General Questions

Buying real estate in Germany does not give foreigners the right of permanent residence in Germany, but owning real estate is a strong argument in the consideration of the application from the authorities, as it proves the financial independence of those wishing to obtain a permanent residence permit.

While previously in order to establish a company in Germany and obtain a residence permit a businessman from Russia was required to invest at least 250,000 euros and create at least five jobs, since August 1 this rule was abolished

The Blue Card is a new version of the residence permit for citizens of third countries (non-EU) coming for the purpose of employment in the European Union. This innovation is designed to increase the attractiveness of the eurozone countries for highly skilled professionals, which are increasingly in short supply. Germany, including Bavaria, one of Western Europe’s most economically powerful regions, is also interested in the influx.

Amendments to the migration legislation of the European Union have recently come into force in Germany – since August 1, 2012, after their approval by the German Bundestag. Not much time has passed. It is too early to judge how the new rule is realized in practice, what decisions are made by the German migration services – the departments for foreigners or consular offices of Germany in Russia, and whether they have received the corresponding instructions.

Requirements for those who want to take advantage of the innovation and get a blue card. The main thing is to have high qualifications. It must be confirmed by a diploma of higher education. It is also possible without a diploma. But then you will need to document the required qualifications on the basis of the results of the previous five-year period. In addition to this, you will have to prove that you have received a total gross income (before tax) of at least 44,800 euros within a year at your future place of work in Germany.

To begin with find a job. Make an agreement with your employer that he will hire you. It is best to have an employment contract already signed.

If the contract is signed for a period of 33 months or more, the blue card holder receives an indefinite right of residence in Germany. If he can show the knowledge of German at level B1 (understand the basic elements of speech necessary in everyday life and household situations, be able to express his thoughts simply and coherently), then the residence permit can be obtained with a term of employment contract already from 21 months.

Other requirements may be imposed when you visit the consular section of the embassy. You will need to submit documents confirming that you have a place to live. For example, the contract on the lease of an apartment in Germany. Especially if you are married and it is a question of your spouse and children moving in with you, which is also possible. For the first time you need, of course, insurance, a sufficient amount of livelihood.

Armed with all the documents, go to a meeting with the consular officials of the Federal Republic of Germany in Russia. The main thing – I repeat – find a job in advance, and be prepared to confirm it with documents.

I recommend everyone who wants to go to the site www.make-it-in-germany.com/en/home/. There is a lot of useful information, you can even analyze your prospects online.

Germany, including Bavaria, has a particular need for engineers, IT specialists, natural scientists, mathematicians and doctors. The “entry threshold” for those who want to find a job here is specially lowered. It is enough to have a minimum pre-tax income of 35,000 euros per year. With an annual income of 35,000 euros will have to pay about 25% tax. So I don’t rule out that for a similar position in Moscow you can earn a little more at the expense of more liberal taxation. Although, understandably, there are other aspects. Some people like to live and work in Western Europe. In Bavaria, for example. This land of Germany is perhaps one of the most interesting and attractive in all of Western Europe.

If you are employed in Germany or do business there, it is strictly necessary to comply with the established procedures for relations with the tax authorities. Tax evasion is a serious offence. If you are an entrepreneur and intend to invest in Germany, the criteria for checking the legitimacy of the origin of the money are no less stringent. This region is very attractive both for life and for business. Especially since there are support opportunities. So, feel free to contact us and we will advise you!

 

The housing costs (Hausgeld or Wohngeld) in Germany are made up of the following components: utilities (Nebenkosten), house management services (Hausverwaltung) and the community insurance fund (Instandhaltungsrucklage). The housing costs are paid to the housing cooperative, which then distributes them.

1) The utility bills (cold and hot water, heating, gas, insurance, etc.) are paid according to a rate determined every year. At the end of the year there is a recalculation of utilities actually used according to meter readings. If the meter readings show that you used more utilities, you must pay the difference. If less was used than what was paid for, the surplus is returned. And new rates are set for the following year in accordance with the volume of consumption in the previous year.

For this reason, it does not really matter how much you pay when you buy a house, because at the end of the year everyone in Germany will only pay what they have actually spent. For average consumption the cost of utilities is about 2 – 4 euros per m2.

2) House management services. Every house in Germany has its own house management company. These are private organizations that are responsible for keeping the house clean and tidy, providing the house with utilities and ensuring that all residents pay for them on time, as well as minor and major repairs to the building and common areas, and so on. The fees for the building management service range from an average of 20 to 40 euros, depending on the building and the scope of the service.

3) Community treasury. This is used to accumulate money for minor or major repairs of the building and public areas. At the annual meeting of the owners and the house management, decisions are made on the future activities in the house (repairs, painting the facade, installing an elevator, creating a playground, etc.), as well as on the amount of funds to be contributed to the community fund. The decision is made by a majority vote. After the decision has been made, every apartment owner in the building contributes to the treasury on a monthly basis, which can be used for the intended purpose in a number of years. The amount of the contribution depends on the scope and cost of the proposed works and ranges on average from 20 to 40 euros. In buildings awaiting renovation, this amount can be higher. When you buy an apartment, the new owner automatically becomes the indirect owner of a portion of the money already paid into the utility fund by the previous owner. It goes without saying that this amount may vary from apartment to apartment.

Hot rent in Germany (Warmmiete) consists of cold rent + utilities (Nebenkosten), i.e. the full amount of rent that the tenant pays. The amount of hot rent is usually of interest to the tenant, as this is the amount he has to pay to the landlord.

Cold rent in Germany (Kaltmiete) is the rent less utilities. The amount of this rent is of interest to the property owner, as he pays the utilities further to the building authority, and the cold rent stays in his hands. From the cold rent the property owner has to pay the services of the building authority (Hausverwaltung) as well as the monthly payments to the community fund (Instandhaltungsrucklage). The amount of these payments differs from house to house.

Net rental income = Warmmiete Hot Rent -/- Hausgeld Living Fee

The hot rent (Warmmiete) consists of the cold rent + utilities (Nebenkosten), i.e. the full amount of rent that the tenant pays. The amount of the hot rent is usually of interest to the tenant because it is the amount he has to pay to the landlord.

Cold rent (Kaltmiete) is the rent less utilities. The amount of this rent is of interest to the landlord as he pays the utilities further to the housing authority and the cold rent stays in his hands. From the cold rent the property owner has to pay the house management service (Hausverwaltung) as well as the monthly instalments to the community fund (Instandhaltungsrucklage). These fees vary from building to building.

The rent (Hausgeld, Wohngeld) is the total cost of the apartment, i.e. utilities + house management + public utilities office.

In 2015, mortgage financing conditions at German banks are more favorable than ever! Average mortgage rates have reached a possible minimum (around 2-4% per annum depending on the bank and financing conditions). For foreign nationals need to have their own capital of about 50% of the value of the property and the cost of registration of the transaction of sale

Moreover, experts from leading German banks agree that around the end of 2016 will begin to increase mortgage rates.
We offer non-residents (foreign citizens) the possibility of obtaining a mortgage loan at German banks on favorable terms. Each case is considered by independent experts on an individual basis and the most suitable lending terms are selected.

It is possible to obtain a loan with various terms and conditions for a period of about 5 to 30 years with various terms of “binding interest rate” (Zinsbindung) of about 1 to 10 years.

The property can be rented out or free of lease, renovated or in need of renovation.

For commercial properties, you can get a loan only if the object is rented to a reliable tenant. Commercial sites for their own business by German banks is practically not funded.

For banks to consider the application for a loan applicant must submit the following documents:

A copy of your passport (in some cases a residence permit in Germany or other EU countries);
Completed application form (Selbstauskunft);
Proof of own funds;
Proof of stable income.
Individuals – reference from workplace, monthly salary calculations (from 2 months to 1 year depending on the bank), recent tax returns.
Entrepreneurs and private entrepreneurs – tax declarations (for the last 3-4 years depending on the bank).
Data on monthly expenses (other loans, rent, utilities, alimony, etc.)
Documents about the property (provided by broker or property owner):
an estimate of living space,
Current land registry extract (not older than 6 weeks),
insurance policy for the building,
photos of the property,
An estimate of the rental income or rent,
Rental or ploughshare agreement, including appendices and addendices,
housing regulations.

 Scheme of financing through our company:

First, our company submits a preliminary request to the German banks on the possibility of financing the client’s chosen property. At this stage only basic information about the applicant and the property is needed, without the provision of supporting documents. Within 2-7 days we get a preliminary answer.
If the preliminary answer is affirmative, the client makes an advance payment of 500 Euros for the interim reservation and removal of the property from the sales market, while the property is being considered for financing. In the case of a purchase, this amount will be included in the total amount of brokerage fees.
Client provides all necessary documents, which together with the documents and information about the property will be sent to German banks. !!! On all related issues the client consults Russian-speaking professional financier. If you have a full package of documents consideration of the application takes an average of 10-14 working days
If the bank decides positively, a contract of financing is signed with the bank, which requires the personal presence of the applicant.
The client contributes the remainder of the prepayment for the final reservation of property and execution of the contract of sale.
At the German notary the sales contract with mortgage encumbrance is signed.
The rest of the procedure for registration of the sale – the standard.

Almost all leases in Germany are for an indefinite term with the right to terminate under German law. This means that the tenant lives in the apartment for as long as they wish, unless the property owner decides to live in it themselves. If it is necessary to evict the tenant, the owner must send the tenant a special notification letter informing him of his intentions to personally reside in the apartment and asking him to leave the apartment within a certain period. According to German law, if the tenant has lived in the apartment for less than 8 years, he or she is given a period of 3 months to move out. If the tenant has lived in the apartment for more than 8 years, however, they are given 9 months to evict.

At the request of the owner, the lease in Germany can be concluded for a fixed term. In this case, the contract will expire at the end of the specified period, after which the tenant must leave the apartment.

Additional costs when buying real estate in Germany are inevitable:

Notarization: approximately 1.5% of the price fixed in the notarized sales contract.
One-time tax on the purchase of real estate in Bavaria: 3.5% of the price fixed in the notarial sales contract.
Small legal fees (preliminary and final registration, deletion of entries in the land register, obtaining an extract from the land register) amount to about 0.5%.
When buying a real estate in Germany, a broker’s fee is usually 3.57 – 7.14% of the price stated in the notarial sales contract. In this broker’s fee includes: services of intermediaries, translators, as well as full support of the client not only to the signing of the contract of sale, but also follow-up support in Russian until the final registration in the Land Register and receive an extract from it.
Brokerage fees for each individual property may deviate from these amounts.

Read more about obtaining a mortgage here!

Our company WIP Immobilien GmbH has extensive experience in the German real estate market. Please contact us, we will help you to choose a notary and we will see to it that all expenses when buying property in Germany, do not go beyond the limit of what is necessary.

The reservation of an apartment or house is made in order to take the selected property off the sales market and start the paperwork for the purchase. The reservation of the property is made by making an advance payment, which proves the seriousness of the buyer’s intentions.

The deposit is usually made equal to the brokerage commission, after which the property is reserved for the buyer by our firm as well as by the seller and is not offered to anyone else. The amount of the apartment reservation/maker’s fee is usually between 3.57 and 7.14% including VAT. Please note that the reservation amount may vary from property to property.

When the prepayment is made, a prepayment agreement is signed between the client and our company and a note is made about the reservation of the particular property. Immediately after reservation, the following documents will be given to the notary: Extract from the Land Register (Grundbuchauszug), Protocol of division of the building (Teilungserklarung), lease agreement (Mietvertrag) (if available), on the basis of which a preliminary contract of sale will be made

There are two types of payment of the purchase price in Germany:

1) through a trust account of a notary public

2) directly to the seller’s account

3) Payment through a notary’s trust account:

This method is most preferable for foreign buyers of real estate in Germany. In this case, when the sale contract is signed by the notary opens a special trust account (Notaranderkonto), through which all cash transactions are settled. No one has access to this account except the notary.
On average, the buyer is given two to four weeks to deposit the purchase price and additional purchase costs into the trust account (notary fees, real estate acquisition tax (Grunderwerbsteuer), legal costs for the preliminary and final registration, obtaining an extract from the land register, etc.).
Details of trust account should be specified in the contract of sale, and the notary additionally sends a letter about the opening of an account and the need to pay within the period specified in the contract.
To make a payment to the bank shall be provided with the following documents: contract of sale in German, the contract’s translation into Russian, a letter from the notary about the opening of a trust account and the notice from our company in Russian on the need for payment indicating full bank details in international format.
After the buyer pays the specified amount to the trust account, the notary makes all necessary payments from the trust account as bills are received: Land Court account, financial services, etc.
The purchase price is paid to the seller only after the following prerequisites for payment have been met:

Erasure by the seller of all existing debts and encumbrances recorded in the land records
Payment and receipt of the superintendent’s permission (if required) to join the society of owners
Entry of provisional registration in the land register in favor of the buyer (Auflassungsvormerkung)
Payment of all other fees

2) Direct payment into the seller’s account.

In some cases, a direct payment of the purchase price into the seller’s account may be required. Here, too, the buyer assumes no risk, as the purchase price may only be paid into the seller’s account after the following prerequisites for payment have been met

Erasing all existing debts and encumbrances recorded in the land records by the seller
Payment and receipt of the superintendent’s permission (if required) to join the society of owners
Entry of provisional registration in the land register in favor of the buyer (Auflassungsvormerkung)
Payment of all other fees

When the above prerequisites have been fulfilled a special notification (Preisfälligkeitsbescheinigung) will be issued by the notary, stating that all prerequisites for the payment have been met and that the purchase price has to be paid into the account of the owner.
In this case, both the seller and the buyer are also protected, because once the purchase price has been paid, the provisional entry in the land register is guaranteed to be changed to the final registration of the new owner.

Other questions

If you want to buy an apartment in Germany, you will have to pay for the property by bank transfer.  This is possible after signing the sales contract and fulfilling all the prerequisites for payment.

This way the seller must pay off all debts on the apartment. The buyer must obtain all permits from the property manager to join the society of owners (if required), and the notary must make a preliminary entry in the land register of the new owner.

In this way, the rights of every buyer who wants to buy an apartment in Germany will be protected as much as possible. The seller only gets his money when all possible debts have been paid and the buyer is registered as an owner in the land registry.

Our company WIP Immobilien GmbH not only helps with the selection of apartments and houses in Germany, we will open an account for you in a German bank.  You will be able to pay for your apartment in Germany easily and comfortably. 

Do you need a mortgage with a low interest rate of 2 – 3%? Contact us or read here

To make a purchase of real estate in Germany it is not necessary to open an account in a German bank. All necessary payments can be made through a bank in any other country.

But after buying a property in Germany (usually rented out) buyers need to open an account in a German bank for the convenience of payments of rent and utilities, or in the case of using the services of a special house management – to get a net income on their account.

Our company can only help you open a German bank account if you bought a property with our company.
This service is free of charge for our clients. For non-clients the service is chargeable. To open an account you will need only a valid passport.

After opening an account, the client gets on-line access to their account and can make any transactions with their account on-line, which is very convenient for foreign nationals.

Rent in Germany, according to German law, can increase by no more than 15% in three years. Thus, the state maintains the level of rents and protects the rights of tenants. Exceptions may be when the apartment has been renovated or the living conditions have been improved. But at the same time the rent in Germany must not exceed the current market rent price in the same area, in a house and apartment of the same quality.

If, however, a new rental contract is signed with a new tenant after the previous tenant has moved out, the owner is entitled to raise the rent to the current market rental prices in the area.

Are you already the owner of the property in Germany? Talk to us: WIP Immobilien GmbH has extensive experience in property management and we are able to increase the rent of your property within the limits of the German law.

Read here: Sergey’s personal experience: bought two apartments in Munich, rented them out

Apartments in very old buildings, i.e. over 100 years old, are an advantage rather than a disadvantage.

Firstly, such houses are monuments of architecture and are very valuable and prices for apartments in such houses are usually higher than in others.
Secondly almost all old houses have been renovated and are in excellent condition.
Thirdly the apartments in such houses have high ceilings, parquet, beautiful doors, i.e. what is valued.
Fourthly, when buying a whole house, the owner is unlikely to change the architecture very much, i.e. it is a monument of architecture and München strives to keep them in the same condition as they were before.
Fifthly, the prices of apartments in such houses are always increasing and buying them will provide a good opportunity to invest money and resell them in the future.

In order for banks to consider an application for a bank loan in Germany, the applicant must submit the following documents:

From the buyer:

 A copy of your passport.
 Completed application form (Selbstauskunft)
 Proof of own funds
 Proof of stable income – the form can be anything, but the confirming body – official
 Private persons – reference from workplace, monthly salary calculations (from 2 months to 1 year depending on the bank), latest tax declarations
 Data on monthly expenses (other loans, rent, utilities, alimony, etc.) – this is a component of the selbstauskunft questionnaire

Documents about the property (to be provided by the real estate broker or property owner):

calculation of living space
extract from the land register
building insurance policy
energy passport
photos of the property
rental income statement or ploughman’s report
 Rental or barnyard agreement, including appendices and addendices
 statute of division of space Teilungserklärung

The payment of the real estate under construction in Germany is made on the basis of the MaBV (Makler und Bauträgerverordnung) according to the following scheme:

 Partial payment of the property under construction in Germany in the amount of 25%, after receipt of notarial confirmation (Right of retention, according to § 632 a paragraph 3 of the German Civil Code, 30%-5% is taken into account)
 28% partial payment in Germany for a property under construction after completion of the shell, including work on the rooms
 18% partial payment in Germany, after completion of roof, guttering, initial installation of heating, plumbing and electrical installations, as well as installation of windows (including window panes)
Partial payment of 20.5% on the property under construction. Step by step in the transfer of the property.
Partial payment of 5% for the property under construction. Immediately after completion of construction work in due time and without major deficiencies.
Final installment payment of 3.5%. Immediately upon full completion of the housing development, including the underground garage and infrastructure.
The underground garage and infrastructure.
WHEN IS THE FIRST PAYMENT FOR A PROPERTY UNDER CONSTRUCTION IN GERMANY MADE?

The date of payment of the first instalment of the value of the property is notified to the Buyer by the notary and the Seller,
the dates of subsequent payments by the Seller.

Drawing plan of the apartment, garage – Grundriss der Wohnung, sowie TG und Keller
Year of construction with building description – Baujahr mit Baubeschreibung
Description of the apartment (built-in furniture) – Ausstattungsbeschreibung (Einbauten, Möblierung)
Terms of division of apartments – Teilungserklärung 
Contact person of the managing company – Verwalter-Daten 
Monthly utility bill – Monatliches Wohngeld
Last 3 minutes of the owners’ meeting – 3 letzte Protokolle der Eigentümerversammlung
The last 3 annual reports on utilities – 3 letzte Abrechnungen der Nebenkosten
Certificate of Energy Consumption – Energieausweis 

Residence permit in Germany, Migration – procedure

Permit to Stay in Germany, hereinafter referred to as residence permit (Aufenthaltserlaubnis)

(Aufenthaltserlaubnis)

– according to the German Residence Act (AufenthaltsG), the regulations of the Ministry of the Interior (BMI) and the law enforcement procedure of the Ausländeramt at the place of presumed residence.

On the basis of Section 7 (Economic independence – read more) and Section 21 (Self-employment) of the aforementioned Act, the following parameters are valid for both cases

Initially issued for 1 year
Renewable twice for a period of two years in Germany
Applicant and family members (spouse, minor children)
Language knowledge is not necessary
After 5 years it is possible to apply for the Niederlassungserlaubnis (permanent residence permit)
After further 2 years – right to apply for citizenship, provided that the person retains the original citizenship (7 years in total)
The registration of private health insurance is obligatory
for children – free of charge education in schools and universities as if they were citizens
entitles the holder to reside in Germany for unlimited time (during the period of validity of the certificate) and move freely within the countries of Schengen area
There is no minimum period of residence in the Schengen area; the requirements are specific to each local foreigners’ office (Ausländeramt)

In order to be eligible for an FNP the following requirements must be met:

Have assets of more than 1 million euros
Have a regular income of more than 5,000 euros
A place to live in Germany
A private health insurance contract
You do not have to be permanently resident in Germany.

Permanent residence permit, hereinafter referred to as Permit to Stay

(Niederlassungserlaubnis)

– It can be distinguished from German citizenship only by the lack of voting rights and visa regulations with countries outside of the Schengen area, including the right to work without any restrictions. It applies to all family members of the applicant in Germany.

In order to obtain a residence permit you must:

Possess a RNP for at least 5 years
Have adequate income or financial security
Not be criminally persecuted
Pass a German language test
Be in possession of a place to live (rented or owned property is acceptable)

7 Economic independence

No investments in companies or properties are necessary

Residence permit (Aufenthaltserlaubnis) in accordance with Section 7 Paragraph 1 of the German Residence Act (AufenthaltsG) and the regulations of the Ministry of the Interior (BMI).

Requirements are individual and are determined on a case-by-case basis. Based on our experience and practice we can highlight the basic criteria and conditions for a positive decision:

– Asset valuation: from €1 million per family member (real estate, business, etc.)

or

– Regular income of €4-5 thousand per month per family member (the total amount may be less)

Depending on the number of family members, the requirements may be less than the total amount. As proof of property and income is possible to attract any legal means, regardless of their origin or location.

The process of obtaining a residence permit in Germany

Forming a package of documents and collecting information to confirm your financial solvency and other positive factors
Submission of the documents to the German mission in your country (embassy or consulate)
Individual review by the German diplomatic mission and the Ausländeramt at the place of intended residence (municipality and region)
After the Ausländeramt has issued a positive decision, the applicant will be issued a three-month national visa
Entry and registration in your own or rented home
If necessary, private health insurance (Private Krankenversicherung) can be applied for immediately. This can also be taken out within a year
Within 1 month: a residence permit card in the EU format (also valid for passports inside Germany)

Extension procedure

Application at the immigration office (Ausländeramt) where you reside
Maintenance of financial security
private health insurance
Your place of residence in Germany – own or rented
New residence permit card issued within 1 month

Are you interested?

Then Contact Us

Address

We do everything with German care, maintaining complete confidentiality and guaranteeing the highest level of service. With us, you will feel at home! 

ADDRESS:

Industriestraße 29-31, 82194 Gröbenzell HRB 193416, AG München

Contact

chief executive

Regina Borger

Contact Form

    WiP Immobilien GmbH, all rights reserved

    Contact