Immobilienwirtschaftsrecht

Are you an EU-citizen or a non-EU-citizen, i.e. an expat from the U.S., Canada or a Russian citizen, and seeking to make Berlin your new home or you're looking to establish your secondary residence in Berlin or purchase a holiday flat and you need someone to guide you through all steps of purchasing real estate in Berlin from start to finish? Given our legal expertise in real estate (business) law and our knowledge about the Berliner real estate market and its specifics we can provide you with legal advice and assist you from scratch, starting by answering legal and factual questions you might have in advance of looking for real estate regarding:

•  the characteristics and recent developments of the real estate market in Berlin,
• where to place your investment best,
• the legal purchase process in Germany itself which deviates legally from legal systems in other countries,
• costs connected with the purchase like the real estate broker commission, real estate purchase tax, notary fees, land registry fees etc.,
• what documents to collect like the declaration of division including the joint property arrangement, property management contract, rental contract(s) (in case of buying a rented property), house regulations, current excerpt from the land register, list of all the necessary insurance policies concerning the real estate, possibly necessary building permits, expert opinions on restructuring measures, the energy certification, the minutes of the homeowners' association etc.,
• how and where to open a bank account in Berlin and how to do without that through an escrow account,
• the prerequisites of getting a bank loan to finance (partially) the purchase price,
• questions concerning registration laws and so on.

Either you already have real estate pointed out that you want to buy or not yet, in that case we cooperate with a net of well-known real estate agents that can help you find the proper real estate for you. Given you have finally agreed upon a purchase price with the vendor, you signed a reservation agreement and the transaction can finally take place it is necessary to involve a lawyer to get all the documentation checked, so you don't make any mistakes and avoid stepping into hidden money pits. By law you have a two-weeks period of time previous to the notarization of the contract to get acquainted with the contract itself and get all documents checked. After you have given us your power of attorney (POA) we take over for you, gather all documents from the vendor, notary and property manager and perform a legal due diligence, we point out problematic points, possible deal breakers, and negotiate modification requests as to the purchase contract. When you buy property, especially old stock, you want to know exactly what you buy, so for this case we can also engage a building expert to do a check and give you an assessment of the building structure.

Furthermore, clients need to know that especially in cases with a limited presence in town -i.e. due to professional obligations in their home country- we can do all the work and even sign the purchase contract without the buyer present. There are two options: either with a power of attorney certified by a notary or as representative without power of attorney at the notarization of the purchase contract. In the first case the purchase contract becomes valid immediately with signing it by the lawyer, in the second case the contract becomes valid with the subsequent approval of the buyer at a notary of their choice in their home country (in some cases furthermore an apostille by the court in the home country of the client is needed which serves the legalization of a document for international use).

For further questions and/or make a personal or telephone appointment please contact Thomas M. Preisner.

The condensed content presentation causes that a complete description of the legal situation is not possible here and therefore cannot replace a professional legal advice. Despite careful editing all liability is excluded.

Things that could also be of interest for you: Business Immigration

For specific tax-related matters we work together with the tax advisory Kurzynski & Klose Steuerberater - Partnerschaftsgesellschaft.


BSP Bierbach Streifler & Partner Rechtsanwälte
z.Hd. Herrn Rechtsanwalt Thomas M. Preisner
Oranienburger Straße 69
10117 Berlin

Telefax: 030-278740 59 
e-Mail [email protected]

vCard Thomas M. Preisner