In the UK, there are no restrictions on the purchase of real estate by third-country nationals.

Buying a property in the UK can be represented in the form of a procedure consisting of 3 stages:

• search for objects and the formation of an official offer to the seller;
• real estate transfer;
• final actions.

The offer does not legally oblige you to purchase (with the exception of Scotland, where the offer is mandatory).

If the proposal of the buyer is accepted by the seller, the buyer can organize a real estate audit. The goal is to identify potential problems with the object. The cost of an audit is approximately 300 to 1,000 pounds.

For the transfer of real estate will need a lawyer or a licensed agent.

The lawyer of the buyer has the right to search in order to identify obstacles to the acquisition of the object. This part of the procedure can take from two to three months.

To complete the transaction must be prepared and signed an agreement on the transfer of ownership of real estate. The date of completion of all formalities (payment of stamp duty, registration of real estate) must also be agreed at this stage. After the mutual settlements, the final transfer of all documents.

For the sale of real estate in England and in Wales, you must provide an information package (HIP), which must be formed before the property can be put on the open market. This is done in order to reduce the number of transactions that are disrupted due to the identification of “pitfalls” inherent in real estate (about 28% of the total number of “agreed” by the parties projects).

The package must be “not older” than three months if the property is sold for the first time, and includes:

• sale application,
• energy certificate,
• copies of title documents, etc.

If the property is rented, then the package should additionally include:

• copy of the lease agreement
• construction insurance policy
• contact details of the landlord, etc.

Initially, the idea of ​​the information package was to provide a comprehensive report on the condition of the house (to reduce the burden on buyers). But the idea remained unrealized.

Preparation of the information package should cost from 300 to 600 pounds for most properties in England and Wales. Some real estate agents offer HIP for free.

The costs of real estate transactions are:

• stamp duty from 0% to 12% paid by the buyer,
• legal fees 0.5% - 1% - the buyer,
• 0.05% land registration fee - buyer,
• agency fees 2% - 3.5% (+ 17.5% VAT) paid by the seller.

Thus, the expenses of the buyer amount to 13.05%, the expenses of the seller - up to 4.11%.

Legal services are paid by the parties depending on time rates and time spent by the involved lawyers.

Selling a business. The consequences of buying a British company is very difficult to discuss without taking into account the tax status of the buyer, the seller and the company itself. If we restrict ourselves to considering the case that only shares are bought, the buyer will have to pay stamp duty at a rate of 0.5% (rounded to the nearest 5 pounds sterling).