Every step, from the preliminary contract to registration, is handled and certified by a notary. Not a 'private agreement' in a sales office.
A written commitment to register the right in the land register in your name: transferable, inheritable and mortgageable.
Company representatives work with you in Hebrew, English or Romanian. The company's lawyer represents the company only, so retain an independent lawyer.
The developer stays after handover: defects, tenants, collection and operations. When its income depends on your property being let, interests align.
'What do you earn after I get the keys?' A developer who answers 'nothing' has sold you a property and gone.
Mid-year, the tenant isn't answering, and you are abroad
Picture it for a moment. Halfway through the lease, the tenant in Bucharest has stopped answering the phone. You are at home, two thousand kilometres away.
Who do you call?
This is the question I ask every investor to answer before they ask me about price. Because when you are investing in Romanian property from abroad, the biggest risk is not the market. It is managing from a distance. And the answer to "who protects me?" cannot be "trust me". It has to be a signed legal structure.
Why investing in Romanian property from abroad needs structure, not trust
A typical agent sells to you, takes a commission and disappears. You are left alone, facing a long contract in a foreign language and a system you don't know.
When you live near the property, many mistakes can be fixed with a 15-minute drive. When you live in another country, every such mistake costs a flight, days off work and a lawyer. That is why remote investors need to settle these questions in writing, in advance.
The protection is four written commitments that turn a "promise in the air" into a "commitment on paper". A word on terms: "guarantee" here means a contractual commitment by the developer, or a mechanism set by Romanian law, as detailed in the transaction agreements. It is not a bank guarantee and not financial security.
How the money itself is protected during construction, the dedicated account and the caps on advances, is covered in our article on protecting your money when buying off-plan. Here we deal with everything around it: the transaction, the registration, the language, and the day after.
From the field: when the bank refused the guarantees
Attorney Ilan Leibovitch recalls:
A well-known Israeli developer called me in a panic: the board of the Romanian bank had turned down his request for bank guarantees for the project. By then he already had 12 buyers who had signed contracts and paid 25% deposits, and he needed a solution immediately.
In Israel, the Sale (Apartments) (Assurance of Investments of Purchasers) Law gives buyers’ money a clear protective framework. In a project abroad, Israeli law does not apply, and the mechanisms are different. Another Israeli developer active in Romania told me that the first time he asked for bank guarantees for a project in Bucharest, the local bank demanded that he deposit 95% of the guaranteed amount as collateral.
That is why in projects like these I combine several mechanisms: an escrow account that releases money against defined milestones, security adapted to local law, registration of the buyers’ rights in the local system, and a requirement for transparency and financial audit.
Buyers from abroad arrive with expectations shaped by their home market. The guarantees below answer a simple question: what protects my money when the law of my own country does not apply?
Guarantee 1: A Romanian notary handles the transaction
In Romania, a valid property transaction takes place before a notary, an authorised public legal officer.
What the guarantee means: every step, the preliminary contract, identity checks, transfer of the price, the final contract and the registration, is handled and certified by a notary. Not a "private agreement" in a sales office. Law 207/2025 (the "Nordis law") now explicitly requires the preliminary contract to be signed before a notary.
What you get: a documented, enforceable, protected transaction. Not a promise on letterhead.
A guarantee that is afraid of being read is not a guarantee.
Guarantee 2: Registration in the land register in your name
A property right in Romania exists only if it is registered in the land register (Cartea Funciară). The guarantee is a written commitment to register the right directly in your name.
For non-EU citizens, the land is registered through one of the accepted routes, the most common being the Superficie right: full ownership of the building and exclusive use of the land. We cover the routes in our article on land ownership in Romania.
What you get: a property registered to you, in an official state record, transferable, inheritable and mortgageable. That is the difference between being an owner and holding a promise.
Guarantee 3: A language you understand, and a lawyer of your own
A contract you don't understand is a contract you can't enforce.
The guarantee ensures that company representatives work with you in Hebrew, English or Romanian throughout the transaction, from the first meeting to registration, and that key documents are in a language you read. And to be clear: the company's lawyer represents the company only, not you. That is why we recommend that every buyer retain an independent lawyer of their own to review the contract before signing.
What you get: full understanding of what you are signing, without relying on "an interpreter at the meeting", and legal scrutiny from someone who represents only you.
Guarantee 4: A professional management company on the developer's side
This is where the biggest risk is closed. The developer itself, through its management company, stays with you after handover: handling defects with the contractor, finding tenants, collecting rent and day-to-day operations.
This is an incentive structure, not generosity. When the developer's management income depends on your property being let, its interest is the same as yours. What actually happens when something breaks in the middle of the night is covered in our article on property management.
What you get: an identified party, with a name and a phone number, that has a good reason to answer.
Investing in Romanian property from abroad: where each guarantee is written
| Guarantee | What it protects against | Where it is written | What to ask to see before signing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Notary | A "private agreement" you can't enforce | The notarial contract | The notary's name and the draft preliminary contract |
| 2. Registration in your name | A property registered to someone else | The notarial contract | The registration clause and the route it defines |
| 3. Language and your own lawyer | Signing something you didn't understand | The management and service agreement | Which company representative works with you, and in which language the documents will be |
| 4. Management company | Disappearing after handover | The management agreement | Response times, non-paying tenant procedure, reports and an exit mechanism |
The rule: a guarantee that is afraid of being read is not a guarantee. Ask to see the clauses themselves before signing, not a slide in a presentation.
One question that tests any developer in the world
The difference between the four guarantees and "trust me" is the difference between a signed legal structure and words. And there is a one-question way to test any developer:
"What do you earn after I get the keys?"
A developer who answers "nothing" has sold you a property and gone. A developer who answers "from your peace of mind and from your property being let" has, in effect, given you the four guarantees. We explore this model, the developer who stays, in our article on the developer who stays after handover.
Frequently asked questions
Where exactly are the guarantees written, and how are they enforced?
In two documents: the notarial contract (guarantees 1 and 2) and the management agreement (guarantees 3 and 4), including response times. Both are enforceable contracts. Ask to see the clauses themselves before you sign.
What if the developer collapses mid-construction?
This is exactly why the Nordis law was passed: advances sit in a dedicated project bank account, supervised by a site engineer, and are released only as construction actually progresses. Moving the money to any other purpose is prohibited by law. In the meeting, ask for the name of the bank and of the supervising engineer.
Can the company's lawyer represent me too?
No. The company's lawyer represents the company only. Company representatives will speak with you in your language and explain every document, but legal scrutiny of the contract should come from an independent lawyer who represents only you. Guarantee 3 gives you language. An independent lawyer gives you scrutiny. Together they are full protection.
What if the management company doesn't perform?
The management agreement should include a written SLA, meaning response times, a procedure for a non-paying tenant and reports, as well as an orderly exit mechanism. A developer confident in its model is not afraid to give you an exit door.
How much do the guarantees cost?
In our project in Balotești, which Walla Nadlan has covered (in Hebrew), all four are included in the all-inclusive price, including the notary and the company's legal fees. What is separate is the fee of an independent lawyer of your own and the ongoing management fee after handover, which is derived from the actual rent. Get the exact figures on paper before signing.
The bottom line
The important question when investing abroad is not only "how much does it cost". It is "who protects me when I am two thousand kilometres away".
With hundreds of thousands of euros at stake, only a signed structure is worth anything. Words, however nice, are not registered in any land register.
If you would like to go through the actual clauses, ours or those of another developer you are considering, book a half-hour Zoom call with me. No sales pitch, with the documents on the table.
Moti Azulay, Compass Group Romania
Sources and data: Romanian legislation portal: Law 207/2025, Monitorul Oficial 1133, 8.12.2025 · Romania's National Agency for Cadastre and Land Registration (ANCPI) · National Union of Public Notaries of Romania (UNNPR) · Walla Nadlan on Compass on the Lake (in Hebrew) · Analyses of the law by TPA Romania and AmCham Romania.
This article is for general information only and is not legal, tax or financial advice. "Guarantee" in this article means a contractual commitment or a legal mechanism, not a bank guarantee. Before any transaction, consult an independent lawyer.
Now you know more.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult local professionals before any transaction.
