Property purchase with handling of a third party right of repurchase registration.
August 14, 2009 | 25,00 EUR | answered by Andreas Scholz
I would like to buy a property from insolvency assets, which is relatively cheap.
I already have the draft of the purchase contract from the notary, which mentions the "reservation of retransfer (conditionally suspensive)" by the municipality.
Can I bypass the municipality's preemption right, as they suddenly also have an interest in the property?
Or am I really stuck with the costs and time I have incurred?
Best regards,
Björn Wagner
Dear questioner,
In principle, there is no way for you to prevent the municipality from exercising its right of first refusal against the current owner. I assume here that the condition of retransfer is the sale of the property to third parties, so that the reservation is the means of securing the municipality's right of first refusal.
If the municipality exercises its right of first refusal, it acquires the property under the conditions negotiated with you.
Since the reservation was entered in the land register and visible to you, you cannot seek reimbursement from the owner for expenses incurred in contract negotiations with knowledge of the right of first refusal.
However, you may be able to reach an agreement with the municipality that it will not exercise its right of first refusal. In reality, though, if the property is being sold at a very low price, the municipality is likely to acquire the property itself in order to sell it profitably.
Something else may apply if the municipality is interested in fulfilling certain building requirements, the security of which you also wanted to ensure with the transfer. Only a discussion with the municipality can bring clarity and progress.
In general, you cannot bypass the municipality's right of first refusal.
I hope to have provided you with some initial legal guidance. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.
Best regards,
Andreas Scholz, Attorney
