Buyer's checklist: 6 checks before the deposit
Take this list with you: these questions can be put to any developer and any agent, not just me. If the answer to one of them is 'don't worry, it's all fine' instead of a document, that is already an answer.
Title Deed: ownership, not just keys
You can buy the home, move in and live there, while waiting years for the title in your name. I am waiting for the Title Deed on my own house in Paphos and I know where the process stumbles.
- Whose land the complex stands on and whether the plot has a separate title.
- How the developer transferred titles in past projects: promises are verified by history, not by the brochure.
- What the contract says about the title transfer: a deadline and liability, not 'after processing'.
VAT: 5 or 19 percent
Since 16 June 2026 the 5 percent rate applies only to the first 130 square metres of the home, and only while the price stays within the state caps. Anything above that is taxed at 19 percent. The condition: a first home for your own use. On a large house the reduced rate barely helps.
- Whether your situation fits the conditions of the rate: citizenship plays no role, while the purpose of the purchase and the floor area decide.
- How the price in the price list relates to the rate: 'with 5% VAT' in an advert does not mean those 5% apply to you.
- The calculation is done before the deposit is paid. After it, changing the scheme is too late.
Handover date: the contract versus the track record
Handover in 20 months per the contract sometimes means 30 in reality. It is not always deceit: construction is construction. The question is what happens to your money in those extra months.
- The handover date in the contract, not in chats with a manager.
- The history of the developer's past phases: delivered on time or slipped.
- The delay compensation clause: whether it exists at all and how it is calculated.
What is in the price and what is an option
On the renders the pool and the roof garden are already drawn. In the contract they appear as separate lines, and VAT on options is added on top. This is the first thing I check in the estimate.
- The finish and fit-out specification as an annex to the contract, not 'the developer's standard'.
- Every item from the render: in the price or a paid option.
- Appliances: the kitchen often comes prepared for appliances, while the appliances themselves are bought separately.
Encumbrances and the history of the plot
A beautiful complex can stand on land pledged to a bank against the construction loan. It is a working scheme, but the buyer in it must be protected by documents, not by someone's word of honour.
- A Land Registry search on the plot: mortgages, seizures, easements.
- If the land is mortgaged: a bank letter releasing your unit from the mortgage after payment.
- Registration of the sale contract with the Land Registry: it protects your rights until you receive the title.
Payment plan and schedule
An interest-free payment plan from the developer is real in Cyprus and often beats a mortgage. But the payment schedule is part of the contract, and it must be read before signing.
- What the first payment fixes: the price from today's price list or only the reservation of the unit.
- Whether the payments are tied to construction stages or only to the calendar.
- What happens if you miss a payment: the penalty, termination, the fate of the money already paid.
The full checklist for your deal
Above is the general frame, and it has no exceptions. For a specific property and your situation there are more points: the purpose of the purchase, the form of payment, tax residency. Write to me, I will run your case through the full list and show you where the risks are.
Reviews and prices on Telegram Leave a requestThis is a frame of questions, not legal advice. The final checks are done for a specific contract and a specific deal.