Search Q&A
Not declaring and fines house buying question
Hi
Just being nosy really. My neighbours have sold up all due to finish this week and have moved out. The wife then came to tell me the other party having paperwork issues and not moving in so please can I watch the house. She tells me the young couple who bought "forgot" to mention they own an apartment and now it's delayed.
So best case one of them filled in form and doesn't know spouses property portfolio they were left it in a will and didn't know or more likely they were lying for a tax break because apparently in early 20s. And of course first home different region less tax. So I'm Just wondering apart from obvious of now having to find a lot more money for the property are people fined for this kind of behaviour? What's the deterrent? Do mortgage compNies allow this to happen and turn blind eye? Why do I ending up think yeah they definitely Belgians that's so terrible of me isn't it.
It isn't down to the mortgage company but the tax man. It could be that they only mentioned / it was found out that they own an apartment very close to signing the acte (e.g. they neglected to mention a small studio one of them might have inherited in another EU country until the last minute). If this house is in Brussels then that would add about 20000 to the amount they need to transfer before owning the house.
Initially, the purchasers' notaire would have taken their word for it that they were first time purchasers (although he/she would have made sure that they knew what that meant). However, before assessing the tax due on the final transaction of the sale (the "acte"), he/she would have automatically checked that this was the case, easily done with Belgians because any ownership would be recorded against their national number.
It is going to end up costing them a lot of money whatever happens, either they manage to borrow the money they need for the higher rate of tax (almost certainly at a much higher rate of interest) or they will have to withdraw from the sale and pay the vendor 10% of the agreed selling price, plus the notaire's fees, and get absolutely nothing for the money.
My stepson owns a part of my home which he inherited on the death of his mother though he doesn't actually get the share so long as I still live in it.
When he and his wife bought their home as first time buyers his ownership of part of my home was already on record but it made no difference to them buying their own home or how much they had to pay in tax. They were definitely treated as first time buyers.
They've tried to get the property tax reduced on the basis it being their first or only property. It isn't and they've been found out.
The neighbors either get their money from the sale or get to keep the buyers' deposit.
