The sale or purchase of real estate involves the completion and delivery of a large amount of documentation. It is a complicated process and requires the help of a specialist. An inseparable element of all related procedures is a visit to a notary public. In this article, we will present the scope of duties and powers of a notary’s office to prepare you for a meeting with a notary public in the event of a real estate sale or purchase.

Who is a notary?

A notary is a public officer appointed by the Minister of Justice. Pursuant to the Act on Notarial Services of 1991, he is also a lawyer who is authorized to:

• preparation of notarial deeds;
• performing other notarial activities – watching over the entries in the land and mortgage register, providing the parties with exhaustive explanations related to the performance of a legal transaction, submitting an application to the Re-Ion Court for a mortgage to be entered in the land and mortgage registers for the bank granting the loan for the purchase of real estate, etc.

The task of a notary public is to protect the interests of the parties. He must be impartial and not favor any of the parties to the real estate purchase and sale transaction. It should be remembered that the notarial deed produces specific legal effects, so it is so important that the document is prepared professionally – all documents required by the notary are thoroughly verified, and the notarial deed itself must be clear and legible for both parties.

What documents should be prepared for the meeting with the notary?

You need to prepare for the visit to the notary public. If you are a party selling real estate, please bring the following documents:

• ID card,
• an excerpt from the land register with a drawing,
• a copy of the land and mortgage register of the real estate purchased / sold,
• certificate of marking the building with an order number,
• excerpt from the geodetic map (drawing) along with the plotted real estate,
• an ex officio decision approving the building design along with the consent for its construction,
• floor plans of the building / apartment (based on the post-completion inventory).

The buyer, on the other hand, should provide:

•ID card,
• bank documents in the case of real estate purchase with a mortgage,
• a marriage contract, if it has separation of property with the spouse.

Sometimes a notary public requires the submission of additional documents, e.g. a certificate of no arrears in fees or a certificate confirming that no one is currently registered with the property concerned.

Why is a notarial deed issued by a notary public necessary?

If the purchase contract is not prepared and sealed by a notary in a specially prepared notarial deed – the real estate sale / purchase transaction will simply not have legal force.

While the preliminary contract may be drawn up by the buyer and the seller without the presence of a notary public, the final contract must be verified, prepared and signed by a notary office. At this point, we only mention that it is good for the preliminary contract to also be drawn up by a notary. In a situation where one of the parties wants to withdraw from signing the final agreement, the other will have the right to demand that it be signed even in court.