Independent assignment of an apartment

Assignment is a fairly popular type of transaction when buying an apartment in a new building.

We suggest you figure out how to carry it out with the greatest benefit and minimal risk for the buyer.

The procedure for conducting a transaction differs depending on the agreement on the basis of which the developer sells apartments: under an equity participation agreement or by joining a housing construction cooperative. This article will discuss the transfer of rights under an equity participation agreement

What is the essence of the assignment?

The construction of a multi-storey building takes several years, and the price per square meter gradually increases as the construction of the building approaches the completion date. An apartment at the foundation pit stage is cheaper than at subsequent stages - it is at this moment that investors prefer to buy an apartment with a view to selling it later. When an apartment is resold before the house is put into operation, a special transaction is concluded - assignment of rights of claim (assignment agreement).

The main thing that the buyer must understand is that he is not purchasing the apartment itself, but the right to claim it. That is, he receives not only the rights to receive an apartment, but also the risks that he bears when investing in an object under construction, as well as obligations to fulfill the share participation agreement.

What is the assignment of rights to claim an apartment in a new building?

Today, there are two legal ways to purchase an apartment in a new building from a developer:

The first is directly through the conclusion of an official agreement on the purchase of housing in a new building with the developer himself.
The second is through the assignment of the right to claim the apartment.

If everything is very clear with the first option, then regarding the second there are some questions that we will try to consider in detail in today’s material.

So, purchasing an apartment in a new building through the assignment of a claim is possible only if this apartment has not yet been delivered, that is, it is under construction.

At its core, an assignment represents the transfer of powers of the first purchaser of an apartment, under an agreement with the developer, to another person. The latter, by the way, can be represented by both an individual and an organization.

That is, in a situation where an apartment in a new building is handed over to a citizen who has entered into an agreement with the developer, and there is a corresponding “acceptance” certificate, the specified assignment is impossible.

The main nuance of the assignment is the possibility of its official registration, since only such a scheme for concluding a transaction can minimize all kinds of risks for the buyer to almost zero.

It is possible to register the assignment with a guarantee only if the primary buyer of the apartment has entered into an equity participation agreement (DPA) with the developer; if there is another agreement, then the procedure for assigning rights of claim will become noticeably more complicated and, frankly speaking, it is not advisable to carry it out, because of the risks in this case, “not worth the candle.”

This is important to know: Application for the provision of land ownership without bidding

The possibility of officially registering an assignment with the presence of a DDU is due to the fact that this agreement is registered by default in Rosreestr and the parties appearing in it can only be changed through re-registration, which guarantees the secondary buyer of the apartment who takes advantage of the opportunity to assign the absence of any risks of being deceived.

In the case when the assignment takes place with the inclusion of a different type of agreement (for example, a preliminary purchase and sale agreement), official registration of a new participant in the transaction is impossible, which adds unnecessary risks to the secondary purchaser of the apartment.

Thus, if disputes arise between the developer and the primary purchaser of housing, the secondary purchaser will not be able to resolve the problem, and the primary purchaser most likely will not want to.

The only exception is such situations when the assignment agreement specifies clauses that the primary purchaser of the apartment, assigning his rights to it, vouches for the developer and is ready to answer for deficiencies on his part. But such clauses, as a rule, are not included in assignment agreements, since no one wants to be responsible for other people’s “jambs”.

Bargaining tricks or how to get the maximum benefit

To maximize profits, investors try to sell the apartment by assignment closer to the time the property is put into operation, and it is necessary to have time to sell them before signing the transfer and acceptance certificate (acceptance of the apartment). After signing this act and until the property is registered, an average of 3-5 months pass, and during this period it is impossible to re-register the apartment. Accordingly, in buildings with a large number of apartments, closer to the time the object is put into operation, you can safely bargain with sellers and save significantly on the purchase.

The situation is similar with contractor companies that received housing from the developer in exchange for services rendered or supplies of materials. Such companies usually offer apartments at lower prices because they need working capital.

Components of success

First, let's talk about the benefits for the buyer.

“In the transfer market,” says Roman Koryakin, general director and owner of the United Investment Center project, “sometimes you can find more attractive options than those from the developer himself. The main type of assignments is assignments from investors. These people buy properties at the earliest stages of construction, so their apartments are located on the best floors, have convenient layouts and beautiful views from the windows.

A consumer in the reassignment market can easily find a good apartment at a favorable price. Investors, as a rule, have several apartments and are willing to sell relatively cheaply in order to make a profit faster.”

Roman Koryakin highlights a few more nuances: “Today, 95% of banks work with assignments. I would like to draw your attention to the fact that subsidized mortgages also apply to the transfer market from legal entities. Now there is a subsidized rate of 5.8%. In the near future it will be possible to see real rates of about 5.2%. This way the buyer receives both a discount and a subsidized mortgage. Also, on the transfer market, you can apply all subsidies, including maternity capital.”

Another argument can be considered controversial. Not everyone will agree with the thesis “absence of legal and judicial risks.” But let’s listen to a respected expert: “There is a misconception that buying an apartment under construction through assignment is dangerous. In fact, with the advent of 214-FZ, and even more so after the introduction of escrow accounts, all risks were minimized. In addition, the assignment market does not have the heir risk that is common in the secondary market. There is no risk of contract termination, and there are no mortgage risks either. Therefore, the consumer has a choice and the opportunity to get a discount without risk. The assignment is a tripartite agreement, where the third party is the developer - a large company that values its reputation.”

Where might pitfalls arise?

Firstly, there is a risk of buying problematic housing, the delivery date of which will be delayed for an unknown period, or it will not be completed at all. Perhaps the first shareholder (assignor) decided to assign the apartment because he found some technical problems and violations. Therefore, the main task of the buyer (assignee) is to find out the reasons for the assignment, thoroughly check the information about the developer and carefully study the share participation agreement itself. Also, a potential equity holder must be prepared for the following financial expenses:

the seller can transfer “compensation” to the buyer - costs for re-issuing documents for the assignment (about 30-50 thousand rubles)
if housing purchased with a mortgage is transferred, the bank may require payment of a commission for removing the encumbrance (1-2% of the amount of the outstanding debt).
Notarial documents required for the transaction will cost approximately 3 thousand rubles.

Notice of assignment of the right of claim - sample and procedure

At first glance, the assignment of the right of claim seems to be an extremely complex undertaking, but in reality everything is slightly different.

If you know the basic nuances, all the possible risks described earlier, and the procedure for conducting such a transaction, there should not be any special problems in its implementation.

At the moment, the procedural part of the assignment of an apartment in a new building is regulated by many legislative acts.

Having summarized their provisions, I present to you the general procedure for the assignment:

First, the secondary buyer finds an apartment to purchase and checks it for the possibility of purchasing it on assignment. To do this, it is enough to make sure that there is no act of “acceptance” of the housing from its primary buyer.
Then the secondary acquirer determines the need to notify the developer, that is, the owner of the transferred housing at a given time, about the assignment of the apartment. This measure is mandatory if the primary buyer still has some debt to the developer for the purchased apartment; if the property has already been purchased in full and is only awaiting “acceptance,” the notification can be neglected. However, we advise experienced lawyers to notify the developer in all cases of assignment in order to minimize all possible risks of problems arising in the future. A sample letter on the assignment of rights under a contract can be found at the end of the article.
Having completed the previous step, all that remains is to conclude an assignment agreement for the apartment and officially register it (of course, if this is possible, otherwise it is better to “collapse” the deal, and finally). You can draw up an agreement using the sample presented at the end of the article, or with the help of a professional lawyer. The main thing is that the document contains the main provisions, complies with legal regulations and its content satisfies the wishes of each party to the transaction.
After concluding an agreement, it must be officially registered. To do this, you will have to visit Rosreestr and provide its employees with the following list of documents:

an agreement confirming the rights of claim to an apartment on the part of the primary buyer of housing in a new building (DDU agreement, for example);
contract;
passports of the parties to the transaction;
a corresponding application with a request to re-register the rights of claim from one person to another in a specific transaction;
receipt of payment of the relevant state duty;
if necessary and in the presence of such papers - notarized consent of the spouse of the transaction participant, consent of the mortgagee to carry out the transaction, consent of the guardianship and trusteeship authorities, if the agreement for the purchase of housing in a new building includes a minor or incompetent person, and consent to carry out the assignment received in response to the sent notification to the developer or other person who is the owner of the apartment being assigned by assignment at a given time.

It is worth noting that after the assignment, the secondary buyer must comply with the conditions that were included in the agreement for the purchase of an apartment in a new building by the primary buyer and the developer.

As you can see, the process described is a rather confusing procedure, but if you familiarize yourself with all its features, then conducting a transaction will not be so difficult.

We hope the material presented above helped you understand the essence of the assignment. Good luck with your transactions!

Notice of assignment of the right of claim - sample:

Agreement on the assignment of the right to claim an apartment in a new building - sample:

You can learn more about what an assignment agreement is by watching the video:

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What is assignment of rights to an apartment?

Before we tell you about the types and features, we suggest starting with the basics and understanding the terminology. The assignment of rights to an apartment in a residential complex or in a new building is a transaction that involves the transfer of ownership rights to a real estate property. Sometimes a transfer is called an assignment - this is a legal term, but this does not lose its essence.

When a person purchases real estate in a residential complex under construction, he enters into a share participation agreement with the developer. He will become a full owner only after the house is put into operation. Situations are different: someone decides to move to another city, while others find a more interesting option for themselves. Due to the fact that the shareholder cannot sell the apartment until the completion of construction work, the ownership rights to the apartment in the new building are transferred.

I would immediately like to draw your attention to the fact that such transactions are absolutely legal and occur quite often. They are regulated by Federal Law No. 214 “On participation in shared-equity construction.” Moreover, they are often resorted to in cases where a person purchases an apartment at the excavation stage for the purpose of investment and decides to sell the home after the price increases.

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The concept of assignment under DDU

A shared participation agreement is the right of citizens to participate in shared construction. Both individuals and legal entities can purchase housing at the start of construction work. After completion of construction work it will be transferred to ownership.

A citizen, entering into shared construction, enters into an agreement with a construction organization. But since construction work has been going on for several years, life situations may change, and a person needs a new apartment.

An agreement on the assignment of the right to claim is an opportunity to sell an apartment that has not yet been put into operation.