New owners need to take action
A new apartment owner must apply for the registration of ownership within two months of the change of ownership. Those who have their share certificates in a bank as collateral for a loan or at home do not need to do anything at this stage other than participate in the shareholders’ meeting.
If necessary, expedited processing can be requested for the registration of apartment ownership, in which case the National Land Survey of Finland (NLS) will process the application as quickly as in a couple of days. Such situations exist, for example, when a death estate is selling an apartment or a new shareholder needs to acquire the housing company’s permission for repairs.
New apartment owners can participate in the shareholders’ meeting of their housing company with a power of attorney provided by the seller, even if they had not yet been registered as an apartment owner in the Residential and Commercial Property Information System. The deed of sale alone does not entitle the new owner to participate.
Apartment matters can be taken care of online and in a customer service location
Almost all of the NLS’s service points currently use a booking system to book a 30-minute customer service appointment.
Before coming to a customer service location, customers should check that they have all the documents they need: the original paper share certificate and any pre-completed application. If the share certificate was received from a death estate, the new owner also requires the decedent’s estate inventory and an extract of family relations.
The e-service available on the NLS website can also be used to apply for the registration of apartment ownership using a paper share certificate. After this, the original paper share certificate must be sent to the NLS.
If an apartment’s ownership has already been registered in the Residential and Commercial Property Information System, the apartment owner can check information related to their apartment’s ownership, mortgaging and restrictions, as well as their contact information in the system, free of charge in the e-service. They can also purchase an owner apartment printout or a public list of shares in the service.
What is the purpose of the electronic Residential and Commercial Property Information System?
Information about 2.5 million Finnish apartment owners will be registered in the Residential and Commercial Property Information System. Of all apartments, 26 per cent currently have an electronic ownership registration. The electronic service will improve the availability, reliability and security of information. The electronic registration of ownership will replace paper share certificates in apartment transactions and as collateral for loan, accelerating the process of apartment transactions. The Residential and Commercial Property Information System will become a new data register used by several parties in society. Real estate agents, building managers, lenders, researchers and statisticians will have access to administrative information about housing companies in a single place. The authorities and companies will also require the information registered in the Residential and Commercial Property Information System.
Additional information:
Janne Murtoniemi, Director, Registration Process, National Land Survey of Finland, +358 40 710 8862, firstname.lastname@nls.fi