Credit survey: mortgage transactions of individuals will be required to be notarized
All mortgage transactions between individuals may be required to be notarized. Such a bill of the Ministry of Finance was approved by the Cabinet of Ministers, despite the fact that a number of departments, including the Ministry of Justice, objected to it. The Federal Notary Chamber (FNP) supported the initiative, noting that such a procedure is not necessary now. Notarization will also help to deal with illegal creditors, that is, those who work without a license, but issue loans secured by real estate. The information about how the mechanism will work, what its pros and cons are is in the Izvestia article.
How will mortgage transactions be certified?
Russia may introduce mandatory notarization of mortgage agreements between citizens, including individual entrepreneurs. Such a bill by the Ministry of Finance was approved on March 30 by the government commission on legislative activity, a source in the Cabinet of Ministers told Izvestia.
Currently, such transactions do not require mandatory notarization, which, according to the authors of the amendments, creates conditions for abuse by illegal creditors, explained Vladimir Kuznetsov, chairman of the All-Russian Trade Union of Mediators. Organizations without a license or individuals often issue loans at bonded interest rates, secured by property, in order to eventually take possession of it.
—The Bank of Russia points to a significant proportion of individuals who systematically provide loans secured by residential real estate without the status of a professional lender," the expert recalled.
According to the Central Bank's data for the first nine months of 2025, about a hundred organizations and individuals are systematically engaged in such activities without the appropriate status.
The government is proposing amendments to the federal law on state registration of real estate, said Vladimir Gruzdev, Chairman of the Board of the Russian Bar Association.
— We are talking about notarization of contracts where the collateral is housing or a share in it, — he explained. — This will strengthen the protection of the citizen borrower by providing him with an additional guarantee in the form of a professional legal assessment of the transaction by a notary.
According to the authors of the bill, the amendments will reduce the risks for borrowers who may find themselves at an economic disadvantage compared to situations where the lender is a professional financial institution.
When certifying a transaction, a notary will be able to identify bonded or contradictory terms, as well as draw the borrower's attention to the risks of losing housing, Vladimir Kuznetsov added.
"The changes should lead to an increase in the legal protection of citizens, creating an additional mechanism to protect the rights of borrowers," he said.
Currently, the main check of the legality of the transaction is carried out by Rosreestr during the state registration of mortgages, Vladimir Gruzdev recalled. At the same time, according to Izvestia, Rosreestr did not support the amendments proposed by the Ministry of Finance.
Which agencies supported the project
The Ministry of Justice did not support the bill either. In particular, in its review (Izvestia has it), the agency noted that the problem of illegal creditors is a public legal sphere. And the notarial form of the transaction was created to protect the private interests of the parties, and not to combat the lack of a license.
In addition, the notary will not be able to refuse to certify the transaction, even if he suspects illegal lending, since the absence of a license does not invalidate the loan agreement, the Ministry of Justice noted. They believe that the amendments will create an additional financial burden on citizens, but will not provide them with "meaningful benefits." The proposed mechanism also duplicates the existing verification procedure by Rosreestr.
And the Federal Notary Chamber told Izvestia that they supported the initiative of the Ministry of Finance.
"There were cases when one person lent money to another against the security of an apartment, allegedly for entrepreneurial activity," they said. — At the same time, none of them was an entrepreneur. Such schemes are carried out in simple written form, that is, without a visit to a notary office. The result is often deplorable — people who don't really understand what they're doing lose their homes. That's why it's so important to put everything in legal order."
The notary always talks in detail with the borrower in private, without the lender and strangers, the FNP reminded. He explains all the nuances of the transaction, the risks and consequences of such agreements, establishes the true will of man. And the notary may refuse to certify the contract if there are reasons for this.
"It is important that the borrower is fully aware of what is happening, so that no one and nothing influences him," the FNP added. — For example, it happened that people brought their elderly parents to sign a loan agreement secured by their apartment and gave money to their children for the development of entrepreneurial activity. In practice, there are many cases when, after talking with a notary, after weighing all the pros and cons, people give up the idea of taking out such loans."
The notary is also able to identify the inclusion of bonded and contradictory terms in the document.
"On the one hand, this will avoid abuse by creditors and protect the legitimate interests of bona fide borrowers. On the other hand, it minimizes the risks of challenging the deal in the future," the FNP press service noted.
Pros and cons of amendments
Vladimir Kuznetsov believes that the problem of illegal lending should be solved by tightening administrative and criminal liability, and not by establishing private law prohibitions that may violate the rights of bona fide citizens who provide loans to relatives or friends.
The amendments are designed to prevent controversial or questionable transactions from being registered automatically, and then create a chain of resales and complicate the return of property, says Alexey Gavrishev, lawyer and managing partner of AVG Legal. He is confident that the initiative is aimed at preventing such situations.
"The practice of recent years has shown that a significant number of real estate disputes are related precisely to the registration stage: mistakes, a formal approach or abuse make it possible to legalize controversial transactions," he said.
Elena Tikunova, head of the security unit of the federal company "Floors", noted that if the changes come into force, the financial burden for citizens applying for a mortgage will increase.
— Notaries will also feel the increased workload. It is necessary to clearly understand the real capacity of the notary office with such an increase in the number of requests. Won't this lead to a collapse in such transactions due to the elementary overload? — the expert asked. — Based on the text of the bill, it is no longer aimed at protecting citizens, but at legalizing lending activities.
As a result, the costs will be borne by end users, while the bill does not offer them greater benefits and protection.
— The control function in this area is currently carried out by Rosreestr. Notaries, in fact, will duplicate its function," believes Elena Tikunova. — The bill does not specify which risks are closed to individuals.
In order for the draft law to be effective, amendments to the legislation on the notary are required. Currently, a notary engaged in private practice bears full property responsibility for the damage caused by his fault.
"But in the case of fraudsters, it will be extremely difficult to prove the notary's guilt, since he acted within the law and there are no violations from the point of view of documents," she believes. — Therefore, such an innovation, which requires notarization of transactions, will not have the expected effect, but will create an additional financial burden for the parties to the transaction.
Abuses are also possible — when formal grounds are used to delay registration or pressure in corporate and property conflicts, Alexey Gavrishev said. If the controls become excessive, it can slow down transactions and create new barriers to business, he believes.
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