Can You Buy a Home with a Mortgage or Attachment on It?

Seeing a mortgage or an attachment on the title deed does not automatically make a purchase impossible. What matters is making sure these encumbrances are removed at the same time as payment, or before it. Otherwise you end up buying the home together with its debt.

A mortgaged home

The most common situation is that the seller's mortgage loan is still ongoing. In that case, one of the following approaches is usually followed:

1. A letter showing the current outstanding balance is obtained from the seller's bank.
2. Part of the buyer's payment is sent directly to the seller's bank to pay off the loan.
3. The bank sends a mortgage-release (fek) letter to the land registry directorate.
4. The transfer takes place once the mortgage is released, or during the same transaction; the remaining amount is paid to the seller.

If the buyer is also using a mortgage loan, this process between the two banks is usually coordinated through the banks' own procedures. The order of steps and who brings which document should be settled in advance.

A home with an attachment

An attachment (haciz) is a restriction placed by the enforcement office because of the owner's debt. Transferring an attached home is possible, but the creditor's right continues and the home can be sold through enforcement proceedings. The safe approach is to pay off the debt, obtain an attachment-release letter from the enforcement office, and have the attachment struck from the deed.

• Find out the enforcement file number and the current outstanding balance.
• Make the payment directly into the enforcement file and keep the receipt.
• Do not pay the remaining amount until you see the release letter has reached the land registry and the record has been cleared.