How to buy real estate in Finland: a new law in the country market
Against the background of investors’ interest in the real estate market of the Scandinavian countries, Finland has taken a rather tough decision. From 2020, the requirements that will make the segment more closed to foreigners will begin to operate. Such measures have been taken due to the fact that those who want to buy real estate in Finland are much more among foreign investors than the local population.
From next year, only citizens of EU member states will be able to buy residential and commercial properties. Now, if a Russian or a citizen of another country, which is not in the Eurozone, wants to buy a house or apartment here, you will need to obtain a license. The draft of such a law is submitted for consideration in 2017, but only next year it will come into force. According to the innovation, each application from a foreigner will be considered by the local Ministry of Defense, and if the state body gives permission, then you can proceed to registration of the transaction.
According to experts, such a project will make confusion and complicate the processes in the Finnish real estate market. For example, with the advent of 2020, the authorities will have the legal right to cancel the permit for transactions with foreign buyers who are in the process of registration. The reason for this decision was the reduction of the number of vacant objects in the country and the land for their construction. But the unofficial factor many experts call the desire of Finland to reduce the activity of buyers from Russia.
A prerequisite for this version of the law was the repeated conflict situations related to the registration of the purchase of land and houses by Russians. Residents of Russia want to gain a foothold in Finland through the purchase of more objects. Many sellers use this and overrate real estate. That is why the authorities decided to reduce Russia’s influence on the market.
Police forces that deal with security issues have put forward their own version of that activity from the eastern neighbor. In their opinion, Russia is acquiring land in Finland to equip military bases on it. The Scandinavians fear a repeat of the 2014 scenario, when Crimea was joined by Russia in just a few days, gaining the support of Russian-speaking citizens and bringing its troops into the peninsula.
The police do not rule out the possibility of such a situation, especially since the Russians living in Finland show elements of promoting their national ideas.
Meanwhile, the new law may have an impact on real estate values. Now the average price per square meter of housing in Helsinki is 6600 euros, the rental rate is about 2700 euros per month. However, the market may sink in the new year.