Buying a home from the builder

If the purchase is for a building under construction or off the plan the law provides a series of safeguards and protections in favour of the purchaser in relation to risks that can occur until the signing of the deed, and in particular the bankruptcy of the builder.

In particular:

• the contents of the preliminary contract are carefully regulated;
• the seller is obliged to issue a bank guarantee or insurance company guarantee not only for the sums that the builder has already received (for example, the amount of the deposit paid) or for moneys that he has already acquired at the time of the stipulation of the preliminary contract, but also for the sums that, according to the contract, the builder must collect or receive after the signing of the contract but before the transfer of ownership of the property or other real right of enjoyment of it occurs;
• the builder has a duty to provide the buyer with an insurance policy to cover him for 10 years against damage resulting from total or partial destruction of the building or serious construction defects;
• the builder’s mortgage or bank loan must be subdivided before completion of the contract of sale;
• the notary is forbidden to proceed with the sale in the absence of proof of the subdivision, or the cancellation of the mortgage if the buyer does not take over his portion of the mortgage;
• the buyer has right of first refusal to purchase at auction in the case of a principal residence.