It’s widely known that purchasing a home is an investment. Possibly the biggest investment you’ll make in your life. Although, it’s no secret that buying your first home is expensive. However, what may be a secret to some is that the price of your home is not the only associated cost to think about when purchasing a property. Read on to uncover what other hidden costs you may not have thought about or considered as a first time buyer.
Deposit
As a first time buyer, the usual cost of the deposit is at least 10% of the price of your property and you will be expected to pay this at the signing of the preliminary agreement. If you are a Maltese or EU national and are planning on financing the purchasing of your home via bank loan, the bank will most likely cover 90% leaving you to fork out the remaining 10%. If this isn’t your first rodeo and you’ve already purchased a property beforehand then you’d be expected to cover 25% if you’ve already secured a loan.
Notary/Architect fees
The exact amount may vary depending who you’ve chosen to work with and the work required. You will be expected to pay these fees at the signing of the final deed/contract. The work of an architect usually involves carrying out site inspections, tracking down and checking permits and plans to ensure they match the approved plans of the permit.
Whilst hiring a Notary Public is an essential part of purchasing a property in Malta. Notaries have a range of responsibilities including answering questions such as who owns the land or related legal proceedings and carrying out searches on the property. They are also responsible for forwarding your stamp duty payment and register the sale with the Public Registry.
Stamp duty
If you are a first time buyer you are expected to pay 5% of the total property value above EUR200,000 as stamp duty. You will be expected to pay these fees in this way; 1% at the signing of the promise of sale and the remaining 4% at the signing of the final sale deed. However, if the property costs below 200k then you are not expected to pay stamp duty. However, this scheme is going to expire come December 2022.
Bank fees
In relation to bank interest fees this is dependent on the chosen bank and the fees are settled prior to the final contract of sale. Factors relating to the interest rates charged include the type of bank you choose to finance your loan, your age, lifestyle, property value and an array of other variables which will have an impact on how you are expected to pay. In addition to this there are also bank booking and administration fees to factor in as well as their charges to process legal fees.
Condominium fees
Another often overlooked aspect when it comes to purchasing a home, more specifically an apartment, is condominium fees. Condominium fees are those related to the upkeep of your apartment building’s common areas. These fees vary depending on the chosen apartment building and whether or not they hire a professional contractor to oversee the cleaning, maintenance etc of the building.
Although this can seem as if it’s an extra expense, nothing beats coming into a clean and tidy apartment complex. Another positive aspect is that if something needs mending such as a bulb it would be handled swiftly by the contractor. This would take the chore off your mental to-do list and would put your mind at ease that it will be handled accordingly.
Takeaways
We at GAP can simplify the process and offer expert guidance throughout every stage of the home purchase process. Take a look at our current developments on offer.
