Costs of purchase

The price is the largest payment but not the only one. Around it sits a small budget that falls in the same weeks and comes out of the same money already earmarked for the down payment. Below is what it consists of and who normally carries each part. There are deliberately no figures here: they depend on the value of the transaction and on rates set by the state and by banks, and a stale number misleads more than no number at all.

The notary's fee

Notarial fees for notarial acts are approved by the state, so they are not a matter for negotiation and do not differ between offices. The fee depends on the value of the transaction and has a floor and a ceiling, which means a more expensive flat does not cost proportionally more to buy.

The deed is not the only item. Other acts are charged separately: the mortgage deed, certifying a power of attorney, a spouse's consent, copies, and the use of the notary's deposit account where that has been agreed. Which side pays which part is set by the contract — usually the buyer, but it needs to be written rather than assumed.

Registration

Registering ownership in the Real Property Register is charged at rates set by the Government, also linked to the value of the property. Registering the mortgage is charged separately, and so is the issuing of certificates and extracts — you will want several extracts during a purchase, and they are the cheapest part of it.

In a new building part of the registration work has already been done by the developer: registering the cadastral data of the building and its premises is the developer's job, not the buyer's. What remains for the buyer is registering their own ownership.

Bank, valuation, insurance

Taking credit adds three lines: the bank's arrangement fee, the independent valuer's fee, and insurance of the mortgaged property, which the bank requires for the life of the loan. The policy can usually be bought where you choose rather than where the bank suggests — worth checking, because over a year the difference shows.

There are also costs that only appear when something slips: a repeat valuation, a change of credit terms, an extension. Knowing about them in advance is useful precisely because they arrive at the moment everything is already late.

Translation, agent and the rest

A buyer who does not speak Lithuanian adds an interpreter at the notary's office and translations of documents; documents issued abroad also need an apostille or consular legalisation. These services have lead times, so their price often matters less than the weeks they consume.

An agent's commission is a matter of contract and is not regulated. Before signing an agency agreement, three clauses matter: who exactly pays, what the sum is calculated on, and at what point the obligation to pay arises. Where the flat is bought directly from a developer, there is usually no agent in this budget at all.

Moving in, and the date charges start

After the handover record comes the part almost nobody budgets: putting the utility contracts into your own name, the internet and electricity connections, a new lock, furniture and appliances, and in an unfinished flat the fit-out with all its logistics.

From the date of the record, the building's common charges also start running. So the date on that record, and the meter readings next to it, are not a formality but the line from which the invoices become yours. Before buying, ask what the usual monthly building charge is: it is a standing cost, unrelated to the purchase budget, but decided at the same time.

This article is general information and is not legal, tax or financial advice. Current notarial and registration rates are published by state institutions, and bank charges by your bank.