Is it possible to sell an inherited apartment? We will examine in more detail in this matter. Quite often, the heirs seek to immediately sell the inherited property. There may be many reasons for this, but there are certain nuances of such a deal. People are often interested in how an apartment is sold after inheritance.
When can hereditary property be sold?
By law, successors become owners from the date of the death of the testators. Even if he has not yet fully completed the inheritance and does not have a certificate in his hands, he is already the owner anyway. You can even say that the owner is "retroactively." After all, with whom to ask taxes along with a communal apartment and other payments for the period when the hereditary process takes place, which can last from six months or more?
How to sell an apartment? The new owner can officially dispose of the received property with the rights to sell, donate and the like only after the registration of the title of the owner in accordance with all the rules. Otherwise, the transaction will not be able to be held at the registration authority, in which documents will not even be accepted. In this case, the heir will simply be considered an unauthorized seller. What is the deadline for the sale of an inherited apartment?
Three more years from the registration of rights to the apartment, the property may be challenged. It is necessary to exclude the possibility of the appearance of other heirs with reasonable claims for housing and those who wish to challenge the fact of inheritance. Therefore, the law provides for a certain time. This countdown starts from the moment when a new person applying for housing received information about a violation of his own right.
There are certain benefits to the sale of an inherited apartment. About this - below.
Some properties may be secured, and this burden also passes to the successor. In such a situation, until the mortgagee provides written consent to the sale, any actions by the seller may be considered illegal. So how to sell an apartment?
In order for the sale of real estate to take place, the heirs require the following:
- Wait for the certificate of inheritance.
- Real estate must be registered with the cadastre. Or you need to make changes to the inventory data.
- Perform state registration of housing rights in the Russian registry.
- Get consent to conclude an agreement with the pledge holder. Or pay off the mortgage if there was a deposit.
Sale of an apartment after inheritance and tax
Most of the inherited real estate does not become actual housing for the heirs, as they are often in a hurry to sell the property that was inherited. The main reason for this decision is the disagreement between the successors, along with an acute need for money, the availability of other housing, and so on.
Search for buyers, bargaining about the cost, and in addition, design - this is not all the worries that await seller-heirs. Ahead of the heirs is an obligation to the state in the form of payment of tax on profit from the transaction. Similar expenses are borne by sellers with an additional burden for inheriting in addition to state duty:
- The tax on the sale of an apartment immediately after inheritance is thirteen percent of the total value of the property.It is paid by the territorial tax inspectorate at the place of residence. It is worth noting that for non-residents this tax will be even higher at thirty percent.
- It is necessary to issue a declaration correctly.
- A correctly prepared declaration must be submitted to the inspection on time. This is usually done no later than April 30.
- You should also pay the full amount on time before July 15th. Details for the transfer are taken from the local tax authority.
The law does not provide for personal income tax benefits for the sale of apartments and for socially unprotected categories of people, including, therefore, everyone will have to pay the tax. True, the owner has the opportunity to reduce the size of the taxable amount. He can also completely get rid of his duty to the budget.
Avoiding tax on the sale of an apartment after inheritance.
Tax exemption
Avoiding bureaucratic fuss along with the execution and filing of declarations with the inspection, and in addition, you can avoid tax if you wait 3 years after the entry into the rights of the owner. In the event that the object that was inherited will be in the ownership of the successor continuously for more than three years, then after this period the citizen will be completely exempt from tax when selling the apartment. After inheritance, this rule does not work.
In 2016, a tenure of 5 years was established for tax-free sales. For inherited housing, this period does not apply. In this regard, in order not to pay tax, it is only necessary to wait 3 years from obtaining the rights to the inherited living space.
What are the benefits for the sale of an inherited apartment?
Tax reduction
You can reduce the tax even to zero rubles if the cost of housing is low. In this situation, there is no need to endure three years, but all the same fuss with declarations can not be avoided. So, directly the procedure of cheapening taxes is quite simple. The so-called tax deduction is subtracted from the base figure of the cost of housing sales. Its value is one million rubles. Either acquisition costs are deducted, that is, expenses for inheritance, and in addition, registration of property. Next, the result should be multiplied by thirteen percent. As a rule, expenses are less than 1 million rubles, so everyone uses this deduction. You can take away either a deduction or expenses, which depends on the choice of the seller-taxpayer.
In the event that they sell shared property, each shareholder provides on its own behalf a separate declaration. The declaration indicates the amount of tax, which depends on the value of the share. The use of the tax deduction is carried out by its distribution based on the size of each share in percentage terms.
The price of housing indicated in the contract. This amount should be reflected in the tax return. The contractual value for the sale of an inherited apartment is established by law by the parties, but if it is lower than the cadastral value, no less than seventy percent is allowed for taxation.
Tax risks
Every year, less and less cunning frauds are recorded in order to save on tax, which is associated with the following factors:
- Almost all real estate in our country has been evaluated. Now it has a cadastral value very close to the market price at which housing is sold.
- To date, the contract price is compared with the cadastral value. In the event that it is less than seventy percent, the tax will not be calculated on the amount of the contract, but on the cadastral value.
- Doubtful inspection reports can be identified even at the stage of requesting information about residential premises in the Russian registry.
- In addition, a field audit or, for example, a desk audit may be threatened. Based on the results of the audit, a higher tax may be charged or a fine and interest may be added.
Specialists in the field of minimizing taxation are recommended to make reporting as transparent as possible, and to take payment more seriously. If you have any difficult questions, contact your local inspectorate for clarification.
Buyer risks during the purchase of an apartment
One of the most risky types of transactions in the real estate market is the acquisition of an apartment after the inheritance. Such a deal can be fraught with many hidden threats, because they can be an unexpected surprise, even for the seller.
Therefore, if possible it would be better to refuse such a category of real estate. But in the event that the intentions are still solid, then preparations should be made as carefully as possible for this crucial step.
It is advisable to involve a friend, as well as a trusted lawyer or realtor, in this procedure. If this is not possible, then you must strictly follow the instructions below to at least somehow reduce the risks during the acquisition of an inherited apartment.
How to buy a hereditary apartment
With particular caution, one should consider options that differ in attractive terms of the transaction, especially when it comes to attractive prices. Often the reason for the low cost when selling an apartment after entering the inheritance is not pitfalls, but the seller’s desire to share the inheritance as quickly as possible. Due to this factor, the cost may be five to ten percent lower than the average market. But in the event that the price is too low, then perhaps you should seriously think about the reasons why the heir seeks to get rid of real estate.
At a meeting with the seller
First of all, you need to verify the identity of the seller with a passport and find out whether he is the owner or acts by proxy. In the event that this is a representative, then it is necessary to require personal contact with the owner. During the conversation, the following questions should be clarified:
- What are the motives for selling real estate?
- You should also find out the history of housing. Did you inherit the apartment by will or by law?
- Whether registered citizens or other persons who have the right to reside are listed in the apartment.
- How was the inheritance certificate obtained? Be sure to find out if there was a legal dispute, and in addition to which notary public executed the inheritance property.
- Are there problems with housing in technical terms. For example, illegal redevelopment or errors in the documentation and the like.
- You must also ask questions about real estate debt and utility bills.
- Are there any burdens in the form of mortgages, hiring, renting and so on.
- You should find out the reasons why the authority related to the sale is transferred to the trustee. It is advisable to do this if the owner is not engaged in the sale.
- It is also recommended that a discussion of the main terms of the contract regarding the price, term of the agreement and the like.
Lack of deposits
Prior to signing the contract, it is not recommended to conclude preliminary agreements, especially to give a deposit or leave a deposit. Housing is a special product that is sold extremely slowly and difficultly, but is acquired on a cold head and without unnecessary emotions. Money is always liquid, unlike real estate, and in the event that one option breaks, another will surely appear.
Apartment for sale: documents
As part of the purchase and sale of hereditary real estate, you should carefully study the documentation for the home:
- What are the inheritance rights to the apartment after the death of the owner? What does this mean? Title documents along with a certificate of inheritance, an agreement on the division of shares, contracts for the sale, gift, privatization and the like.
- Documents confirming the rights (certificate of state registration of property and extract from the register).
- Technical documentation. Here we are talking about a BTI passport, a technical plan. A cadastral passport is also required along with a decree on the legalization of redevelopment.
- Notarized consent from other owners of the property if the sale is carried out by the heirs of shares in the apartment.
- Extended help with information about registered citizens.
- Certificate of family composition at the place of residence.
- Extract from the state registry, which should contain the history of transactions conducted on the object.
- Certificates from the housing maintenance department, and also from the HOA about the absence of any debt.
- Help from a narcological, and in addition, a psychiatric dispensary.
- Permission obtained from the Board of Trustees in the event that the owner is a child, as well as if he is simply registered at this address.
First of all, it is very important to understand exactly when the transfer of inheritance took place. In the event that only one year has passed, then the buyer's risks are quite real. The indisputability of the result of such an operation is guaranteed when the successor has owned the property for five years or more. In addition, it is worthwhile to pay attention to the compliance of the information received from the owner with the documents, and in addition, to the absence of errors or any contradictions in the documentation itself. The terms of the sale of the apartment after the entry into the inheritance must be observed.
Property Inspection
Equally important is a careful inspection of the property in order to check the relevance of the layout along with the integrity of communications, and in addition, engineering equipment. Along the way, it will be useful to drop by the neighbors, especially those who live below to ask if there are any complaints about the apartment. For example, are there floods, violations of sanitation, housing maintenance, and the like.
Address to the notary
Be sure to get to the notary who executed the inheritance in order to make sure that the transaction is clean, that there are no disagreements and conflicts between the applicants, and in addition, find out if there are any legal disputes and so on. As a rule, notaries are reluctant to share such information, but in the event that such a visit is carried out together with the successor seller, general information will be provided. In addition, the notary can provide information about the arrests, and in addition, about restrictions on the acquired housing.
Documents for the sale of an apartment after the entry into the inheritance should be in perfect order.
Sale of an inherited apartment: registration
It is safest to issue a transaction notarially. It is advisable to do this with the same notary who registered this inheritance. In the event that the object of the apartment being sold is shared, then notarization is considered a mandatory requirement for the legality of the transaction. This form of contract eliminates many risks, due to the fact that the notary is already in the know. In addition, the notary checks the legality of the transaction and its legal purity.
An equally important stage is the discussion of conditions along with the conclusion of the contract. Only real numbers with dates should be reflected in the text, especially with regard to cost. You can not underestimate the purchase price, no matter how touching the requests. Persuasive arguments of the seller in this case are not worth attention.In the event that, for any reason, the transaction is declared invalid, then it is worth counting only on those funds the size of which was indicated in the document.
A very prudent move can be a meeting with all the heirs, as well as other persons interested in the fate of the real estate, along with receiving receipts from them regarding the absence of claims or any objections to the upcoming sale and purchase transaction. Such consent and approval are not required by law, but a couple of proposals on paper can guarantee peace and confidence. We reviewed the rules for the sale of an inherited apartment.