Drawing up a gift agreement: is it possible to draw up a deed of gift for property yourself or is it necessary to resort to the help of a notary, form, conditions and parties to the transaction

What is a deed of gift

The donation agreement, according to Art. 572 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, is a bilateral transaction under which the donor gratuitously transfers or undertakes to transfer into the ownership of the donee property, property rights or relieve him of property obligations.

The gratuitous nature of the agreement excludes the possibility of including in it a counter-provision from the donee in favor of the donor - such a transaction will be invalid.

Likewise, the legislator prohibits promising donations after death.

The deed of gift has a number of restrictions regarding the identity of the donor and the donee, as well as the gifts they make. The subject of a gift can be any thing and property right, if their circulation is not limited by law.

As a rule, gifts are:

vehicles,
jewelry,
securities,
real estate, including houses and land.

A transaction can be concluded either orally or in writing and does not have a legal procedure for execution. Read more about what a deed of gift is.

Concept of donation agreement

According to paragraph 1 of Art. 572 of the Civil Code (Civil Code) of the Russian Federation, a gift agreement should be understood as an agreement of its parties on the gratuitous alienation of one of them in favor of the other of certain property benefits owned by the first.

The gratuitousness of a gift agreement is its main characteristic , which determines the impossibility of having a counter-representation from the person accepting the property as a gift. If a gift agreement provides for such a counter-representation or gives rise to property obligations of the beneficiary, it is considered feigned, therefore, void (clause 2 of Article 170 of the Civil Code).

A gift agreement, depending on the moment of transfer of property under it, can be either real or consensual in nature (promise of donation). Under a real contract, the gift is transferred simultaneously with the conclusion of the transaction, while a consensual contract, in accordance with clause 2 of Art. 572 of the Civil Code, involves the transfer of a gift in the future.

Additionally

A promise of a gift may contain certain conditions precedent, the occurrence of which will determine the moment of transfer of the gift in the future. It should be understood that such conditions, as well as the symbolic payment for a gift due to local customs, cannot be perceived as a reciprocal obligation of the recipient.

Despite the existence of property obligations only on the part of the person alienating the property, the gift agreement cannot be called one-sided , since the recipient of the benefit - the donee - is obliged to give his consent to its acceptance, which is a form of expression of his will.

Article 572 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation provides an exhaustive list of ways in which a donation can be made: transferring a thing to the donee, transferring a property right to him or releasing him from a property obligation . Within these methods, various transformations are possible, for example, forgiveness of a debt to the donee in relation to the donor or payment of it instead of the donee in relation to third parties.

Alienation of property by way of inheritance after the death of its owner (clause 3 of Article 572 of the Civil Code), as well as alienations of a social security nature (benefits, pensions) and a public nature (awards, prizes, bonuses) cannot be considered a gift.

Procedure for registering a deed of gift for a house

Although the legislation does not provide for a specific procedure for registering a deed of gift for a house, such an agreement must comply with the requirements established by Chapter. 28 of the Civil Code regarding achieving agreement between the parties on all significant aspects of the transaction:

drawing up a contract;
the place of his imprisonment;
forms and other conditions relating to any civil contracts.

Based on this, we have compiled step-by-step instructions, according to which the registration procedure includes:

Coordination of all conditions under which the gift is made by the donor and the recipient.
Preparation of documents for concluding a transaction.
Drawing up the text of the contract.
Signing of the agreement by the parties to the donation.
Transfer of a gift by drawing up a deed of transfer.
State registration of transfer of rights to real estate in Rosreestr.

You need to understand that a deed of gift for a house must be formalized in writing, since the transfer of rights under it requires state registration. The text of the agreement itself must contain a direct indication of the will of the donor to transfer the property into the ownership of the donee, the will of the donee to accept the gift, as well as specific data allowing the qualification of the gift:

house address,
type of building,
square,
number of storeys,
number of rooms,
information about the land plot and so on.

Where to draw up a deed of gift for a house

When wondering how to correctly draw up a deed of gift for a house in 2021, it is important to understand that this agreement has a certain legal force and leads to legal consequences. Based on this, you should trust the execution of the transaction to specialists, for example, a notary. However, it should be remembered that a deed of gift for real estate does not require notarization, although it will confirm the legality of the intentions of the parties.

An equally common place where you can issue a deed of gift for a house is a law office or the office of a private lawyer. The specialist will draw up an agreement in a short time in accordance with the requirements of the law and the conditions agreed upon by the parties. If desired, the lawyer will also tell you what documents are needed and even help collect them.

Is it possible to issue a deed of gift yourself?

Condemning the question of whether it is possible to draw up a deed of gift at home, let us recall that the law does not have any obstacles to this: the parties are free to enter into an agreement where they consider it necessary.

If the contract does not initially stipulate the place of its conclusion, then, according to Art. 444 of the Civil Code, is considered concluded at the place of residence of the donor. To do this, basic legal knowledge and a little experience in drawing up official documents are enough.

Regardless of the reasons that prompted the parties to enter into a house contract, they can call a notary to the house to draw up a deed of gift. But it should be taken into account that, according to Part 2 of Art. 22.1 Fundamentals of legislation on notaries, for this the notary will ask for a premium of 50% of the cost of his services.

Basic details of the deed of gift

When drawing up a real estate gift agreement yourself, it is recommended to use publicly available examples and templates. This will give you an idea of the overall structure of the document.

Such an agreement must include:

full passport data of the parties to the transaction;
the intention of the donor to give a gift, and the recipient’s intention to receive it;
detailed description of the subject of the transaction;
a link to the title document according to which the house belongs to the donor, indicating his details;
an indication of the need to draw up a transfer deed;
the rights and obligations of the parties to the transaction, including covering the costs of registering the transfer of rights;
signatures of the parties.

A sample deed of gift for a house between close relatives will help you get a complete picture of what the document should look like.

Package of documents

To determine what documents are needed for a deed of gift for a house, it is worth consulting with specialists. When drafting a document yourself, we recommend that you adhere to the list, which includes:

copies of passports of the donor and recipient;
title documents: extract from the state register, gift agreement, certificate of state registration of property rights, and so on;
marriage certificate and permission from the donor’s spouse if the property was acquired during marriage;
documents for the land, if it is owned by the donor and passes to the donee along with the house;
cadastral and technical passports;
extract from the house register;
certificate of absence of debts.

In fact, this is all that is needed to draw up a deed of gift for a house. Other documents may be needed only when registering the transfer of rights to real estate, and only if the registrar requires them.

Features of donating real estate to a relative

According to Art. 208 and 228 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, the gift of real estate, shares, shares, shares and vehicles by the legislator is considered as a direct receipt of income by the donee , which, according to Art. 224 Tax Code, subject to 13% income tax. Please note that this tax is calculated based on the market value of the property .

However, in the case of a gift of real estate in favor of a family member (Article 2 of the Family Code) or a close relative (Article 14 of the Family Code), the legislator determines an essential feature of such a transaction - the transfer of property within the same family cannot be considered income .

Important

Thus, the donated item is not subject to taxation, as a result of which the donee who received the property is exempt from the obligation to pay income tax (clause 18.1 of Article 217 of the Tax Code).

Since the transfer of real estate under a gift transaction requires special care due to the impressive value of the property, relatives often resort to notarization of the agreement. Let us remind you that notarization of a transaction is paid at the rate established by law . Here, in addition to the absence of taxation, the legislator highlights one more feature - a special tax rate for certifying transactions between family members and close relatives, which is significantly reduced in comparison with the regular rate (Article 22.1 of the Fundamentals of the Legislation of the Russian Federation on Notaries).

It must also be remembered that in the case of a gift of real estate between spouses or to one of the spouses from his relative, regardless of what form of ownership it was in before, in accordance with paragraph 2 of Art. 256 of the Civil Code, such real estate will be exclusively owned by the donee spouse - the rule for the emergence of common joint property does not apply to him .

It should be remembered that the contract of gift to a relative of the property should be drawn up in writing . This necessity comes from the fact that the transfer of rights to it requires state registration (Article 131 of the Civil Code), which the parties should carry out after the conclusion of the contract.

Expenses for registration of deed of gift

The costs that will entail the execution of a gift agreement are determined by the procedure chosen by the parties. So, if they decide to use the services of a notary, then the price of registering a deed of gift for a house will consist of several factors:

fixed cost of the notary fee, which depends on the value of the property;
the cost of real estate valuation, which is necessary for calculating the notary fee;
the cost of legal and technical services (collecting documents, drawing up an agreement, submitting requests, and so on).

As a rule, the final price is 4-10 thousand rubles.

If you want to save money, you can contact ordinary lawyers. For them, drawing up an agreement will take less time and cost 1.5-2 thousand rubles.

The cheapest way is to draw up a deed of gift yourself: in this case, the only costs are the payment of the state duty when registering the transfer of rights in Rosreestr. The registration of the contract itself will be free.

Drawing up an agreement with a notary

Executing a gift agreement with a notary will be justified if there is a need to irrefutably certify the legality of the provisions of the agreement and the facts that it establishes. Such a need may arise due to fears regarding the subsequent challenge of the contract by relatives and legal successors . However, it should be remembered that the cost of notarization is not small at all, so this decision should be carefully weighed.

So, to notarize a donation, you can contact any notary . Please note that for a fee he can draw up a draft of your contract, but you can provide this draft to him yourself by drawing it up yourself. So, to draw up an agreement by a notary, he needs to submit the following documents:

passports of the parties;
TIN;
title documents;
for real estate - an extract from the house register, an inventory assessment, an extract from the Unified State Register;
consent of the co-owner when the gift is in joint ownership;
consent of legal representatives in the absence of full legal capacity of the party;
certificate of absence of arrests and prohibitions on the alienation of property, etc.

The notary draws up an agreement, which he reads to the parties, explains its essence and is signed by the parties in his presence. Please note that the cost of a notarization depends on the value of the gift and is calculated in the manner established by Art. 22.1 Fundamentals of legislation on notaries.

Important

At the same time, the cost of drawing up an agreement is set by the notary independently and can range from 2 to 4 thousand rubles . Let us note that, as part of his activities, a notary may charge clients funds for other legal and technical services, which, however, cannot be imposed on them .

After signing and paying for the services, the notary certifies the contract by placing a certification inscription . After this, the contract is considered notarized.

Let us also draw attention to the fact that in the case of a donation of items subject to taxation, in accordance with clause 6 of Art. 85 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, the notary certifying such a donation is obliged to report this fact to the tax authorities . Do not forget that notarization is carried out by mutual agreement of the parties .

Donation agreement for part of the house

The donor has the right to transfer under a deed of gift not only the entire property, but also part of the ownership of it (Article 244 of the Civil Code), so he can make a deed of gift for a share in the house. The donor has the right to this action both if he owns part of the real estate, or the whole object, part of which he decided to donate.

When concluding an agreement, the physical expression of the share does not matter, because the donee is not given a specific room or a certain living space, but only a share in the ownership (for example, ½ or ¼) of the whole house.

This, according to Art. 246 of the Civil Code, gives rise to some restrictions when disposing of a residential property:

its use is carried out by mutual agreement with other owners;
when alienating it for compensation, it is necessary to respect the right of first refusal of other owners.

A deed of gift for a part of a house must contain a direct indication of the share that belongs to the donor and is transferred to the donee. Due to the gratuitous nature of the gift, the donor does not have to coordinate the alienation with other owners.

Gift agreement for a minor child

If parents give an apartment to their minor son, then such a transaction is additionally regulated by Articles 26-28 of the Civil Code.

If a child is under 14 years old, then he cannot enter into transactions requiring state registration. registration. In such situations, the parents do this for him (Article 28), and they also apply to Rosreestr to register their son’s right to the donated property.
A son between the ages of 14 and 18 has the right to enter into transactions himself with the written consent of his parents , including receiving property as a gift under an agreement (Article 26). Such consent need not be formalized in a separate document , but indicated in the deed of gift. The presence of the son when concluding the contract and when applying to Rosreestr is necessary .

Attention

If a minor at the age of 16 works under an employment contract, or is engaged in business with the consent of his parents, he can be recognized as fully capable, i.e. can make transactions independently (Article 27).

Dacha donation agreement

There is no concept of “dacha” in Russian legislation. It refers to a garden plot with a residential building located on it. Based on this and guided by Art. 130 of the Civil Code, we can conclude that a dacha is a complex of real estate: land plot + building.

A deed of gift for a dacha between close relatives is drawn up taking into account the requirements that apply to the donation of other real estate. The main condition for this remains that the donor has ownership rights to all objects: both the garden plot and the residential building located on it.

In such a context, there are very common cases when only the garden plot is registered as the donor's property rights, and the building remains without registration. In this case, the recipient will only be able to donate a plot of land; the recipient will have to legalize the dacha.

How much a deed of gift for a dacha costs will depend on the chosen registration method. Let us remind you that the cheapest way is to draw up the contract yourself.

Structure of a gift agreement

Chapter 32 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, which regulates donations, as well as the Civil Code itself as a whole, do not contain any requirements regarding the specific structure of the agreement. Based on this and in accordance with Art. 421 of the Civil Code, which defines the principle of freedom of a civil contract, the parties to a gift contract can independently determine its structure and content , setting any conditions not prohibited by law and including elements of various civil contracts. Thus, it is quite logical to highlight the optimal structure of the gift agreement, consisting of the following sections.

Preamble . The first section of the donation agreement, immediately following the standard details, is “Places and dates of conclusion.” It defines the subject composition of the agreement - the names of the parties, their details, roles in the transaction are determined, and it also stipulates what kind of agreement they have concluded.
Subject of the agreement . The most important section of the gift agreement is an essential condition for its validity. It necessarily contains an indication of a specific property benefit transferred to the recipient as a gift, and describes its individual characteristics and volume. Let us recall that, according to paragraph 1 of Art. 572 of the Civil Code, the subject can be any negotiable things, property rights of claim or the release of the donee from his property obligation. In addition, it contains an indication of the validity of the donor's ownership of the gift, as well as documents confirming it. If there are arrests and encumbrances on property, they must also be indicated.
Rights and obligations of the parties . It is advisable to highlight the rights and obligations of each of the parties to the gift agreement separately. Thus, the obligations of the donor are usually indicated as the obligation to transfer the subject of the agreement to the donee, to inform him of known shortcomings, rights of third parties and encumbrances. The possibility of canceling a transaction is usually defined as his rights, and the grounds for this are indicated (Article 578 of the Civil Code), the possibility of refusing to fulfill obligations (Article 577 of the Civil Code), etc. As for the rights of the donee, the possibility should be indicated as them refusal to accept the gift, as well as the possibility or impossibility of succession.
Procedure and conditions for transferring a gift . This section determines the date, place and one of the methods of transferring the gift, defined in paragraph 1 of Art. 574 Civil Code. In addition, if necessary, the obligation to draw up a transfer deed, involve specialists and other persons is determined, the moment of transfer of the risk of accidental loss of the gift is determined, etc. If state registration of a gift is necessary, the party performing it and the party that bears the costs for it are determined.
Responsibility of the parties . This section contains an indication of the responsibility of the donor and its scope in the event of any damage caused to the recipient by the gift (Article 580 of the Civil Code), the responsibility of the donee in the event of damage to the donor by refusal to receive the gift (clause 3 of Article 573 of the Civil Code), other cases .
Change and termination of the contract . This section defines additional grounds and procedure for changing and terminating the contract, determining the consequences of such a change or termination, the form of its presentation, the possibility of unilateral termination, the grounds for it, etc.
Dispute Resolution . The section is used to regulate claims and pre-trial procedures for resolving disputes, indicating its mandatory nature, timing, methods and form of implementation. As a rule, it also contains an indication of the possibility of applying judicial procedure only after the ineffectiveness of the claim resolution.
Final provisions . The final provisions should determine the validity period of the concluded agreement, the moment and procedure for its entry into force, the procedure for sending correspondence by the parties, the number of copies of the agreement, etc.
List of applications . A deed of transfer, certificates, title documents, certificates, checks, etc. can be used as attachments to the gift agreement.

The concluded agreement is sealed with the signatures of the parties, and in the case of legal participation. persons - also with their seals . Signatures are placed under the name of each party, at the end of the agreement, and if there are several pages, on each of them.

Donation of a house with land

Since any house is located on a plot of land, the registration of a deed of gift for it requires taking into account the rights of the donor and the land. If the donor only has the right to use the land on which the house is located, then the donee, according to Art. 35 of the Land Code, will be able to use it under the same conditions.

If the land is privatized and is owned by the donor, a deed of gift is drawn up for the house and land - in this case, donating one without the other is impossible.

The execution of such a transaction is carried out in the general manner, through the conclusion of one agreement indicating as a gift not only a residential property, but also the land plot on which it is located.

Exceptions are cases when:

the gift is a part of a residential building that cannot be allocated in kind with a similar part of the site;
the site is included in the number of lands withdrawn from circulation;
a residential building was built on a plot of land under easement conditions.

The cost of registering a deed of gift for a house and land does not depend on the specific items transferred in the transaction. In fact, transferring a house and land as a gift will only require additional expenses during state registration.

Revocation and cancellation of deed of gift

In case the relationship between the parties to the donation deteriorates, the legislator has provided a list of reasons and grounds for which the donor has the right to cancel the deed of gift for the house during his lifetime.

According to Art. 578 of the Civil Code, a gift agreement can be canceled at the initiative of the donor if:

the donee has made an attempt on the life and health of the donor or members of his family. If the donor dies as a result of an assassination attempt, the right to annulment is vested in his heirs;
the house has great non-property value for the donor and may be lost as a result of inappropriate treatment by the donee;
the donee died before the donor, provided that the gift agreement provides for the right to revoke the deed of gift in such a case.

In each case of cancellation, the previously donated house returns to the property of the donor. If it was lost at the time of cancellation, the donor has the right to demand compensation for losses or the cost of unjust enrichment in the manner provided for in Art. 1105 Civil Code.

Moreover, according to Art. 577 of the Civil Code, the donor has the right to revoke the deed of gift for a house before its execution, if after the conclusion of the transaction his family, financial or health situation has deteriorated so much that the execution of the deed of gift has become burdensome for him and will lead to a drop in his standard of living.

Home abandonment

Not only the donor, but also the recipient has the right to cancel a donation. According to Art. 573 of the Civil Code, the donee has the right to refuse a deed of gift for a house at any time until the gift intended for him is transferred to him: after the execution of the transaction, the refusal is not accepted. If it is done before execution, the deed of gift should be considered terminated.

The recipient is not obliged to justify his refusal to accept the gift - he has the right to be guided solely by his inner will.

However, in this case, he will have to compensate the donor for the losses that he incurred as a result of the refusal. Please note that refusal must be in writing.

Features of the agreement

From the point of view of the law, the degree of relationship is not significant when making a gift. An agreement between two individuals who are not related is subject to general requirements and is also not subject to recording on paper, with the exception of the above case - a promise of a gift in the future.

Nevertheless, to understand the circle of persons who fall into the risk zone when making a formal donation, they include:

husband or wife;
children or adopted children;
siblings and half-sisters;
Grandmothers and grandfathers.

From a legal point of view, the fact of kinship does not represent any preferences, but is a convenient way to save money when the owner changes, since the acquirer is not only not obliged to reimburse the cost of the gift, but is exempt from income tax - 13%, which individuals are required to pay in all in other cases.

Challenging a deed of gift for a house

Among other things, interested parties are interested in whether the deed of gift for the house is contested, because quite often such a transaction violates the rights and interests of third parties:

donor's spouses,
his heirs,
co-owners of real estate.

A gift agreement can be challenged, but only when there are compelling reasons. A deed of gift can be declared invalid in cases where it was concluded with significant violations of the law:

the conditions established in Art. 572 Civil Code;
the prohibitions and restrictions specified in Art. Art. 575-576 Civil Code;
the donation is of a feigned nature, covering up a compensated transaction;
at the time of making the donation, the donor was incapacitated, which makes it possible to challenge the deed of gift for the house and completely cancel it;
the donor did not obtain consent for the donation from the co-owners;
the donor was forced to conclude a deed of gift under threat, and the like.

This list of grounds cannot be considered exhaustive: a deed of gift can be challenged for other reasons that make the transaction invalid or void.

Interested parties should remember that challenging a deed of gift is carried out in court. Depending on the basis, the statute of limitations will be:

1 year for voidable transactions;
3 years - for insignificant ones.

The corresponding claim is filed at the place of residence of the defendant, who can be either the donor or the donee. Along with it, a package of necessary documents is submitted, the completeness of which will make it possible to determine whether the lost property can be reclaimed.

Re-registration of rights to a house in Rosreestr

To donate real estate, it is not enough just to conclude a deal and hand over the keys. The transfer of rights under a donation agreement for a house to the donee is subject to state registration with the Rosreestr authorities or Multifunctional Centers. Until then, ownership of the house will remain with the donor, despite the existence of a signed agreement.

In order to re-register a house using a deed of gift, in accordance with Art. 18 Federal Law “On State Registration of Real Estate”, the parties must provide:

joint application for state registration of transfer of rights from the parties;
copies of identity documents;
3 copies of the donation agreement for the property;
certificate of ownership of the donor;
receipt of payment of state duty in the amount of 2 thousand rubles (provided upon request).

In addition, depending on the situation, registration authorities may also request:

written permission from the wife or husband if the house is jointly owned;
permission from the guardianship authorities in case children are registered or minors act as donors;
powers of attorney, permission from guardians.

According to Art. 16 Federal Law “On State Registration of Real Estate”, registration of rights is carried out within 7 days when applying to Rosreestr and 9 days - to the MFC. As a result, the parties are issued documents indicating the transfer of rights to the donee.

The procedure for registering a gift agreement for a relative

The execution of a gift agreement in favor of a relative will vary slightly depending on the subject of the gift. Thus, it is advisable to consider such a procedure using the example of the most time-consuming and resource-consuming item - donating a property to a relative.

As is known, such an agreement is subject to mandatory written execution , and the real estate itself is subject to state registration (Article 131 of the Civil Code). At the same time, notarization is not at all mandatory , but can be carried out at the request of the parties to the agreement.

Registration procedure

Based on the analysis of the practice of registering real estate donation transactions in favor of relatives, the following stages of such registration .

Collection and preparation of documents . The importance of this stage lies in the fact that the final procedure - state registration of real estate, which will determine the transfer of ownership rights to real estate - directly depends on it.
Drawing up a gift agreement . The most important stage of concluding a deal, because competent drafting affects not only the legal force of the contract, but also the legal consequences for the parties to the contract. In view of this, it is advisable to seek help from specialists to draw up an agreement. When making your own, do not forget about the need to identify the parties and indicate their relationship, indicate the subject of the agreement, conditions, terms and method of transferring the gift, the grounds for the donor’s property rights, the rights and obligations of the parties to the donation, etc.
Signing the contract . It is carried out simultaneously by both parties or their representatives - it is unacceptable to sign the agreement at different times. It should be understood that in the case of notarization, the contract is signed in the presence of a notary. The signing of a gift agreement by a representative requires him to have a specially executed power of attorney (clause 5 of Article 576 of the Civil Code).
State registration . The final stage of formalizing the donation of real estate to a relative, since after its completion the ownership right passes to the donee. It is carried out on the basis of Art. 131 of the Civil Code and in accordance with Federal Law No. 122 of July 21, 1997. Submission of documents for its implementation is carried out by any party to the donation to the Rosreestr branch at the location of the property.

A donation of real estate made in favor of a close relative is not subject to income tax (Clause 18.1, Article 217 of the Civil Code).

Required documents

As mentioned above, preparing documents is one of the most important stages in registering a donation in favor of a relative. The documents listed below will be needed not only when registering a donation, but also when registering real estate. So, you will need:

passports and other identification documents of the parties;
title documents;
an assessment report carried out by an authorized expert;
evidence of previous state registration;
if there are co-owners - their notarized consent to the donation;
certificates and documents from the BTI;
home Book;
application for state registration.

This list is approximate - depending on the specific situation, other documents may be needed. During state registration, it is recommended to find out information about the necessary documents in advance from the registration authority conducting state registration.

Gifted house and divorce

According to generally accepted standards, reflected in Art. 34 of the Family Code, it is considered that everything acquired during marriage is recognized as the common joint property of the spouses. In accordance with Art. 38 of the Family Code, such property can be divided during or before divorce.

However, donation allows you to avoid the division of the property transferred under it, since, according to Art. 36 SK, it does not form common joint property, even if the donee is married.

Donated property, regardless of its value, type and other factors, is recognized by the legislator as personal.

Therefore, those who believe that the deed of gift for a house is divided during a divorce are seriously mistaken, since this is contrary to the law.

Selling a house under a gift agreement

Trying to save on re-registration and taxes, real estate sellers often resort to such a mechanism for selling real estate as selling a house under a gift. As part of the process, the parties enter into a real estate gift agreement, in exchange for which the donee transfers a pre-agreed amount of funds to the donor.

But a gift agreement is a gratuitous transaction, so it cannot provide for the transfer of money. To avoid obstacles when re-registering real estate, the parties do not indicate in the contract a condition for the transfer of money.

At first glance, this model seems acceptable. However, when deciding whether it is possible to sell a house under a deed of gift, recipients should pay attention to the following points:

A gift in lieu of a sale actually allows the seller to avoid paying tax since he or she does not officially receive any income. However, instead of it, according to the contract, the donee, that is, the buyer, receives income, so a tax of 13% of the value of the house will have to be paid to him.
Covering the purchase and sale of a gift is a sham transaction, which, according to Art. 170 of the Civil Code is void, that is, invalid. This will be the basis for challenging the contract, which could result in losing the purchased home.
As a result of challenging and recognizing the contract as void, according to Art. 167 of the Civil Code, the parties will have to return everything previously received under the transaction - that is, the donee/buyer - the house, the donor/seller - the money. However, since money was not mentioned in the contract, returning it can become a serious problem if the seller refuses to return it voluntarily.

Gifting between relatives: pros and cons

When choosing a method for transferring real estate between relatives, the first thing that deserves attention is the gift agreement. It, like any other transaction, has its advantages and disadvantages for the parties. To understand them, let's look at the pros and cons of a deed of gift for a house.

The advantages usually include:

Simplicity and low cost of execution - you can even draw up a contract yourself.
No need for notarization.
Exclusion of a gift from the joint property of the spouses - it will belong exclusively to the donor.
Possibility to avoid taxation - gifts between relatives are not subject to personal income tax.

But there are also some disadvantages:

The donation is contested by interested parties, if there are grounds for this.
The transaction is gratuitous, so the donor will not receive anything in return.
The donor does not have the right to establish any counter conditions.