If you are planning on buying a vacation home in Cyprus it is always best to hire an agent and give him a detailed description of what it is you are looking for. After you've checked out the various properties that your agent has short-listed, the first step is for you to make a verbal offer on the properties that you like best. Your agent will help you negotiate the purchase price and terms with the seller or you can hire a lawyer to intercede on your behalf and ensure that all the paper work is in order. The lawyer you hire will represent only you and look after your interests solely. He is independent of the seller or the agent and has nothing to do with either of them. Your chosen lawyer will closely scrutinize all the paper work involved and will give you a legal document guaranteeing that everything is in order.

Upon a verbal agreement between you and the seller of the property, you will be required to make a reservation deposit. After the payment of this reservation deposit, a written contract is drawn up and the property is taken off the market and is reserved for you at the agreed upon price. Keep in mind that reservation deposits are non-refundable, so you need to be sure about your decision before putting down any money. In order to safeguard the purchaser's rights it is necessary to get the contract stamped and deposited at the Land Registry before the end of one month. The fee for getting this done is 1.50 per 1000 of the value of the contract.

In order to get the property purchase approved all foreign investors are required to furnish proof of foreign currency, which should be transferred from an external account to a North Cyprus bank account. Banks will charge you a commission for receiving funds from an overseas account. This commission varies with different banks and could be up to 0.5% of the amount being transferred. If you are bringing in cash by hand make sure you make a declaration at the airport when entering the country. Only after the money is imported will you be able to get approval from the Central Bank. You will need to furnish this approval to the Land Registry in order to get the Title Deed of the property registered in your name.

However, before you can even get the Transfer of ownership certificate or the Title Deed you will need to apply for and get permission from the Council of Ministers for owning property in Cyprus. For this you will have to provide details of your financial status as well as the property you are buying. Apply for this permission well in advance as this process could take about six months to complete.