AZE.US
Azerbaijan is preparing a new property registration mechanism designed to prevent developers from selling the same apartment to multiple buyers.
More than 5,000 prospective homeowners have reportedly fallen victim to housing fraud, with buyers of apartments in unfinished buildings facing particularly high risks.
Proposed amendments to the Law on the State Register of Real Estate would introduce a protective registration entry for apartments purchased in buildings still under construction.
Under the new system, a buyer’s claim to an apartment would be entered into the state register immediately after the sales contract is signed. Once registered, the same property could not legally be sold to another person.
Real estate expert Ramil Osmanli said the proposal could help resolve problems that have affected Azerbaijan’s housing market for years. The mechanism would cover both completed properties and apartments purchased before construction is finished.
The changes are also expected to simplify the resale of apartments originally acquired through contracts. Buyers have sometimes faced administrative obstacles or additional payments demanded by construction companies when transferring a property to another owner.
Lawmaker Nagif Hamzayev said the planned reforms would strengthen consumer protections, increase transparency in the real estate market and reduce fraudulent sales.
Construction companies would also be required to address documentation issues while a building is still being constructed. Relevant government agencies would monitor compliance at each stage so that apartment documents could be ready by the time construction is completed.
Property transactions would be processed through notarized procedures and the ASAN xidmət system, allowing the legal status of an apartment to be verified before a sale is finalized.
Experts say the changes could make purchasing an apartment in an unfinished building safer, including in cases where the property has not yet received a formal extract from the state real estate register.
AZE.US