How to sell your property

Selling your own property may be more difficult than buying, since you will have to compete against the well-organised developers and agents. For this reason the selling time may take up to six months and even more (depending how marketable your property is). For this reason, if resale of the property is in your mind when buying, bear in mind the general market want and not your own. The more marketable and of wide appeal your property is, the lesser the time of sale and the greater the possible gains.

In selling your property you must try on-the-spot advertising first. Placing a "for sale" sign on your land/house/flat is the best form of advertising. At the same time the appointment of estate agents (avoid exclusivity) is recommended. The commission payable is normally 3% on the sale price, although there are agents who charge 4%-5%. For this reason agree on the agent's commission. Do not accept the deal whereby the price is fixed by yourself and the agent gets the commission plus what he can obtain in excess of the fixed price (greedy agents may overprice your property and, consequently, render it unmarketable).

Additionally, appoint a qualified valuer (contact the Cyprus Association of Surveyors for a recommendation) who will ascertain the value of your property and its sales terms. You may find that you are undervaluing or overvaluing your property, with negative results on your sales results.

If the on-the-spot advertising/agents do not achieve a sale, try to advertise through the local press yourselves.

Bear in mind the payable taxation, the exchange rate and the exportation of the sales amount etc. prior to commitment.

The sale and transfer of a property's ownership is a straight and simple procedure. You simply present yourself at the Lands' Office counter together with the purchaser and you sign a sales form. Provided that there are no registered impediments, the deal is concluded within the hour. Bear in mind that prior to the transfer you must have paid all outstanding property taxes on your holding and obtain a certificate of release from the Inland Revenue.