Lebanon: Guide to Buying Costs and Procedures
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Buying costs are moderate in Lebanon
How high are realtors’ and lawyers’ fees in Lebanon? What about other property purchase costs?
Transaction Costs |
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| Who Pays? | ||
| Registration Fee | 5% | buyer |
| Transfer Tax | 5% | buyer |
| Stamp Duty | 0.3% | buyer |
| Municipality Fee | 0.25% | buyer |
| Bar Association Tax | 0.1% | buyer |
| Notary Tax | 0.1% | buyer |
| Lawyer’s Fee | LBP750,000 (US$487) | buyer |
| Real Estate Certificate | LBP10,000 (US$6) | seller |
| Costs paid by buyer | 11.56% | seller |
| Costs paid by seller | 0.01% | seller |
| ROUNDTRIP TRANSACTION COSTS | 11.57% | seller |
| See Footnotes Source: Global Property Guide |
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How difficult is the property purchase process in Lebanon?
Foreign ownership of real estate property is allowed in Lebanon. Foreigners can acquire up to 3,000 square meters (sq. m) of land. Any bigger than this, a prior decree from the Council of Ministers is needed. Foreigners can only own up to 3% of the total land area of Lebanon. In the case of Beirut, foreigners can acquire up to 10% of the total area of the city.
A lawyer isn’t always needed in real estate transactions, except when it is more complicated than usual. If the two parties have agreed on the sale, the sale agreement can be drawn up by a notary public or a qualified facilitator, in place of a lawyer.
When registering the property, the seller acquires a Real Estate Certificate from the Land Registry. Other documents that may be produced, but not necessary, are: official cadastral map, urban plan certificate from the Municipality and Urban Planning Authority, and tax clearance from the Municipality.
If the documents are signed in the notary’s office, to be presented to the Land Registry, the Notary Tax of 0.1% has to be paid. If the documents are presented directly to the Land Registry, this cost is no longer required.
Footnotes to transaction costs table
The round trip transaction costs include all costs of buying and then re-selling a property – lawyers’ fees, notaries’ fees, registration fees, taxes, agents’ fees, etc.
Currency:
Lebanon uses Lebanese Pound. Exchange rate is at US$1=LBP1,539.16 as of 1st August 2006.
Lebanon - more data and information
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