An expert spoke about the risks of buying a gift apartment

The transaction can be risky if the apartment is donated by an elderly person and the recipient is not a relative. In this situation, it is worth trying to contact the donor to make sure that the gift was made voluntarily and without any pressure. General Director of the Professional Legal Group AID, lawyer David Adams told "Izvestia" on December 7 the acquisition of an apartment, the basis of rights to which is a gift.

"Before buying an apartment, it is necessary to carefully check all documentation related to the real estate in question. In particular, this applies to the document on the basis of which the seller of your future apartment received the right of ownership of the apartment, if it is a gift agreement, you should be wary. Buying a gifted apartment has its own risks, "- says Adams.

According to him, the transaction can be problematic if the donor of the apartment is an elderly person, and the donor is not a member of his family. In such cases, it is advisable to contact the giver to make sure the apartment was transferred without any pressure or coercion.

The problem is that when buying an apartment that was previously gifted to the seller, after the transaction is finalized, it may turn out that the gift agreement has been canceled. The donor has the right to regain his rights to the apartment if he can prove that the donor threatened or physically injured him. The death of the giver may be grounds for returning the apartment to the donor.

"Cancellation of the gift agreement does not always mean that the apartment will be taken away from you - a bona fide buyer. According to the law, in the case of canceling the gift, the donor must return the gifted apartment, but if the apartment has already been sold, it is not returned to the donor," - said the expert.

As the lawyer notes, there are cases when the previously sold apartment can be returned to the donor. This can happen if the sale was clearly fictitious and the court recognizes the apartment purchase transaction as invalid.

"In theory, the transaction to buy a gifted apartment is safer when the donor and the giftee are close relatives and more than three years have passed since the gift. It will be safer to buy an apartment for which the gift agreement has been notarized," Adams summarized.

Earlier, on December 4, real estate marketing expert Anastasia Lopatina told "Izvestia" about the tricks of developers. According to her, the days before New Year are not the best time for a profitable purchase of housing, because there is a possibility that in January the number of discounts not only will not decrease, but even increase.