Let's Find Out About The Process of Buying Second-Hand House in Cambodia

There are many types of houses for sale on the property market in Cambodia; some are new houses from the real estate development project that have not been built or are under construction, and some are old houses that refer to houses that people lived in or that owners buy for profit (second-hand houses).

Buying a second-hand house is a good idea for buyers who can move in and occupy it immediately without having to wait a long time until the house is built, and most of the second-hand houses are cheaper than the newly built houses. It is easy to negotiate a discount based on the condition of the house. After all, everything has its advantages and disadvantages. Generally, buying a second-hand house requires you to have enough money to pay the down payment, and you will be able to pay extra for repairs or renovations depending on the actual condition of the home.

In the previous article, Compass Real Estate introduced 《Learn more about the fees and types of taxes to be paid for buying and selling second-hand houses in Cambodia》. So today, Compass is going to show you each step and the main points that you need to be careful about or find out in advance when buying a second-hand house for resale.

Buying a second-hand house in Cambodia is generally divided into the following stages:

1. Find Your Ideal Home

There are many ways to find a home for sale, such as:

·Through real estate agents: this is the easiest and most popular way. They often have a lot of information and can contact landlords who can help you consult and evaluate a property. But you may choose an agent who has the professional skills to speed up the process of buying or selling your property.

· Through online websites and Facebook: for example, COMPASS.COM.KH is a huge real estate platform where you can find real estate information and compare prices.

· Search on spot: Some house owners will put the advertisement tag with the word "house for sale" hanging in front of them; you can contact them directly for information and prices. But you better have some knowledge or find an experienced partner in this field. In addition, this method is also difficult if you want to find real estate, apartments, or condos.

2. Making Appointment with the Landlord & Visit the House on site

Before deciding to buy, you must make an appointment with the landlord to see the actual condition of the house. There are a few points that you should check out:

·Location

Real estate experts often say, "Buying a home, The most important thing is the location." Location is an important factor influencing the rise in property prices, so you need to choose a location that has high potential, such as commercial or developing area and infrastructure developments.

·Quality of construction and interior design of the house

You need to see what equipment and appliances are in the house. Is there good quality? Especially if the buyer buys homes that are equipped with poor-quality appliances or leaks, it can lead to you spending more money on repairs and frequent changes when you move in.

· Environment and atmosphere around the house

The atmosphere around the house or the area where you live also greatly affects your quality of life. Therefore, you should choose areas that are comfortable and safe. A house near an area with a beautiful green garden, spacious courtyard and 24-hour security is a good choice for living and certainly good for resale in the future.

· Legal review

It is very important to make sure that the property is legal and can be sold or bought without any legal issues or disputes. In this case, you can check documents such as land titles, real estate titles, or certificates of ownership of real estate. You can also examine the history of paying taxes to the state, such as unused land tax, tax on property, registration tax for previous transfers, etc.

3. Negotiate price and deposit

You can discuss with the landlord the purchase price and some applicable terms. Next, the buyer needs to make sure a certain deposit amount is agreed upon with the seller to confirm that the buyer really wants to buy the property and that the seller cannot sell it to someone else.

4. Prepare buying and selling contract

This is an important process with a clear agreement between both parties on the purchase price, payment terms and other obligations of the parties, property registration, ownership transfer and payment of property tax, etc. to prepare a sale/purchase real estate contract properly, professionally and mutually acceptable. To avoid argument, you should seek legal services or a lawyer when signing a contract to have a person to help review and advise on the purchase/sale of real estate.

5. Transfer of ownership

In general, real estate registration (hard title), ownership transfer, and tax payment are the sole responsibility of the seller, as the law clearly states that the payment of 4% stamp duty is the responsibility of the buyer, as the buyer is the final beneficiary.

The procedure for transferring ownership of real estate has 5 stages: Fill in the documents at the Land Bureau → Stamped by the commune/sangkat authority → Create split title and inspect the location → Apply for the approval from the land management urban planning and cadastral and taxation → Obtains the title certificate.

6. Ownership & Title Transfers and Pay the rest  of the remaining house price

After all the above procedures are completed, the seller is obliged to hand over the registered title or transfer the rights to the buyer and the buyer must pay the full purchase price of the property to the seller. At the same time, the seller must be sure that before moving out of the house, the seller should clean the unnecessary items before handing the house over to the seller and pay for other utilities such as water, electricity, etc.