One problem for UK buyers is having to pay for a surveyor to check the property after making an offer. But in Sweden, real estate agents are responsible for checking the property’s technical standards, such as the electrical installation, the condition of the roof, and any future renovations that may be needed over the next 10 years.
It is the agent’s duty to notify the prospective buyer of this in writing, and if the buyer ignores this, he will subsequently lose the right to claim defects against the seller.
Carola Rusmark, chief executive of the Association of Real Estate Agents, which oversees the registration of all real estate agents in Sweden, said: The more engaged, confident, and secure a potential buyer is in the bidding process, the more committed they will ultimately be to the purchase and the less likely they are to change their mind. ”
Regarding high conveyancing costs, lawyers are not involved in the sales process in Sweden. Instead, the agent can process everything, including the last transaction.
But perhaps the deciding factor is this. If you want to buy a property in Sweden, just one week after agreeing to the terms he must pay a 10% non-refundable deposit.
“Two year dropout”
Philip Shepherd, 57, is originally from the UK but lives in Sweden. He has been trying to sell his family home in Warwickshire for more than two years, but his buyers keep declining at the last minute.
“During the bidding process in Sweden, if you win a bid, you have to pay a 10% deposit within four or five days, and that’s standard,” said Shepherd, who works at a Swedish bank. You need to be fully committed to the process.
“Again, banks rely on the Land Registry. This means they don’t need a lawyer to confirm ownership, but that makes sense – if the current owner owns the property I am doing it.”
Recent market developments in Sweden are also making it difficult for buyers to realize 11th-hour offers.
“The Swedish real estate market has been extremely hot throughout the pandemic, with bidding wars becoming the norm rather than the exception in many regions,” said Joachim Lusenski of brokerage Maklarsamfandet. said.
“That means gazundering strategies rarely work because there is almost always another eager buyer in line ready to buy at the same price or more.”
In England and Wales, the organizations that oversee the home buying process are trying to change it for the better, but it will take time for the culture to change.
Late last year, National Trading Standards (NTS) told real estate agents that property listings should be We included a lot of details and told them that they needed to be disclosed in advance at the time of the preview.
It is hoped that this change will prevent prospective home buyers from incurring losses due to unnecessary home buyer surveys and legal fees.
NTS said that although the measures were issued solely as guidance, non-compliance could be a violation of the law.
The NTS argues that it is a violation to omit information that could influence the average consumer’s decision-making. Failure to comply may result in a complaint against the agency and the agency may have to pay compensation.