Due Diligence for Property Abroad: The Complete Legal Checklist Before Signing

Most failures by Israeli buyers abroad do not stem from the choice of country, but from a transaction in which the buyer did not receive a registered and protected right, or transferred money before checking. The checklist here is general and suits all eight countries in which we assist transactions. At the end there is a table mapping each check to the local document in each country, and links to the detailed due diligence guides.

1What is legal due diligence for a property abroad, and who does it?

It is a check of the legal, planning and financial position of the property and the seller before you commit. It relies on public registers, on documents the seller presents and on a site visit. A local lawyer acting for the buyer checks the title, the encumbrances and the contract. An engineer or technician checks that what was built matches the permits. The notary, in countries where one is mandatory, checks the registration status on the day of signing, but is neutral and does not do the check for you.

2What does the legal checklist before signing include?

1. Title and chain of title. An up-to-date register extract: who the registered owner is, whether all the owners are party to the transaction, and whether the description of the property matches the position on site. In some countries the chain of title is checked years back, for example 20 years in Italy and at least 10 years in Bulgaria.
2. Encumbrances and restrictions. Mortgages, attachments, registered claims, easements, rights of use, annotations of earlier agreements and registered long leases.
3. Permits and occupancy. A building permit, a completion certificate or use permit, and consistency between what was actually built and the permit and registration. This is where closed balconies and rooftop rooms are found.
4. Zoning and planning. What the plan permits, whether a rezoning is being prepared, and heritage, forest, coastal or border-area restrictions.
5. Debts that pass with the property. Property tax and municipal fees, debts to the building committee or owners' association, and utility bills.
6. The seller's identity and authority. Identity, marital status and spousal consent, heirs, a valid power of attorney, and for a company also authorised signatories, resolutions and the absence of insolvency proceedings.
7. Tax certificates. Certificates that the seller has no tax debts where the law requires them, and a tax identification number for the buyer.
8. The contract. The price and what it includes, dates, conditions precedent based on the findings, remedies on breach, governing law and forum.
9. Payment protection. Which account you pay into, what secures the deposit, and how the balance is released only on registration or at the signing.

3How do you check title and encumbrances on a property abroad?

Order an up-to-date extract from the register of the country of the property, and check its three parts: the description of the property, the owners and the encumbrances. In Romania, for example, the extras de carte funciară for information purposes can be ordered on the ANCPI website, and before signing the notary orders an authentication extract that blocks the property's land book page for other transactions for ten working days. In the USA there is no state register guaranteeing title, so you rely on a private title search and title insurance. In Greece you first check whether the area is already registered in the cadastre or still in a local land registry, because the check is made with the competent office.

A mortgage shown on the extract is not necessarily a reason to walk away. It is a reason to set a mechanism in the contract: deletion of the mortgage at the signing, a release letter from the bank, or payment directly to the bank out of the price.

4How do you check permits, occupancy and the legality of construction?

Compare the permits and plans in the municipal archive with the position on site. This is done by an engineer, technician or surveyor, preferably acting for the buyer. In Greece every deed requires an engineer's certificate under Article 83 of Law 4495/2017, valid for two months, and a property with unregularised violations may not be transferred. In Italy you check the conformità catastale and the conformità urbanistica, and in Portugal, since 1 October 2026, the deed of sale must state whether the property has a building and use permit. In Bulgaria, without Act 16 and a use permit you cannot lawfully use the apartment, finance it or sell it easily.

5Which debts may pass to the buyer?

Debts to the municipality, the building committee and utility providers are not always registered in the land registry. In Romania, under Law 196/2018, the notary signs the sale of an apartment only against a certificate from the owners' association on the status of debts. In Portugal you ask the building administrator for a debt statement, and in Italy the condominium administrator, including resolutions on extraordinary works already approved. In Bulgaria, in resort complexes, management fees are a well-known source of disputes. The protection: a written certificate as a condition of signing, and an indemnity in the contract.

6What do you check about the seller?

That they are who they say they are, and that they are entitled to sell. For a property acquired during marriage, the spouse's consent is sometimes required. When the sellers are heirs, check that the inheritance has been settled and that all the heirs sign. When the seller is represented, check the power of attorney, its scope and the apostille. When the seller is a company, check the authorised signatories in the companies register and the absence of insolvency proceedings. In Ukraine you also check the register of debtors, the register of court decisions and the sanctions question.

7What do you check in the contract and the protection of the money?

The contract should reflect the findings of the check. Every problem found becomes a condition precedent, an undertaking by the seller or a price reduction. In a developer transaction you also check the payment schedule against the construction stages and the local protection mechanism: in Romania, the dedicated account under Law 207/2025 and the preliminary contract registered in the land book; in Cyprus, deposit of the contract at the Land Registry within six months of signing under Law 81(I)/2011, and a confirmation from the mortgagee bank (Type A); in Bulgaria, an escrow account with a notary or a release letter from the financing bank; in the USA, escrow and phone verification of the account details before every transfer.

8Which local document fits each check? A table by country

The table is a summary. Each country has a detailed guide on the site:

• Real estate due diligence in Romania and how to read an Extras de Carte Funciară
• Real estate due diligence in Greece and the notary, lawyer and engineer in a Greek transaction
• Title deeds in Cyprus and depositing the contract at the Land Registry in Cyprus
• Property due diligence in Bulgaria and Act 14, Act 15 and Act 16
• Due diligence in Italy: catasto, permits and Salva Casa
• The purchase process in Portugal: document checks, CPCV and escritura
• Title insurance and escrow in the USA
• Buying an apartment in Ukraine: register checks and registration

9When is due diligence done, and how long does it take?

In two stages. An initial check of the extract and the seller before any payment, including a reservation fee. A full check before the preliminary agreement, while clauses can still be changed or you can walk away. On or close to the day of signing, you update the documents with a short validity: the extract, the owners' association certificate, the engineer's certificate. After signing, you make sure ownership has actually been registered in your name and ask for an updated extract.

How long the check takes depends on the property and the country. In Portugal, for example, the document check before the CPCV usually takes one to three weeks. For an old property, land or a whole building it takes longer, mainly because of the engineering check and the municipal archives.

10What should you do before signing?

Ask the seller for the basic documents before making an offer, appoint a lawyer and an engineer who represent only you, and get a written due diligence report before the first payment. We coordinate due diligence for Israeli buyers together with lawyers, notaries and engineers licensed in the country of the property, and turn the findings into conditions in the contract.

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