A RECENT mini-poll conducted by the on-line Cyprus Property News magazine revealed that some 98% of the 1,035 readers who voted would not have bought property in Cyprus had they known that their developer had mortgaged the land on which it was built.
This follows a poll we carried out earlier this year in which more than 90% of our readers who voted called on the Cyprus government to ban the sale of mortgaged property.
Speaking last year to an audience of property sector professionals, MPs and mayors Interior Minister Neoclis Sylikiotis said that “The seriousness of the current situation is creating dangers for the property market in the future” – and went on to speak about the problem of “taking out a second or even third mortgage in order to recycle capital into other projects, or postponing things to suit.”
However, it remains to be seen whether the government has the courage to introduce legislation outlawing the sale of mortgaged property if it is opposed by political heavyweights in the real estate industry.
Given the fact that a number of property developers have already collapsed and that many of those who bought property from them have been left to the mercy of the banks, it is absolutely essential that anyone considering buying property in Cyprus engages an independent lawyer to act on their behalf and obtains a Title Search from the Land Registry to discover whether their potential purchase is mortgaged.