The Ultimate Portugal Property Purchase Checklist

We’ve all heard the stories after buying a house and  someone comes to you and claim part of your kitchen is his or hers. Do your research and avoid rookie mistakes.

The documents you will need to ensure are correct for a legal purchase.

Your legal representative can access the information or if you are a registered resident you should be able to  through your local Loja de Cidadao.

Find out more here:

https://www.predialonline.pt/PredialOnline/

https://eportugal.gov.pt/servicos/pe...egisto-predial

The documents you will need to ensure are correct for a legal purchase are:

The Certidão Permanente if the building is company owned or  Registo Predial if the building is privately owned, it is the property registration certificate

Property registration certificate is obtained from the Conservatória do Registo Predial (Property Registry Office).

This certificate will have a full description of the following:

• The property's legal situation, what makes up the property and its location. 

• It describes the building's structure, who are the registered owners.

• If the property has any charges on it (encargos), like mortgages or other liens and whether there are any incomplete or pending registrations.

This certificate is valid for 6 months.

The "Caderneta Predial"  document issued at Finanças (Tax Authority)- which will identify the property and the owner for tax purposes ONLY. All land and buildings should be identified at Finanças, any not covered are not registered for tax purposes.

There may be more than one Caderneta associated with a property. Buildings and lands can be registered separately:

Urbana/Urban land- you can build on the land with planning permissions

Rustica/Rustic land- No building is allowed on such land.

Any land and  legal buildings considered to be part of the property (except sheds or non- permanent structure) must be documented or it does not form part of the sale and may make the overall sale invalid.

Printed copy is only valid for 6 months.

The Licença de Habitação (Habitation/Usage license). This license is issued by the Câmara Municipal (council)of the area where the property is located. In detail it will describe the following:

• The registered type of use allowed for any building or "fraction" - whether the building is meant for living space or storage or commercial.

• It shows that the property complies with all the legal and regulatory requirements/standards in force at the time of registration (safety, health and technical standards) and that it conforms with the architectural design approved at the time of licensing by the council planning department.

Any property built before August 7, 1951 does not need a Licença de Habitação,but only if nothing on the property has been altered or enlarged since that date. Any property without a Licença is not legal for habitation or usable for commerce, industry or services.

The Certificado Energético/Energy certificate It describes the energy efficiency or performance of buildings on a scale of A- F. This certificate is required for the property to be listed for sale. If this certificate if not available the owner cannot sell the property.

The Ficha Técnica/Property technical file This document is obtained from the Câmara Municipal (for any buildings constructed after March 2004).

The Ficha Técnica acts as an identification file on the property, with such essential information as the identification of the builder, the suppliers' names and contacts, the description of materials used in the building, the kind of noise and thermal insulations used as well as the regime of guarantee and how to claim under the guarantee when an imperfection is detected.

Floor plans They can be obtained from the architect, the Câmara Municipal, or drawn up by an architect). These are not a legal requirement, but if changes have been made or are going to be made, they must be approved by the Câmara Municipal and be up-to-date. Looking at  the floor plans that the Câmara have and comparing them with what you see on the ground  will help you tell if there could be something illegal going on.

In the end do your research well and make sure you have a good legal representative to help you in your property purchase. Be aware that most of estate agents just sell for commission and are not interested in researching about legality of the property.