Buying property in Germany is very similar to buying UK property with the exception of the presence of a notary whose job it is to make sure both parties to the transaction understand the contract they are signing. He/she will be present at the completion to witness the signatures.
The process commences with the payment of a relatively small reservation fee generally to your agent once you have found the property you wish to buy and agreed a price with the vendor. This reservation may or may not be refundable and it is worth checking the situation when you hand it over - some or all of it may be forfeit in the event that you pull out of the transaction.
You will need to engage the services of a solicitor (Anwalt) locally and it is generally a good idea to give your solicitor power of attorney so that he can sign documents on your behalf when you are not available.
The purchase contract is frequently drawn up within a few weeks of the agreement between the parties and, assuming there are no oddities to be covered, the whole process can be over in 6-8 weeks. However, the notary then has to register the transfer and this can take quite a while - legal ownership does not transfer until the transaction is registered with the registry office.
You should allow between 7% and 10% of the purchase price for taxes and fees. Stamp duty is around 4.5% and the legal and notary fees can be netween 3% and 5% depending on the situation.
