you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As mentioned in Step 1, the existence of a cadastral number for the land should serve as a guarantee of correct boundary demarcation. Nevertheless, situations have been encountered where, for various reasons, incorrect records<\/strong> existed even for properties that already had assigned cadastral numbers. To avoid such situations, a topographic check<\/strong> of the land is required to confirm that the written records match reality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At this stage, if the land is not already fenced, a staking-out<\/strong> can also be performed, finalized with a staking-out and handover report for the site, signed by the owner, the surveyor, and possibly the neighbors. Such a step is useful to properly demarcate property boundaries and exclude potential neighbor claims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As a rule, the geotechnical study<\/strong> is prepared for issuing the building permit, forming part of the written pieces required for the project. However, it is useful to carry out such a study before<\/strong> purchasing the land, especially since you will be able to use it later in the building-permit file.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This way, you eliminate the risk that land with unsuitable soil structure<\/strong> does not allow the intended investment or requires unforeseen costs<\/strong> for foundation works.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The sale contract for land must be concluded in authenticated form<\/strong> under penalty of absolute nullity, since it involves transferring real rights to be registered in the land book. The notary public is the only one competent to take the steps ensuring valid conclusion of the contract, but a specialized lawyer<\/strong> can draft or review it so that you are truly protected from a legal standpoint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Among the clauses specific to a sale contract for land intended for building, you can include: a series of seller representations<\/strong> reiterating the aspects already reviewed according to the analysis above; extended warranties<\/strong> by the seller against eviction, defects of the property, and lack of agreed qualities; or other provisions tailored to the specific situation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The material below aims to present, as completely as possible, the legal aspects that must be analyzed before buying land for real-estate development. Of course, at the appropriate time, the lawyer\u2019s work will be complemented by input from specialists in fields related to law\u2014architects, surveyors, construction or geodesy engineers, etc. Step 1 \u2013 Checking the … <\/p>\nStep 2 \u2013 Checking the Legal Status<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Step 3 \u2013 Obtaining and Analyzing the Urbanism Certificate for Building<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What information do you get from the urbanism certificate issued for building?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Step 4 \u2013 On-Site Analysis<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Step 5 \u2013 Concluding the Sale Contract<\/h2>\n\n\n\n