Register extract (Registrų centras)

Almost everything a buyer learns about a flat comes from the seller, which is normal. The one document that describes the same flat in the state's words is the extract from the Real Property Register. It shows who owns it, whether anything is attached to it, and what the official data say. Anyone can order it, without asking the seller for permission.

What the extract is

The register and the cadastre are kept by the state enterprise Registrų centras, and the register operates under the Law on the Real Property Register. The register records rights in property and restrictions on them, and its data are treated as correct until successfully challenged. In practice that means a buyer can rely on the register, and can rely on the seller's description only to the extent that the two agree.

Every object carries a unique number. It is the most convenient way to talk about a flat without ambiguity: an address can be written several ways, a unique number only one.

The lines that matter

The extract reads like a technical document, but only a few places in it decide a purchase:

• owner and the basis of registration — is the seller the registered owner, and if there are several owners, are they all in the transaction;
• rights in rem and restrictions — mortgage, seizure, servitude, a registered lease, usufruct, and any condition somebody has registered;
• object data — use, areas, floor, year of construction, and the date the cadastral data were established;
• attached objects — whether a storage room and a parking space are part of this flat, separate objects, or a share of common premises;
• the land under the building — common property, leased from the state, or arranged some other way.

The restrictions line is the one to read twice. A mortgage is not a problem in itself — most flats on the resale market are mortgaged — but it means the transaction needs a clear mechanism for ending it, and that mechanism is handled by the notary.

Register and cadastre are two different things

The register answers “whose, and with what attached”. The cadastre answers “what this physically is”. Cadastral data come from cadastral measurement, and they are what determines the flat's area and its rooms. Where the contract and the cadastre disagree about the area, the cadastre is the one that counts, not the brochure.

In a new building the date the cadastral data were established matters as well: it tells you when the flat was measured and formed as a separate object. Before that date, the flat did not exist in the register at all.

Ordering one yourself

Extracts are ordered through the Registrų centras self-service portal, with a login through electronic banking or another electronic identification means, or in person at a customer service unit. An address or a unique number is enough, and the charge follows rates set by the Government.

The date on the extract matters as much as its content. It shows the situation at the moment of ordering, and a seizure can be registered on any day, so the extract is refreshed before any significant payment and again before signature. The notary re-checks the data independently before certifying, but a buyer benefits from having an extract much earlier — while price and terms are still being discussed.

What the extract is silent about

The register says nothing about the condition of the flat, its quality or its noise. It does not show arrears on utilities or on building management charges, does not mention planned common works, and does not record decisions the owners have taken about renovation. It will also not reveal a tenancy if the lease was never registered.

So the extract is the first check, not the only one. Next to it belong certificates from the building's manager about charges and arrears, while the company you are buying from is described by a different register altogether — the register of legal entities.

This article is general information and not legal or tax advice. What a particular entry means for your purchase is best assessed by a notary or a lawyer who can see the whole extract.