The price deposit in Italy

Introduction

The price deposit is introduced into the Italian legal system in 2017 with the Annual Law for the Market and Competition (L. 4 August 2017 No. 124). Thanks to the institution of the price deposit, one of the parts of the purchase deed, or other transfer deed for considreation, can ask the notary to deposit the purchase price on a special current account, the so-called dedicated account.

The operation of the price deposit

It is useful to clarify that, once the deed has been signed, the notary will take care of the necessary formalities for the registration of the same in the Real Estate Registers Office (also known as the Land Registry).

In the time between the stipulation of the deed and its registration, the purchaser can be exposed to the risk that a new formality on the acquired good is transcribed, even if it must be emphasized that the notaries usually expediting take care of that fulfillments.

With the piece deposit, the purchase price remains deposited in a dedicated account registered to the notary until the transcription of the deed, and after checking of non-existence of inscriptions or transcripts on the purchased good.

Once the notary provides the transcription of the deed, the notary itself transfers the price from its dedicated account to the account in the name of the seller. It should be noted that the price deposit tool is not mandatory, but complements a power for one or both of the parties to require its use

The notary’s dedicated account

The dedicated account is an account registered to the notary.

The notary uses the dedicated account for sums that he does not retain, but that he must pay to others, such as the amount of the purchase price.

The sums deposited in the dedicated account constitute a “separate asset” and cannot be assaulted by any notary’s creditors; likewise, these sums do not become part of the succession or the property regime of the notary’s family.

Advantages of the price deposit for the purchaser

As can be understood, by using the price deposit the purchaser is protected. In the event that the notary finds new transcripts on the property between the day of the deed and that of the transcription of the same, the notary will not transfer the price to the seller.

The price deposit is also useful in other cases:

when a seizure or a mortgage is transcribed on the good and the purchaser intends to pay the price only once cancelled;
when the goods are subject to legal priority and the payment of the price is agreed only at the moment when there is no longer any possibility of pre-emption;
when the property purchased is not free from people or things and it is agreed that the price is paid only when this is freed.

Advantages of the price deposit for the seller

The use of the price deposit can also have advantages for the seller.

On the day of the deed, in fact, the purchase price must be present on the notary’s dedicated account.

The seller, therefore, will be sure, not only of the actual collection of the sum, but also that the transfer of the price from the notary’s dedicated account to his account will be perfected in a correct way.

H2 The price deposit in sales with foreign purchasers

The price deposit is very useful when buying a property are foreign citizens who are not holders of a bank account in Italy.

The price deposit in sales with foreign purchasers

The price deposit is very useful when buying a property are foreign citizens who are not holders of a bank account in Italy.

Both European and non-European foreign citizens can use the deposit account.

Fox example roreign citizens interested in purchasing a real estate in Italy, can make the payment of the price to the notary’s dedicated account. In this way, on the day of the deed the sums are present on the dedicated account of the notary, and foreign citizens can buy without worries of the point of view of the ways of payment.

The deposit account is also very useful, if combined with other institutions, when purchaser living abroad cannot or do not want to be present in the flash to the notary on the day of the deed.