What to do before buying
Before purchasing a house, it is advisable to obtain as much information as possible about the property. verify the cadastral and mortgage situation of the property; to this end, the Agency makes certain services available to citizens, such as, for example, mortgage inspection which allows the owner of the property to be identified and to check if there are mortgages or pending, including judicial ones. The inspection can be requested at the provincial offices – Territory or online.
In both cases, the service is free of charge if it is requested for the immovable property of which the applicant is the owner, even in part, of the property right or other real rights of enjoyment (personal mortgage inspection); “against” mortgages are included in the free consultation, while “in favor” mortgages are excluded.

The preliminary contract option
Once it is ascertained that the property is free from constraints, it is possible to proceed with the stipulation of the preliminary contract, an agreement between the seller and the buyer who mutually undertake to enter into a subsequent and definitive purchase contract.
The preliminary contract must be drawn up in writing (private writing, certified private writing or public deed) and must be registered within 20 days of signing, paying the registration tax of 200 euros, in addition to the stamp duty.

The calculation of taxes
When buying a house, the taxes to be paid vary depending on whether the seller is an individual or a company and the purchase is made in the presence or not of the “first home” benefits.
If the seller is a private individual or a company, with sales exempt from VAT, the buyer will have to pay the registration tax in the proportional measure of 9%, the mortgage tax and the cadastral tax in the fixed amount of 50 euros.
Otherwise, those who purchase will be required to pay VAT at 10% to which are added the registration, mortgage and cadastral taxes, each for the amount of 200 euros.The “first home” concessions
In the case of the private seller or the company exempt from VAT, the proportional registration tax will be due in the amount of 2%, the mortgage and cadastral tax in the fixed amount of 50 euros.
If the sale is subject to VAT, the registration, mortgage and cadastral taxes are due in the fixed amount of 200 euros, in addition to the VAT reduced to 4%.

When you already have a “first home”
Even the taxpayer who is already the owner of a property purchased with the first home concessions can take advantage of the tax benefit, provided however that the home owned is sold within one year of the new purchase.
If this does not happen, the facilitations used for the purchase of the new property are lost and, in addition to the higher taxes and the related interests, a penalty of 30% will have to be paid.
In addition, who sells the home purchased with the facilities and within another year buys another one in the presence of the conditions to take advantage of the “first home” benefits, is entitled to a tax credit equal to the registration tax or the VAT paid for the first subsidized purchase.