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Guide to buying a home in Lebanon remotely

08-07-2020 05:00

Guide to buying a home in Lebanon remotely

Generally speaking, dealing with real estate can be a real headache, no matter whether you are buying or selling. Purchasing a property is always an investment you want to make only after careful consideration. You want to come at it from all angles in order to make the best decision possible. This means a lot of research, a lot of time spent with your real estate agent, a lot of looking, and weighing the options. It can be quite stressful even in the best of times. Now imagine not actually being able to set foot in your potential home before a purchase, or not even being in the same city, or even country. Mind-boggling, right? If this is the pickle you find yourself in, do not fret. This guide to buying a home in Lebanon remotely is bound to ease all of your worries.

Why take the remote route?

There are several reasons why people might choose to buy real estate remotely. Some of the situations when people feel comfortable doing this is either when they are buying their second home or if they are purchasing a property for their children. They could also feel comfortable doing this for a vacation home. However, what all of these have in common is the simple fact that the buyers live out of the country, or are unable to be physically present at all stages of the purchase, at the very least. While it may seem much more complex, buying a home in Lebanon remotely can actually be quite straightforward. All it takes is a little bit of planning and research. This is particularly true if you have never lived in Lebanon or the area before.

  If you have never lived in Lebanon before, do a little research before embarking on this journey.

For example, you may be familiar with the fact that many Middle Eastern countries have restrictions when it comes to foreigners owning property. Lebanon allows foreign ownership of up to 3,000 square meters, but if you’ve been living and working in a place like Kuwait, this may come as a surprise. This is one of the reasons many foreign nationals choose to move to Lebanon. Learning as much as you can before you start in on the process will save you a few headaches. Simply follow the guide to buying a home in Lebanon remotely and then ship your belongings from Kuwait with ease .

Guide to buying a home in Lebanon remotely

Find a good real estate agent

This is the most important tip when it comes to remote home buying you will ever get. As you won’t be able to do anything yourself, your real estate agent will be your eyes and ears on the ground. It is very important that you find someone you can trust and rely on. In most cases, you will have to work very closely with this person as they will be your proxy for all aspects of the purchase. A good idea would be to interview a couple of people you have heard good things about. This way, you will be able to get a glimpse of who you could work with most easily. Bear in mind that you will be spending a lot of time on the phone with this person, so you want it to be someone that will get the work done as well as be easy to reach.

Another reason why it is important to hire someone with the right references and experience is that it can be quite tricky meandering through all of the bureaucracy if you’re doing it from abroad. You need someone familiar with local Lebanese practices.

Know what you want

This part is key not just for Lebanon properties, but for all of them. Even before finding a real estate agent, you should have some idea about what you can afford, what size home you would like, and where should it be situated. If you have never lived in Lebanon, you have to do your research beforehand. Once you have an idea of what you would like, speaking with your agent will be invaluable in determining what you can expect and what you should be looking into.

  Before talking to your real estate agent, try to come up with a vision for what you want.

How do you go about open houses?

Even though buying costs are moderate in Lebanon, you want to get the property right on the first try. You don’t want to get stuck with a property someone had a hard time selling . How do you do this, though, without actually stepping foot inside your potential home? Thanks to the advancement of technology, many real estate agencies offer 3D tours of their listings. This can be a great substitute for going to an actual open house. Having a close relationship with your agent can be of great help to you here as well. If they get to know you and your vision well enough, they might be able to relay the experience of walking through the space for you. They can even offer you a tour through video calls nowadays.



 It can be hard to make a choice having never actually seen the property.

How to close remotely?

If you think you have found the right property, every guide to buying a home in Lebanon remotely would suggest you take a little trip, if at all possible. It would be a good idea to be present for the legal aspect of the sale. It will also give you an opportunity to visit the property and know for sure whether you've chosen the perfect one.

However, if this isn’t possible, there is a way around it. Lebanon has recently made digital signatures legal and valid. All you need is a person to represent you on site. Luckily for you, Lebanese law doesn’t require attorneys to be part of the sales of real estate. All you need are the right documents and a notary public. This is where you can make the sale agreement. Besides this, in most cases, you will need a Real Estate Certificate from the Land Registry when registering the property. Trust what your real estate agent tells you and ask as many questions as you need to through the process smoothly.