The final purchase contract (escritura de compra e venda) will be prepared and signed at the notary or (since 2009) at the Conservatória do Registo Predial. The notary or the conservator is obliged to check all proprietary documents. You must pay the transfer duty on real estate before signing the purchase contract.
The content of the purchase deed comprises a number of fixed components:
- Identification of the buyer and seller
- Identification of the real estate (description of the real estate, the article numbers and the owner at the tax department and at the land register)
- Price
- Establish that the real estate is not encumbered by any pledge
- Summary of the documents that are archived
This contract must also be compiled in Portuguese. You are responsible to ensure that you clearly understand the content of the contract. The notary may have the contract translated and explained to you in English. You may also take a Portuguese interpreter with you to translate the contract for you on site. The contract always states how the notary can be sure that the content is clear to you. If you take someone along who translates for you, this person will sign the contractor as translator.
Upon signing of the purchase agreement, you must present the purchase price (less the deposit amount) to the seller. This is mostly done via a bank guaranteed cheque. The contract must then also be signed by the buyer(s), seller(s) and the notary.
Just before the purchase: What is the status of my residence or land?
Just before the purchase date, you can once again inspect the residence or the land. Is everything still in the same condition as with the conclusion of the contract? The fact that nature has had its way and the grass has grown in the meanwhile is acceptable, but the owner is, for example, not allowed to remove the pump from the well when this was included in the contract. You and your agent will solve any possible irregularities.
