House sale documents: These are the documents you need

Checklist: Documents for the house sale

Land Registry: Available from the land registry.

Floor plan: Available from the building office.

Residents' certificate: Available from the municipality.

Building encumbrance register: Available from the land surveying and cadastral office.

Energy certificate: Available from the energy supplier (consumption certificate) or engineer of the building (demand certificate).

Register of contaminated sites: Environmental Agency.

Permission of the redevelopment authority: Notary.

Proof of monument protection: Monument protection authority.

Our tip: Save yourself time and effort in obtaining all the necessary documents by hiring a real estate agent for this!

Land register: structure and content

The land register is one of the most important documents needed for selling a house. It is divided into three sections. Section 1 of the land register deals with the ownership of a property. In other words, the owners of the property are listed here. Previous owners of a property can also be seen here. Section 2 of the land register mainly contains restrictions and encumbrances on the property. This concerns, among other things, the right of usufruct, limited personal easements such as residential rights or hereditary building rights.

prior notices (in the case of inheritance) are also entered here, as are any insolvency or forced administration notices. Section 3 of the land register directly contains pecuniary rights. This section thus concerns things like the mortgage, land charge and security land charge. Changes to the entries can be viewed in the respective columns in the land register extract. Older entries that are no longer valid are crossed out or reddened. All these documents can be obtained from the responsible land registry office.

Floor plan

The floor plan of a property is one of the essential documents for selling a house, especially in the marketing and viewing phase. A floor plan of the property that is as detailed as possible enables potential buyers to make a realistic assessment of whether the property meets their needs. The chances of finding a relevant prospective buyer more quickly therefore increase if you can present the floor plan at an early stage. At the latest when signing the notary contract, you will need plans of the building to be able to process the sale.

You can obtain the floor plan of your property in various ways: The most common method is to take a look at the building file of the property, which contains the floor plan. The building file documents are usually stored in the archives of the relevant building authority. Another method is to hire a professional architect or planner to draw the property.

Residents' certificate

The documentation for the property's adjoining owner's certificate shows whether all costs for the development of a property have already been paid off. Development measures include, for example, the connection to water and electricity lines and roads. This is why the residents' certificate is of particular interest when selling a house in a new development.

However, these documents can also be important for older housing estates. Sometimes development measures are taken that are only invoiced later by the municipality. The person who owns the property at the time of billing is always liable for these costs. If the property changes ownership when the development has not yet been completed, the buyer and new owner must therefore bear the costs, even if the development measures were already completed before the purchase.

Register of building encumbrances

In addition to the encumbrances on a plot of land listed in section 2 of the land register, public-law payment obligations are listed in the so-called Baulastenverzeichnis (list of building encumbrances). Such building encumbrances may exist, for example, as a result of a distance from neighbouring properties. Encumbrances listed in the building encumbrance register are generally not entered in the land register. The federal states of Brandenburg and Bavaria are an exception.

The building encumbrance register for a property is usually kept by the city or district. The documents can then be obtained from the relevant land registry office. Although the presentation of the register of building encumbrances is not a mandatory document for the sale of a house, it is quite common for the buyer(s) to request an insight into this document. In such a case, the real estate agent or the notary can request the list of building encumbrances from the land registry - possibly after authorisation by the owner.

Energy certificate

Since 2014, the energy performance certificate of a property has been one of the necessary documents when selling a house and must be available at the beginning of the marketing process. This document is regulated in the Energy Saving Ordinance, often abbreviated to EnEV. There are basically two types of energy certificates: The demand certificate and the consumption certificate.

The consumption certificate is based - as the name suggests - on the previous consumption values (for heating and hot water preparation, for example) of the property and is the cheaper version of the energy certificate. This energy certificate is valid if the property contains at least five residential units (for example, rented flats) or if the building meets the requirements of the 1977 Heat Insulation Ordinance. These documents are sufficient for the sale of most properties.

The demand certificate is the more complex version of the energy certificate. Here, the energy balance of the property is not based on the actual consumption values, but on theoretical values calculated on the basis of factors such as external insulation, glazing and the type of heating system. The demand certificate is mandatory if the property houses fewer than five residential units or if the requirements of the 1977 Heat Insulation Ordinance are not met. Regardless of the type of certificate, you can only have the energy certificate issued by an expert. For example, you can obtain the energy certificate from the energy supplier or from an energy consultant, civil engineer or architect. You can find even more information on these documents in our guide to selling a house Energy Performance Certificate

Register of contaminated sites

Another document you need when selling a house is the property's register of contaminated sites. This is a register that lists all contaminated and suspected contaminated sites on a property that could endanger human health. These can be, for example, chemicals and other toxic substances that have leaked into the groundwater, but also munitions and bombs from the Second World War. Although the register of contaminated sites is not one of the documents that are mandatory when selling a house, it is certainly a document that could be requested by a potential house buyer. Owners can obtain the cadastre from the competent federal office.

Approval from the redevelopment authority

Under certain circumstances, prior approval by the redevelopment authority is necessary for the sale of a house. This is the case if the property is located in a redevelopment area designated by the municipality. These documents are obtained - if necessary - by the notary during the execution of the purchase contract, which may, however, mean a delay in the completion of the sale.

Proof of listed building status

If the property to be sold is a listed building, this entails some special features. For example, any alterations or even (partial) demolition require the prior approval of the competent monument protection authority. Accordingly, documentation of such a permit is also required. Before selling a listed property, it is essential to clarify the further intended use with the potential buyer.

Other documents for the sale of a house

In addition to the documents mentioned above, there are other documents that may be of interest when selling the property. These include, for example, a cadastral map. When selling a property, it is quite possible that the buyer will want to compare the property boundaries on the official cadastral map with the actual boundaries. The cadastral map can be requested from the official real estate cadastre via the notary. If the property is rented, many potential buyers are also interested in the documents relating to the current tenancy agreements. Insurance documents relating to the property are also frequently requested when selling a house.

Beware of incorrect or missing documents!

Obtaining all the necessary documents for the house sale is time-consuming. However, if the above-mentioned documents of the property are not available in time, owners risk acting unlawfully. For example, the lack of an energy certificate is punishable by a A fine of up to 15,000 euros punishable.

The real estate agents of Engel & Völkers will help you to obtain all the important documents and lead your house sale to success. We would be happy to advise you in this regard!