The draft arrived only three days beforehand. Is the contract void?

No — and it may not have applied to you at all. The period in section 17(2a) BeurkG applies to consumer contracts, that is where a trader stands on the other side; between private people it does not. Where it applies it is a professional duty of the notary and not a condition of validity — a contract recorded nonetheless is effective. You may, however, ask for a later date, and that is usually the better course than a contract you read for the first time at the table.

Can we choose the notary?

Yes. There is no statutory allocation for a contract of sale; it is usual for the buying side to choose, since it usually bears the cost. As the fees are fixed by statute, the deciding factor is not price but accessibility — and whether you feel able to ask questions.

There are four of us as co-heirs. Must we all attend?

Whoever makes a declaration must appear — but representation is possible. For the Auflassung, section 925 BGB requires both sides to be present before the notary at the same time; representation under a proper power of attorney satisfies that requirement. Settle the form of the power with the notary’s office beforehand, not on the day.

Knowledge · Orientation

The notary appointment is not a formality.

Almost every family that hands over or sells a house ends up in this appointment — and almost nobody knows beforehand what actually happens there, who the person at the head of the table is, or why nothing is finished afterwards.

The answer first. A contract of sale concerning land does not take effect without notarial recording (section 311b BGB) — so the appointment is not a ceremony but the condition. The notary is not your lawyer: they serve all parties impartially (section 14 BNotO), establish the facts, ascertain what each party intends and explain the legal consequences (section 17 BeurkG). What they expressly do not do: tell you whether the price is a good one.

The commonest misunderstanding costs no fee but a great deal of expectation: many take the notary for the lawyer of whichever side chose them. They are not, and may not be. Section 14 BNotO obliges them to be impartial towards all parties — they look after the seller exactly as much as the buyer, even though only one of the two receives the bill.

Two things follow, and both are useful to know. First: whatever you ask, they answer for everyone in the room. There is no confidential side-agreement in this appointment. Second: for the question “should I be doing this at all” they are the wrong person — for that you need someone who is allowed to be on your side. Who is responsible for what is set out in who does what — lawyer, notary, agent.

What they do instead, and more thoroughly than most people expect: they check that you have understood what you are signing. Section 17 BeurkG requires them to ascertain the parties’ intentions, clarify the facts and explain the legal consequences. A question during the appointment holds nobody up — it is the appointment.

In consumer contracts the notary is to see to it that the text of the transaction reaches the consumer as a rule two weeks before the recording (section 17(2a) BeurkG). A consumer contract requires both roles: a consumer on one side and a trader on the other (section 310(3) BGB) — a developer, say, or a commercial buy-up firm. Where two private people buy and sell, the period does not apply. The reason is simple: a draft contract seen for the first time at the table has not been read, it has been recited.

Two things we say plainly, because they are often misunderstood. First, this is a professional duty of the notary and not a condition of validity: if the period is missed, the contract is not void for that reason. Second, it is your right all the same — and if the draft arrives only three days beforehand, you may ask for a later date. A notary who reacts testily to that says more about the appointment than the draft contains.

Use the two weeks for the three questions nobody asks calmly later: does it say what was agreed? Does it say anything that was not agreed? And what happens if one party does not perform — who then bears what?

The sequence is the same everywhere because the statute prescribes it. The record is read aloud in the notary’s presence, approved by the parties and signed by them in their own hand (section 13 BeurkG). Read aloud means word for word, including the paragraphs everyone takes for boilerplate. Anyone who thinks this can be shortened is mistaken — the reading is part of the form, not its decoration.

On a sale of land a second step belongs in the same appointment: the Auflassung, the agreement on the transfer of ownership. It must be declared before the notary with both parties present at the same time (section 925 BGB). That is why buyer and seller sit at one table, and why it cannot be done by post.

Allow more time than the calendar says. With an inherited house several co-heirs often sit at the table, some holding powers of attorney for others; every power is checked, every question answered individually. An appointment that lasts an hour is not a bad sign.

This is where most families are surprised. With the signature you are not yet the owner. Ownership of land passes when the parties are agreed and the change has been entered in the land register (section 873 BGB). Between appointment and registration lie weeks, sometimes months: the notary obtains declarations and certificates, and the land registry works through applications in order.

So that this waiting time does not become dangerous, there is the priority notice (section 883 BGB). It is entered early and secures the claim to the transfer of ownership: a later disposition that would defeat that claim is ineffective as against the person entitled. In practice that means the house cannot be sold on to a second person in the meantime without your claim surviving.

From this follows a calm rule of thumb: the appointment is the beginning of the completion, not its end. What to do with an empty house during that time is set out in the house stands empty — the first weeks.

Anyone selling as an heir brings a question into the appointment that an ordinary sale does not have: what proves that it is you? For the land register, section 35 GBO answers it — by a certificate of inheritance, a European Certificate of Succession or, where succession rests on a disposition on death contained in a public document, by that document together with the record of its opening.

The difference is not paperwork. A notarial will that has been opened spares the estate the certificate procedure in many cases — and with it, weeks. A handwritten will does not: it is valid, but it is not a public document. What that means in detail is set out in certificate of inheritance and land register; how a power of attorney can shorten the wait, in the power of attorney that outlives its giver.

What the appointment costs

Notarial fees are not negotiable, and that is good news. They are set out in the Court and Notarial Costs Act (GNotKG) and follow the transaction value — for a contract of sale, essentially the purchase price. A notary can neither raise them nor lower them as a gesture; comparing several quotes for the same deed produces the same amount.

Who chooses the notary is not regulated; usually it is the buying side. Who bears the cost is regulated: recording, conveyance and registration fall to the buyer (section 448(2) BGB) — departures are possible but exceptional. What you may certainly ask: which further charges arise alongside the recording — the land registry, the priority notice, the cancellation of old encumbrances. We deliberately name no amounts here: any figure would depend on the transaction value of your own case and would mislead more than it helps on a general page.

The draft arrived only three days beforehand. Is the contract void?: No — and it may not have applied to you at all. The period in section 17(2a) BeurkG applies to consumer contracts, that is where a trader stands on the other side; between private people it does not. Where it applies it is a professional duty of the notary and not a condition of validity — a contract recorded nonetheless is effective. You may, however, ask for a later date, and that is usually the better course than a contract you read for the first time at the table.
Can we choose the notary?: Yes. There is no statutory allocation for a contract of sale; it is usual for the buying side to choose, since it usually bears the cost. As the fees are fixed by statute, the deciding factor is not price but accessibility — and whether you feel able to ask questions.
There are four of us as co-heirs. Must we all attend?: Whoever makes a declaration must appear — but representation is possible. For the Auflassung, section 925 BGB requires both sides to be present before the notary at the same time; representation under a proper power of attorney satisfies that requirement. Settle the form of the power with the notary’s office beforehand, not on the day.