When making transactions with real estate, each of the parties wants to completely protect themselves from illegal actions. The seller is especially vulnerable in this respect. Are there ways that can reduce the financial risks arising from cash settlements?
Before signing the contract for the sale of real estate, the seller still does not see the money, and therefore is afraid to conclude a deal. But the buyer does not want to part with the money until he has become a full-fledged owner of the apartment. There are several safe ways to handle this delicate situation.
Renting a cell in a bank can completely eliminate the doubts of the seller and the buyer in mutual honesty. The fact is that the final fulfillment of the obligations stipulated by the contract for the sale and purchase of real estate becomes mandatory from the moment of state registration of ownership, and not from the moment of signing the contract. The safe deposit box becomes a guarantee of the fulfillment of obligations by both parties to the transaction.
A safe deposit box is a safe in a special bank vault (depository). Such cells can be obtained on a lease basis for the temporary storage of any valuables. The bank is not responsible for the contents of the storage location, it only guarantees the protection of the safe itself and makes it possible to control access to it. A safe deposit box ensures confidentiality when transferring funds.
The standard lease term for a safety deposit box is one month, although the terms can be set taking into account the possible admission, because sometimes the registration of housing rights can take one to two weeks. It should be borne in mind that registration may be suspended if errors in the documents are revealed. Since the money actually belongs to the buyer, the key to the temporary storage, as a rule, is with him. However, by agreement of the parties, the bank itself can become the keeper of the key.
Before placing money in the safe, the participants in the real estate transaction draw up an agreement, where all the details are stipulated in detail, including the conditions for access to the cell, the timing of receiving the money, and the specifics of the transfer of rights to the object. It is also noted in the agreement that the party who pays for a special banking service for the provision of storage.
The funds intended for payment are checked for authenticity, recalculated, and then placed in a safe deposit box. Now access to money can be carried out only upon fulfillment of the terms of the agreement and after the expiration of the period set for re-admission to the cell.
The security of settlements for the seller with this method is that all actions with cash take place in the presence of an interested person, after which the money is blocked for the duration of registration procedures.
It is generally accepted that the described method guarantees maximum security when receiving money received from the sale of an apartment. Cell-based settlements are indispensable when it comes to a multi-stage alternative transaction.
You can protect yourself from problems in another way by choosing a package of operations with cashless payments. In this case, the buyer opens a letter of credit, that is, a special account, where he transfers in full the amount that is required for the purchase. The bank is authorized to transfer funds to the seller in the event that the transaction is fully completed. The basis for the transfer of funds is the provision of pre-agreed documents to the bank.
Issuing a letter of credit is more expensive than renting a cell in a bank, because each operation on an account (opening an account, transactions, transferring funds into cash) is carried out by the bank, taking into account the commission. The bank is liable to the parties to the transaction for the illegal issuance of money, so the risk of being deceived by each of the parties is minimal.
Another way to protect yourself from fraudulent activities is to settle through a notary who has been given official authority to accept funds for deposit when settling transactions. Through his bank account, the notary has the right to accept money from the buyer immediately before registering the transaction, and after completing the procedure, transfer it to the seller's account. The details of the calculations are stipulated in the additional agreement attached to the contract of sale of the real estate object.
The peculiarity of this method is that the buyer can withdraw his money from the notary's deposit at any time. To exclude such a possibility, it is necessary to prescribe in the agreement clear conditions under which the buyer has the right to withdraw his funds (for example, if the registration of the transaction is refused). The advantage of the described method is that the entire transaction, including mutual settlements, can be carried out at the notary's office.
