Provided that your country of origin holds a reciprocal arrangement with Montenegro, there are no restrictions regarding the purchase of residential property.

Once you decide to purchase a property in Montenegro the process is quite straightforward, but it will vary slightly from development to development:

In General the Buying Process for off-plan property works as follows:

• With our help you will select a property
• Reserve your apartment with a reservation deposit. Written confirmation will be sent once the reservation fee has been received.
• A preliminary sales contract will be issued and it is advisable to engage a lawyer at this stage. We are happy to introduce buyers to independent and reputable bi-lingual lawyers for the legal transactions involved in the property purchase.
• Land titles must be registered and verified by the lawyer.
• The preliminary sales contract must be signed in court and will usually include agreed dates for staged payments (if applicable) and a date for signing the final contract. This can be done in person or you can appoint your lawyer to sign on your behalf.
• A final payment is made and the purchase is complete.
• The final contract will be drawn up by the lawyer and signed by both the buyer and the seller and exchanged in the presence of a notary public. However, if the buyer is not present, a power of attorney can be provided for the lawyer to sign on their behalf. (* Note: All documents must be verified by a competent court and translated by a sworn court translator, whose stamp and signature confirms that the contents of the English document is a true translation of the original Serbian).
• The finalized and certified contract establishes the legal ownership of the property.

When purchasing a property the only additional costs above and beyond the purchase price should be:

1. Mandatory: Property Tax 2% of the valuation payable to the lawyer who will pay the Property Tax to the local Council Offices.

2. Mandatory: Court costs approximately €150 - €300* payable directly to the lawyer

3. Mandatory: Legal fees range from between €500 and €800* dependent upon which solicitor you choose, alongside whether or not their fees include court and translation costs.

Tips for buying in Montenegro

• Use a reputable agent.
• If you are buying the property as an investment, do plenty of research and think about who is likely to rent it and what they will be looking for.
• Do some price comparisons. There is no price index in Montenegro, so it is crucial that you do your homework - there are a number of properties on the market so that you can compare values.
• Use a lawyer who has a good record of previous completed sales with foreign buyers and also ask for and check written references.
• Pay your instalments on time; otherwise you are at risk of losing your deposits. It is important to allow seven working days for your funds to arrive in Montenegro.

* as at January 2007