Going halves in Romania

My girlfriend and I are planning on buying an apartment in Romania (Cluj), and I'm just wondering if there are any general pitfalls that I should be aware of?

My girlfriend is a Romanian citizen and lives in Cluj, so she will be doing all the legwork in this deal. Having someone out there to sort everything out is definitely a big plus, but due to this my involvement will be little more than putting up half of the cash and signing on the dotted line.

The apartment will be purely an investment on my side, while the girlfriend is planning to live in it after perhaps renting it out for a while. I'll just head over to have a look at the site (I'm told the ground floor is done), sign the contract (which will be in both our names), spend some quality time with the lady and then go off home again.

This is the first time either of us have bought a property, whether in Romania or otherwise, so I'm aware that I could be a bit on the naive side. We're getting seperate unsecured loans - mine will be from Ireland while the girlfriend's will be from a Romanian bank.

So are there any relevant property laws out there in Romania that we in Ireland would consider bizzare? Or anything with regards to the arrangement that myself and the girlfriend have? I know from lurking on this board that a few of you should have some knowledge. Thanks in advance.

sighte said:

My girlfriend and I are planning on buying an apartment in Romania (Cluj), and I'm just wondering if there are any general pitfalls that I should be aware of?

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Regardless of where you are buying when buying jointly with a non spouse partner you should have a legal agreement in place governing what happens if one partner wants out (of the purchase and/or relationship etc.). There's an example draft one in the Mortgages & Home Buying key posts.

This is the first time either of us have bought a property, whether in Romania or otherwise, so I'm aware that I could be a bit on the naive side.

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Bear in mind that you will lose your first time buyer status in Ireland for the purposes of stamp duty.

You should PM(Private Message) Ancutza. He is out there and very helpful.

Can't see any real problem with this arrangement from a legal point of view myself. Only you know how stable is the relationship you are in but, personally, I probably wouldn't pursue this one without a ring. But then I'm old fashioned, married with child etc...

Best of luck with it. If you need a good solicitor to see it across the line then I can recommend mine (if she'll take it on for you). PM me and I'll give you her details. Whilst i say that I don't see any problems with the scenario you paint if my solicitor even raises her eye-brows at it then my advice is don't do it!! She's the best I've ever come across and her word is law in my book.

Great, thanks for the tips lads.

Stop imediately what you are doing. You are borrowing half the money unsecured in your name. Your girlfriend is borrowing half secured on your deposit. She now owns half of your borrowings and you own half of her debt and are 2nd chargee on the property in question behind the Romanian bank.


You are paying 50% for a 25% share in anticapation of a gentlemns agreement. Much to dangerous a method to proceed on. contact us if you need help.

David Howe

Investment Romania

Thanks for the reply. I don't understand, however, how her loan is partly secured against me. We're both getting regular personal loans rather than a mortgage, and her loan (a four-figure amount) is unsecured (and thanks to this has an insane rate of interest). The Romanian bank doesn't know about the property.

There really should not be too many problems with what you wish to do.

Get a good specialist lawyer to look at it and it will either sink or swim.

You need to consider the logistics of entering into this 50-50 share arrangement with your Romanian girlfriend

If she's going to be living in Romania, and you are going to be living in Ireland, then your relationship may be going nowhere fast.

You could buy this flat, and in a year you could find that Georgio (Georgio is probably a Romanian guys name), is living in your flat with your Romanian girlfriend.

If this happens, it might change the dynamic of your relationship, and you may have to deal with Georgio if you want to cash in on your investment. Georgio may not take too kindly to an Irish guy who used to be involved with his woman.

An important aspect of all investments is an exit strategy, and you need to consider whether any agreement between you and your girlfriend is legally binding under Romanian law.

Think long and hard before you go ahead with this investment.