The land, the ownership and the specification. These decide whether what you saw on the tour is an asset or just an idea.
Full ownership of the building and an exclusive right to use the land for the building's life. Transferable, inheritable and mortgageable.
Everything you are shown is worth what the land register extract says. Check the attachments: parking, storage and roof.
Check what is included at handover and what completion costs. A property needing another €20,000 after handover: that is part of the price.
After every tour, wait 24 hours before any commitment. A good property will still be good tomorrow.
"It's simply stunning": the line I hear after every tour
Investors come out of a villa tour with the same sentence: "It's simply stunning." And I always ask them one question back: "Of everything you saw, what did you also see in writing?"
The silence that follows says it all.
A tour is the most dangerous moment in a deal, because on a tour you buy with your eyes and ears, and you sign with your wallet. Beautiful design and the right light have sold more bad properties than any lie ever told.
This villa tour checklist brings every viewing back to the three things that really decide whether what you saw is an asset or an idea: the land, the ownership and the specification.
Check 1 on a villa tour: what exactly is yours around the house?
A "private" garden is a legal concept, not a visual one. The questions to ask:
- Is the adjoining land defined and registered as part of your right?
- Where are the actual plot boundaries, compared with the site plan?
And for buyers from outside the EU this is critical: land in Romania is not registered directly in the name of someone who is not a citizen of Romania or the European Union. For houses with land there are three accepted solutions:
- A caveat (pre-registration note) combined with an irrevocable power of attorney.
- Registration in the name of a Romanian company.
- A Superficie right, the most common route: full ownership of the building and an exclusive right to use the land for the entire life of the building. The right can be transferred, inherited and mortgaged.
On the tour: ask to see how your right to the land and garden is defined. In the documents, not by someone pointing. The full explanation is in our guide to land ownership in Romania.
Check 2: a parking space that isn't registered belongs to someone else
Everything you are shown on a tour is worth exactly what is recorded in the land register, the Cartea Funciară. What to check:
- An up-to-date land register (CF) extract for the unit.
- Who the registered owner is, and how the title reaches you.
- Whether there are mortgages, seizures or notes.
- And the detail everyone forgets: the attachments. Parking spaces, storage, roof.
A parking space that is "yours" but not on the extract is someone else's parking space on the day you have a dispute. In our project in Balotești (featured in a Walla Nadlan report, in Hebrew), for example, both parking spaces are part of the plot and registered. That is the whole difference between an asset and an idea: written and signed.
Checking for debts and liens before signing is covered in our due diligence guide, and registration itself in our article on registering the property and the land in your name.
Check 3: the specification, and who will live in the house
A specification is not a list of upgrades. It is the answer to a question: who is this house for?
Beautiful design and the right light have sold more bad properties than any lie ever told.
For example, a villa of about 120 m² on two floors, with underfloor heating, air conditioning, a quality kitchen and doors, 25 minutes from central Bucharest and close to international schools, speaks to a defined audience: young tech families and expat families looking for quality over the long term.
On the tour, check three things:
- The actual finish compared with the written specification.
- What is included at handover: kitchen? air conditioning? landscaping?
- What it costs to complete until the house is ready to live in or to rent out.
A property that needs another €20,000 after handover: that is part of the price.
The location test: five distances for every villa tour
The view looks perfect on a sunny day. These are the five things worth measuring, in any season:
| What to measure | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Travel time to employment hubs | Quality tenants and families don't commute an hour to work. On the northern axis: about 25 minutes to the centre and about 10 minutes to the Pipera tech district |
| Distance to the airport | A key factor for expats and frequent flyers |
| International schools | The variable that keeps families in an area for years |
| Transport links | A3 and DN1 today; the M6 metro line and the A0 ring road are planned later this decade |
| Natural anchor | Lake, forest, park. Part of the product, and impossible to copy |
On schools: according to Romanian business media reports, the Mark Twain International School network has announced a new campus in Balotești, on the shore of Lake Cociovaliștea, with an investment of about €30 million, for around 1,500 pupils, with opening planned by autumn 2028. It is an announced project, not an existing one, so verify its current status before giving it weight.
Villa tour checklist: print it and take it with you
- Before the tour: an up-to-date CF extract, the site plan and a written specification. Get them in advance, not on site.
- The land: plot boundaries against the site plan, and how the right (Superficie or other) is defined in the documents.
- The ownership: registered attachments, parking and storage, and no liens or notes.
- The specification: actual finish against the written one, what is included at handover, and the real "turnkey" cost.
- The surroundings: the five distances. Measure them in a navigation app; don't trust the brochure.
- After the tour: 24 hours of cooling off before any commitment. A good property will still be good tomorrow.
And the ultimate test: ask to see everything in writing. A developer whose property passes these checks is not afraid of them. On the contrary, he will be glad someone finally asks.
A villa tour from abroad: what you can do without flying
Many investors start with a virtual tour, room by room, including the documents. It gives a complete first picture.
The CF extract and document checks can be obtained remotely. Notarial signing in Romania cannot be done remotely, but you can sign through a representative holding a power of attorney certified with an apostille. The flight, if and when you want it, is saved for the pleasant part: seeing the house and the neighbourhood with your own eyes before the final contract and registration in your name.
Frequently asked questions
Who accompanies me on the tour, a salesperson or someone objective?
Usually the project team, whose interest is that you buy. That is exactly why this checklist exists: it gives you the tools to check for yourself. We recommend bringing your own independent lawyer, or sending the documents to one after the tour.
What if I find a problem after paying a reservation fee?
Under Law 207/2025 (the "Nordis law"), reservation fees are capped at 5% of the price and a validity of up to 60 days, with a full refund if the deal falls through because of the developer. A discovery before signing is a negotiation, not a disaster. The full list is in our Nordis law checklist.
Can all the checks be done remotely?
Almost all of them. The virtual tour, CF extract, site plan and specification can reach you by email, and a local lawyer reviews them. Only the notarial signing requires presence, yours or that of your representative.
The school campus isn't built yet. Should it carry weight?
Treat it like any announced plan: check its current status in public sources, and don't build the whole decision on it. The decision should stand without it, on the land, the ownership and the specification.
How long should I wait between the tour and a commitment?
At least 24 hours. Enough for the impression to settle, for the documents to reach your lawyer, and for you to ask the questions you forgot on the tour.
The bottom line
A good tour starts with the documents and ends with the view, not the other way round.
If you are planning a villa tour, with us or in any other project in Romania, book 30 minutes with me before you fly. We will go through the extract, the site plan and the specification together, and you will arrive with the checklist in hand.
Moti Azulay, Compass Group Romania
Sources and data: National Agency for Cadastre and Land Registration (ANCPI) · Romanian Civil Code, Superficie right, Romanian legislation portal · Law 207/2025 (the "Nordis law"), Monitorul Oficial 1133, 8.12.2025 · Monitorul Oficial · Metrorex, Bucharest metro operator · National Union of Romanian Notaries · Walla Nadlan report on Compass on the Lake (in Hebrew) · Romanian business media reports on the Mark Twain International School campus in Balotești.
This article is for general information only and is not legal, tax or financial advice, nor a substitute for individual legal and planning due diligence by an independent lawyer. Before any transaction, consult local experts.
Now you know more.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult local professionals before any transaction.
