I bought a place in Brazil about 10 years ago.
That was as bureaucratic if not more than it is here.

The problem here really is that you need to be absolutely sure you've got everything done properly. If you're going to spend hundreds of thousands of pounds on buying something, it'd be a bit of a disaster to find the previous owner or some other person still owned the house, wouldn't it?

The banks are also just as careful. They're looking to make sure nobody else has priority on your house if you're using it as security for a mortgage. They'll want to check for charges over the property before they lift a finger.

I'm not surprised people think it's all bullshit and could be done cheaper, but considering the costs are a relatively small part of it all, I think they're worth paying. I definitely wouldn't trust myself to get it right.
(username failed moderation, Mon 12 Jan 2015, 9:25, Reply)