Buying a flat in Warsaw: the whole road from budget to keys

In cash: three to five weeks from choosing the flat to the deed. The longest part is the seller gathering certificates — no arrears with the building community, who is registered as resident, and with a mortgaged flat, the bank's undertaking to discharge it.

With a mortgage: two to four months. That is the bank's final decision with the valuation (three to six weeks), the notary appointment and the release of funds. The bank transfers the price after the deed, not before, and that is normal — the seller receives the money within a few working days.

The usual cause of delay is not financial but administrative: a missing certificate, an unsettled inheritance from a previous owner, or a mortgage nobody discharged after a loan was repaid years ago. All three are visible in the land register and in the documents — which is why step four comes before step five.

From a developer there is no transfer tax, because VAT is already in the price. In exchange the flat usually comes as a bare shell, and fitting it out is a real cost of several hundred zloty per square metre and up, plus a few months. Compare the price after fit-out, not the price on the list.

Second-hand, the flat is finished and often furnished, but 2% tax applies — unless it is your first flat, in which case the exemption in force since 31 August 2023 removes it entirely.

A third route few people consider at the start: a second-hand flat in a building a few years old. It is finished, has modern services and a garage, and costs less than the same floor area in the development going up next door.

Section I describes the property: location, floor area, ancillary rooms and the share in common property. This is where you find out whether the cellar and the parking space really belong to the flat, or are a separate right, or merely an arrangement between neighbours.

Section II is the owner. It has to match whoever signs — and in an inheritance case, match the court order or the notarial certificate of inheritance. A flat with an unsettled estate can be bought, but the estate has to be settled first, and that is not a matter of a week.

Section III holds rights and claims: easements, life tenancy, a warning about enforcement, a claim for transfer of ownership. Section IV holds mortgages. A mortgaged flat is bought routinely — the money then goes in two transfers, one to the seller's bank to repay the loan and the rest to the seller — but the bank's undertaking to discharge it is required.

The public credibility of land registers protects a buyer acting in good faith, but it does not cover what is not in the register: debt to the building community, unpaid charges or registered residents. That is what the separate certificates are for.

On top of the price: 2% transfer tax on the secondary market (zero on a first flat), the notary fee — halved for a residential unit against the maximum table — 200 zł for the ownership entry, 200 zł for the mortgage entry, 100 zł to open a new register and 19 zł of tax on the mortgage if you borrow.

Then the items no table lists: the valuation for the bank, the property insurance the bank requires, the bank's own commission, and with a flat that needs work, the work. The usual buffer beyond the price is 1–4% for the transaction, and separately whatever the fit-out costs.

The full bill, with a worked example for a flat at 900,000 zł, is in the article on the costs of buying.

No ministry permit is needed to buy a self-contained residential unit, whatever your citizenship. The restrictions apply to land and houses, not to flats in a multi-family building.

What tends to be harder is the mortgage: banks look at the type of residence permit, how long you have worked in Poland, and a credit history in the national register that a recent arrival simply does not have. Some banks require a larger down payment from a non-EU buyer.

The details — which documents, when a permit is in fact required, and what happens with land — are in the separate article on buying property as a foreigner.

Yield is calculated from the price including transaction costs and fit-out, not from the asking price, and after deducting the community charge, property tax and vacancy. One month without a tenant per year is 8% off the income.

Private letting is taxed at a flat rate: 8.5% of revenue up to 100,000 zł a year and 12.5% above that. The flat rate is charged on revenue, so you cannot deduct costs — which changes the arithmetic on a flat that needs spending.

An occasional-lease agreement gives the owner a workable eviction route and is a completely different construction from an ordinary tenancy. We have described it separately — worth reading before you buy, not before your first tenant.

A deposit paid before the land register was read. If the seller turns out not to be the sole owner, or a claim is registered against the flat, getting the money back can mean going to court.

A preliminary contract on plain paper in a mortgage deal. If the seller changes their mind, without notarial form you cannot demand that the final contract be signed — you are left with damages, which is another lawsuit instead of a flat.

A preliminary deadline set to the optimistic mortgage scenario. If the bank is late, the buyer loses the deposit over something that was not their doing. Set the deadline with slack and with a clause covering a refusal of credit.

Taking it on trust that the parking space and the storage room are included. They are sometimes a separate share in a different register and a separate deed — and therefore a separate notary bill.