How high are realtors' and lawyers' fees in Aruba? What about other property purchase costs?

How difficult is the property purchase process in Aruba?

There are no restrictions on foreigners buying property.

There are not many realtors in Aruba that represent the buyer. It would be prudent to hire a lawyer before entering into a purchase transaction, to protect your interests.

The first step is to make an offer. Once the price has been agreed upon, the purchase agreement will be signed and a 10% deposit is paid within three to five days from the signing. The lawyer will then obtain data from the kadaster and from the tax department to determine if there are any unsettled and conflicting charges against the property, and to determine the leggerwaarde, i.e., the tax value of the property, which determines the stamp duty payable. This whole process takes about six to eight weeks.

Note that the buyer bears all closing costs, e.g., the transfer tax and the notary costs, which have to be settled before signing the final deed.

Footnotes to Transaction Costs Table

Transfer Tax (Overdrachtsbelasting)
The transfer tax is charged at a flat rates: 3% for property values up to AWG250,000 (US$139,665), and 6% for property values exceeding AWG250,000 (US$139,665).

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.

Transfer Tax:
The Transfer Tax (Overdrachtsbelasting) is charged at a flat rate of 3% of the property value.

Notary Costs:
Notary fees on the transfer deed is around 1% of the selling price.

Registration Tax:
Registration of deeds signed by civil law notaries is mandatory in Aruba. The tax is charged at AWG5 (US$2.79) for each document submitted for registration.

Agent's Commission:
Real estate agents usually charge 5% of the purchase price for their services, usually paid by the seller.