Munich
Buy house or flat in Munich
Buying property in Munich can be an expensive experience. The price per square meter for privately owned property was around 2,050 EUR in Munich. In general, people opt to rent apartments in Munich as they get tax benefits if they do so. Property prices have been stagnant for almost five years. So some forecasts predict that it could be a good long term investment. Either way, Berlin and Munich are ranked as the two top cities to invest in Germany.
Source
Estate agents
There are numerous estate agencies or specialised websites in Munich to help you find your dream home. For example you can try:
- http://germany.zeezo.com/munich/real-estate.htm
- http://www.muenchen.de/Stadtleben/
- http://www.ckv.com/index.php?id=303
- http://www.immobilien.de/
Solicitor fees
Apart from rental contracts, there is no law regulating commissions. It can be negotiated, and in most cases is between 5 and 7 percent of the purchase price. In some cases the buyer pays the commission in full, in many others it's split between buyer and seller and in some instances agents receive their commission exclusively from the seller.
Mortgage
You can get a mortgage for 100% of the cost of your property but it is generally recommended that you can afford at least 20% of the down payment. Interest rates for mortgages are presently below the long time average, ranging between 4.90 percent and 6.15 percent, depending to some degree on the duration of the financing plan. Most mortgages are for 10 or 20 years.
Tax
Once a property has been found there will be costs that can be conservatively estimated at about 10 percent of the purchase price. In addition to the agent's commission, there will be a property transfer tax (3.5%) a notary fee (1%) and additional small administrative costs, perhaps including the hiring of an interpreter. For a more detailed look into the property buying process in Germany, log onto the link below.
http://www.howtogermany.com/pages/housebuying.html
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Update 2/04/2008
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