Saving on sales tax: how to transfer an apartment to a relative or another person

Is it possible to “resign” real estate to another person without selling it?

One of the common ways to change the owner of an apartment in a high-rise building or a private house is the purchase and sale of a real estate property. But you have to pay taxes to the state on the income received from the sale of housing. This is disadvantageous for the property seller. Those who want to save money have a question about how to change the owner of an apartment without selling it.

There are several options to transfer real estate to another person:

• draw up a deed of gift . It is an option for free transfer of an apartment or house to another person. Regulated by articles No. 572-582 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. Donation and change of ownership of an object occurs during the lifetime of the owner;
• sign the exchange agreement . The procedure and features of concluding such a transaction are regulated by Articles No. 567-571 of the Civil Code of Russia. The exchange can be equivalent or made with an additional payment;
• make a will . In this case, the change of owner of the apartment takes place six months after the death of the testator. The procedure and features of drawing up a will and re-registration of ownership rights are regulated by Articles No. 1110-1175 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation;
• conclude a privatization agreement . In this case, the property passes from state or municipal ownership to private ownership. This area is regulated by the Civil Code of the Russian Federation (Article No. 217), Law on Privatization No. 178.

To re-register an apartment to another person, you need to have certain grounds for this.

How to transfer an apartment to another person by making a will

Re-registering an apartment to another person under a will will not be difficult, since the heirs (future owners) are indicated in the will certified by a notary. The heir can take ownership of his property only six months after the death of the owner of the apartment. A six-month period is established so that all heirs can declare their rights during this time. If problems arise with determining an heir, you have to go to court. The decision on inheritance of property can only be made by the court. Having received a court decision, it should be attached to the main package of documents (

Where can I change the owner of an apartment or house?

Information about all real estate objects registered on the territory of the Russian Federation, as well as about their owners, is stored in Rosreestr. Therefore, to change the owner, you need to submit a request to this government agency.
Based on the submitted application and package of documents, the necessary changes will be made. To confirm the change of owner of an apartment or private house, an extract from the Unified State Register will be issued.

There are branches of Rosreestr in every region. Therefore, it is recommended to contact the structure at your place of residence. Another institution where it is possible to change the ownership of real estate is the Multifunctional Center. This is an intermediary organization. It provides a range of state and municipal services. MFC cooperates with Rosreestr.

The procedure for re-registration of ownership of an apartment is longer. This is due to certain time costs for sending documents. At the same time, submitting an application to the MFC is easier than to Rosreestr. There are fewer queues and appointments are by appointment only. It takes no more than a quarter of an hour to submit a package of papers.

There are also private companies operating in Russia that cooperate with Rosreestr and can carry out the procedure for re-registration of ownership rights to real estate on behalf of the client.

It should be noted that you can apply to change the owner of your home via the Internet. For this purpose, there is the State Services portal and the official website of Rosreestr. Submitting an online request is convenient for busy citizens or those individuals who, due to physical health conditions, cannot personally visit the branch of the registration authority.

Free transfer

When looking for a way to re-register an apartment in your name, avoiding painful taxes and other financial expenses, the best option is a gift agreement or a will. Of course, if we are talking about close relatives, for example, children, spouse, sometimes parents, brothers and sisters, or close people without blood relations, to whom the owner is ready to transfer the apartment without demanding anything from them in return.

A gift agreement is the cheapest option, it is not subject to taxes and does not require a large number of documents. It is important to consider the following:

• According to the law, the gift agreement can be terminated by the donor during his lifetime, whenever he wishes, but only until the new owner formalizes ownership of the donated apartment;
• a donated apartment cannot act as jointly acquired property and is not divided when the spouses divorce.

The documents that will be needed when drawing up a gift agreement (deed of gift) include title papers for the apartment, cadastral documentation and the gift agreement itself or a will along with the personal passports of the parties.

List of required documents

To re-register an apartment to another owner, you need to prepare a certain package of documents. The exact list can be obtained from Rosreestr employees. The set of papers can be basic or additional. The list of required documents depends on the specific situation. Both parties to the transaction must appear for the re-registration of ownership of housing.

In any case, the following documents are required:

• civil passports of both parties;
• extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate;
• title document. This could be a deed of gift, an agreement of exchange or privatization, or a certificate of inheritance.

Additionally, the following documents may be required:

• permission from guardianship and trusteeship authorities. Necessary if the transaction involves minors or incapacitated citizens;
• consent of husband/wife. Must be certified by a notary office. Required if the alienated apartment was acquired during marriage.

It may take a long time to receive some documents. Therefore, it is recommended to prepare a set of papers for Rosreestr for re-registration of ownership of real estate in advance.

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Method of re-registration of an apartment

Re-registration of real estate means a change in basic information about it, and, above all, information about the owner. The new owner acquires full authority to dispose of housing after a record of the change of owner appears in the Rosreestr database. If the re-registration of an apartment to another owner is not associated with compulsory measures to confiscate the object, the documentary basis is an agreement signed by the owner of his own free will.

Options for agreements on how to rewrite an apartment suggest various circumstances under which the transaction will be completed:

1. Purchase. The rules are regulated by the Civil Code (Articles 549-558). Based on the principle of remuneration, when the price is set within a reasonable range. This is a two-way transaction when both parties agree on the circumstances in which the seller agrees to transfer the right to the apartment, and the buyer agrees to pay some amount stated by the seller. Transactions are carried out only on voluntary terms between legally capable persons. If the seller earned a profit from the sale (the purchase price was lower) and the apartment was owned for less than 5 years, he will have to pay income tax amounting to 13% of the amount earned. A tax deduction is available to the buyer, amounting to the same 13% of income, but not more than 260 thousand rubles.
2. Giving. Organized in accordance with the provisions of Art. 572-582 Civil Code of the Russian Federation. Involves the gratuitous transfer of property under a deed of gift. Unlike a sale and purchase, the transaction is considered unilateral and does not require the consent of the donee. The latter, in turn, decides whether to accept the property or refuse it. The fact is that for the recipient the apartment is considered income on which it is necessary to pay tax. Only close relatives are exempt from tax. To avoid disputes and the appearance of other applicants, it is recommended to sign the deed of gift with a notary.
3. Will. Legislation on inheritance is contained in the Civil Code of the Russian Federation - Art. 1110-1175. If the testator wants to dispose of property during his lifetime and transfer the apartment to a specific person, a will is drawn up. The heir has the right to decide whether to accept the property or refuse the inheritance. Along with the inherited apartment, the heir assumes the debt obligations of the deceased (outstanding loans, unpaid debts). If the amount of debt exceeds the cost of the apartment, it is more advisable to refuse to accept the inheritance. 6 months are allotted for making a decision, and after the issuance of a certificate of inheritance, re-registration is completed in Rosreestr. The costs of re-registration depend on the closeness of relationship between the testator and the heir: for family members, including parents, the fee will be 0.3% of the cost of the apartment, for distant relatives and strangers the fee is calculated at 0.6% per annum.
4. Rent. Transferring an apartment for rent presupposes the principle of remuneration. The acquirer is obliged to care for and maintain the former owner of the apartment, or pays him a certain amount specified in the clauses of the agreement. The moment of transfer of ownership is determined by the date of death of the owner, or a specific period of time after signing the contract. The provisions of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation devoted to rent are given in Art. 589-605. The registration of the rental agreement is completed at the notary’s office, and the owner’s re-registration is carried out at Rosreestr or through the MFC.
5. Exchange of property. In the Civil Code, 5 articles are devoted to describing the rules for the exchange of real estate - Art. 567-571. The exchange involves the possibility of an additional payment, or a simple change of ownership of the apartment of another participant in the exchange, with the re-registration of his apartment in favor of the owner of the received housing. Both owners become sellers and buyers at the same time. If the properties are of equal value, an additional payment will be separately agreed upon in favor of the owner of the more expensive property.

Which option a person chooses depends on the specific characteristics of the situation.

How to properly re-register a house or apartment: procedure

Having decided to transfer an apartment or house to another person, you need to understand how to do it.
If you do not act within the law and do not take into account certain nuances, you may encounter a number of problems. You need to know the provisions of the Housing and Civil Codes. Procedure for re-registration of real estate:

• decide on the type of contract under which the apartment or house will be transferred to another person;
• enter into a transaction that will give the right to change the owner of the residential premises;
• prepare a package of documents for re-registration of the apartment;
• contact Rosreestr or MFC with an application and a set of papers;
• pay the state fee;
• wait for changes to be made to the Unified Real Estate Register;
• receive an extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate. This document confirms that the apartment or house has become the property of another person.

For a son, daughter, other close relative

Most often, re-registration of rights to an apartment occurs between close people. Therefore, the question of how to re-register an apartment in the name of a relative is relevant.

You can transfer housing in any way: donation, exchange, will. As a rule, citizens choose the first option. It is beneficial to enter into a gift agreement between close relatives. In this case, you will not need to pay income tax in the amount of 13% of the price of real estate.

You need to understand who can be considered a close relative. According to the Russian Civil Code, this category includes the following persons: grandparents, their granddaughters and grandchildren, parents and children, brothers and sisters, husband and wife.

Procedure for drawing up a donation agreement:

1. obtain the successor's consent to the gift;
2. prepare a package of documents. It includes an extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate, a civil passport of the home owner, title papers for real estate, an extract from the house register, etc.;
3. draw up and sign a gift agreement. It is not necessary to certify it. The exception is when one of the parties to the transaction is incapacitated or a minor, when a share of the apartment is donated.

Next, you need to contact Rosreestr, following the standard algorithm.

On a stranger

It is also possible to re-register an apartment in the name of a stranger on the basis of a gift agreement. In this case, you need to follow the algorithm given above. But we must take into account that you will have to pay personal income tax.

You can also enter into an exchange agreement. According to it, each party undertakes to transfer to the other their real estate. If the apartments are of equal value, then you will not have to pay anything extra.

Procedure for drawing up an exchange agreement:

1. find a person who also plans to exchange his apartment for other housing;
2. negotiate with him to conclude a deal;
3. collect the necessary papers. This list includes title documents for housing, civil passports of the parties to the transaction, extracts from the Unified State Register of Real Estate and the house register;
4. draw up and sign an exchange agreement.

Next, you need to register the concluded transaction with Rosreestr. Based on the results, extracts from the Unified State Register will be issued for each of the parties.

Agreements and transactions

1.1. Contract of sale of an apartment

This is the most commonly used method of re-registration of ownership of an apartment. The vast majority of transactions in the real estate market are carried out through the conclusion of a purchase and sale agreement. Under this agreement, one party (seller) undertakes to transfer ownership of the apartment to the other party (buyer), and the buyer undertakes to accept the apartment and pay a certain amount of money (price) for it. The main feature of this method of re-registration of ownership is the paid nature of the transaction: a sum of money determined by the parties must be paid for the apartment.

It should also be mentioned that some time ago, unscrupulous creditors practiced concluding agreements for the purchase and sale of an apartment under the guise of securing the seller’s obligations under a loan agreement: the owner of the apartment received a certain loan amount from a third party (individual or company) and, to ensure the repayment of the debt, “transferred” “pledge” of the apartment, but this “collateral” was formalized not by a mortgage agreement (real estate pledge agreement), as required by law, but by an apartment purchase and sale agreement. In fact, the owner of the apartment was selling the apartment to his creditor.

Some of these “sellers” managed to prove in court the invalidity of such apartment purchase and sale agreements to their creditors, and unscrupulous creditors were recognized as fraudsters. But, unfortunately, not everyone was able to return the apartments “mortgaged” in this way, because Formally, the purchase and sale agreement was concluded and executed by the parties; the former owners of the apartments were unable to provide evidence to the contrary. Be vigilant and do not repeat the mistakes of others.

It should be remembered that on income from the sale of an apartment that was owned by the seller for less than a certain period of time (as a general rule - 5 years, with the exceptions established in paragraph 3 of Article 217.1 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation), you must pay personal income tax (13% - for residents of the Russian Federation with the right to apply tax deductions and 30% for non-residents without the right to apply tax deductions). Moreover, if the price of the apartment under the purchase and sale agreement is less than 70% of the cadastral value of the apartment, then when calculating the amount of sales tax, income will be recognized not as the price of the apartment from the contract, but as the monetary value obtained by multiplying the cadastral value of the apartment by a factor of 0.7 .

For example, if in 2021 a citizen of the Russian Federation who lives abroad most of the time (183 days or more per year) sells an apartment purchased in 2021, he will have to pay personal income tax (NDFL) in the amount of 30 % of the 2021 sales price (without deducting the amount for which the apartment was purchased in 2021). If the cost of an apartment is 10,000,000 rubles, the amount of tax payable will be 3,000,000 rubles.

If the seller is a tax resident (one who lives in Russia for 183 or more days a year), then personal income tax will be calculated differently: taxable income from the sale of an apartment will be the difference between the price under the 2021 contract and the price under the 2021 contract, and the tax rate will be 13%. If in 2019 an apartment cost 9,000,000 rubles, then the sales tax in 2021 will be 13,000 rubles ((10,000,000 – 9,000,000)*13%).

1.2. Barter agreement

Under an exchange agreement, each party undertakes to transfer ownership of an apartment to the other party in exchange for another apartment (or other thing). We can say that each of the parties will act as a seller in relation to one apartment, and as a buyer in relation to the other. Depending on the ratio of the cost of apartments, the exchange can be of two types: with an additional payment (if one apartment costs more than another, then one of the parties pays the difference to the other) and without it (the cost of the apartments is the same). For example, you want to sell your 3-room apartment and buy a 1-room apartment and get the difference between their prices and you have found a 1-room apartment whose seller wants to buy a 3-room apartment like yours.

In this case, you can transfer the apartments to each other in one of two ways: either by concluding two sales and purchase agreements, or by concluding one exchange agreement with the condition of additional payment of the difference. When choosing the last option for re-registration of ownership of an apartment, the settlement procedure will most accurately correspond to the essence of the transaction, and you also eliminate the situation in which the transfer of rights for one of the apartments will be registered, but not for the other. If the exchange agreement is invalidated or terminated, everyone will receive the apartment that previously belonged to them.

1.3. Donation agreement

Also called “deed of gift” in everyday life. As a rule, donation is made between relatives. Under a gift agreement, one party (the donor) transfers or undertakes to transfer ownership of the apartment to the other party (the donee) free of charge. The main feature of this type of agreement is the gratuitous nature of this agreement. If there is a counter-transfer of a thing, including money, or a right or a counter-obligation, the contract is not recognized as a gift, the transaction will be considered invalid (sham).

If the donor and the donee are family members and (or) close relatives in accordance with the Family Code of the Russian Federation (spouses, parents and children, including adoptive parents and adopted children, grandparents and grandchildren, full and half-blooded (having a common father or mother) brothers and sisters), then the apartment received as a gift is not subject to income tax for an individual. If the donor and the donee do not belong to the specified categories of relatives, then the donee must pay personal income tax on the value of the donated apartment, which is recognized as equal to the cadastral value.

Read our article about the difference between a deed of gift and a will for an apartment.

1.4. Rent agreement

Or lifelong maintenance with dependents. Under a rent agreement, one party (the rent recipient) transfers ownership of property, including an apartment, to the other party (the rent payer), and the rent payer undertakes, in exchange for the received apartment, to periodically pay rent to the recipient in the form of a certain amount of money or in another form. Under an annuity agreement, it is possible to establish the obligation to pay annuity indefinitely (permanent annuity) or for the life of the annuity recipient (lifetime annuity).

Lifetime annuity can be established on the terms of lifelong maintenance of a citizen with a dependent. This type of agreement must be notarized. It is most common among older citizens who require assistance. The ownership of an apartment in the name of the rent payer is registered during the life of the rent recipient (in contrast to the ownership rights acquired by inheritance).

An apartment alienated for payment of rent can be transferred free of charge or for a fee. In the first case, the rent payer periodically pays only rent, and in the second case, along with the periodic payment of rent, he must pay a certain amount for the apartment.

Rent is one of the types of encumbrance on property. If you decide to sell, donate or otherwise dispose of the apartment received under the rental agreement, your obligations as a rent payer are transferred to the new owner. In addition, the rent recipient acquires a lien on the apartment, which is also an encumbrance on the apartment, complicating subsequent transactions with him.

You should also pay attention to the fact that if the rent payer violates the obligations assumed, the rent agreement may be terminated, and the apartment transferred under it may be returned to the rent recipient. More details can be found here.

1.5. Compensation agreement

Compensation is not an independent transaction; it is one of the ways to terminate obligations. By agreement of the parties, the debtor's obligation may be terminated by providing the creditor with compensation, including an apartment. An agreement on compensation may provide for the provision of compensation (within the framework of this article - an apartment) both immediately at the time of concluding such an agreement, and in the future, and the parties can determine the amount of the obligation that is repaid by providing compensation, and the cost of the apartment transferred as compensation, as well as the procedure for paying the difference between the cost of the apartment and the amount of the existing debt.

According to the latest clarifications of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation (for more details, see paragraph 2 - paragraph 9 of the Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated June 11, 2020 No. 6 “On some issues of application of the provisions of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation on the termination of obligations”), if by agreement of the parties as The apartment has been transferred as compensation, but the debtor avoids registering the transfer of ownership of it; the creditor has the right to demand such registration (clause 1 of Article 6, clause 3 of Article 551, paragraph two of clause 1 of Article 556 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

In other words, concluding a compensation agreement would be appropriate when the debtor, instead of repaying the debt, wants to re-register the apartment to his creditor. The conclusion of a compensation agreement is most relevant if there are legal relations between the debtor and the creditor arising from a loan (credit) agreement, but it is also permissible if the legal relationship between the debtor and the creditor has a different nature.

Features of re-registration of ownership rights to property after the death of the owner

Re-registration of ownership of housing after the death of its owner is carried out, as a rule, on the basis of a will. This document expresses the last will of the deceased. It contains information about who will inherit the apartment or private house.

It happens that a citizen does not leave a will. In this case, his real estate is distributed among his heirs according to the law. As a rule, they are close relatives. In any case, it will be possible to re-register the apartment as a property only after six months. This period is given for the legal heirs to make themselves known.

If the owner of the apartment has decided to leave real estate to a specific person or group of people after his death, then he needs to act according to the following algorithm:

• decide on the heir;
• collect a package of documents. You will need title papers and a passport;
• contact a notary office to draw up a will.

To receive real estate under a will, you must proceed in the following order:

• prepare a package of documents. It includes an extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate, a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation, the original will, the death certificate of the home owner, documents confirming the relationship with the deceased;
• contact a notary office. Submit an application for inheritance rights and provide the collected documents;
• pay a fee to the state;
• obtain a certificate of inheritance.

Next, you need to contact Rosreestr to re-register the apartment.

The process of re-registration of rights

Regardless of the specifics of the transaction, the algorithm for re-registering ownership to a new owner looks the same:

• An agreement appropriate to the situation is being prepared.
• They collect a package of documentation confirming the legitimacy of the transaction.
• The contract is certified by a notary, who will check the documents for the object.
• The package of collected documentation for the object and the parties to the contract are submitted to Rosreestr, having previously paid the state fee. In addition to Rosreestr, you can contact the nearest branch of the MFC, and if you are unable to be present in person, prepare a power of attorney to represent your interests by another person.
• After checking the papers, the registering authority makes changes to the database and issues a new extract from the Unified State Register of Entities recording the transfer of rights.

If difficulties arise with drawing up an agreement, contact a lawyer specializing in real estate or a notary. The waiting period for verification and registration of a new owner takes 12 days, but in a number of situations this period is reduced. If the inspection officer identifies errors and inconsistencies in the submitted documents, registration will be denied.

The decision of the registration authority is subject to judicial challenge if the applicant is confident that he is right.

List of papers for Rosreestr

Each situation is unique, and depending on what is being re-registered and on what grounds, there may be its own nuances.

• The procedure for registering an apartment purchase and sale transaction

But there is a mandatory list of what documents are needed to re-register an apartment by Rosreestrom:

• Civil documents of the parties (the former and new owners prepare passports for registering the sale and purchase; for unilateral transactions, the applicant’s passport is sufficient).
• Technical documentation is prepared for real estate, identifying a specific property, indicating individual parameters - cadastral passport, documents from the BTI.
• If there are other owners, the applicant first draws up and submits to Rosreestr a notarized consent to the transaction of the others.
• The registration fee for all types of property and circumstances of re-registration of ownership is 2 thousand rubles. Details for transfer are obtained from the MFC department, Rosreestr, or through the State Services website.

How long does re-registration take?

How long the procedure for re-registration of rights to an apartment will last depends on where the citizen applies. The fastest way to re-register is in Rosreestr.

Here you can receive an extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate a week after submitting the request. If you contact the MFC, the title document for housing will be issued two days later.

You will have to wait approximately the same amount if a citizen decides to submit a request to the registration authority through a private company.

How much does it cost to change ownership and where is it cheaper to arrange it?

Re-registration of ownership of real estate is a paid procedure.
You need to know how much it costs to re-register an apartment for another person. This will allow you to prepare for financial expenses in advance. A state fee is charged for the re-registration of housing ownership rights in Rosreestr and the MFC. The current fee for individuals is 2,000 rubles (clause 22 of Article No. 333.33 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). When contacting private companies, you will have to pay more: in addition to the fee, money is charged for the work of a specialist.

Thus, the basis for re-registration of rights to real estate to another person is a transaction under a purchase and sale agreement. But this is unprofitable financially, since the recipient of the money for housing will have to pay income tax. Therefore, contracts of exchange, donations, and wills are often drawn up. Re-registration of property rights is carried out in Rosreestr or MFC.

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Transaction price and taxes

When selling an apartment, you may be required to pay taxes. If the period of ownership of the premises exceeds 3 years, there is no need to make a contribution to the budget. However, if this period was shorter, the person will be charged 13%. However, you will initially need to determine the basis for calculating the tax. To do this, you have to subtract 1,000,000 rubles from the price for which the person sold the premises. From the resulting amount, calculate 13%. If the price of real estate is less than 1 million rubles, there is no need to pay income tax. When purchasing premises, a person has the right to receive a tax deduction. Its maximum amount is 260,000 rubles for purchases worth 2 million rubles. If desired, the amount can be distributed and received from the sale of several premises. However, the tax deduction base cannot exceed two million rubles.

Buying several apartments whose total price is less than this amount will only split the deduction into parts. Subsequently, the buyer will have to pay property taxes.

By giving the premises as a gift to a husband, wife, or other person, its former owner does not receive any material benefit. This exempts him from paying tax. However, the need to transfer funds to the budget still exists. This responsibility rests with the person who received the property as a gift. The amount of tax directly depends on the degree of relationship of the participant in the transaction. So, if the premises are transferred to a close relative, there is no need to pay tax at all. If the persons are not closely related, you will need to pay 13% of the assessed value of the premises. The amount for calculating the tax amount is the difference between the cost of the premises and one million rubles. If you want to quickly draw up an exchange agreement, you need to take into account a number of nuances. So, if the purchase of real estate was carried out in 2021, the minimum period of ownership of the apartment without the need to pay tax is 5 years. In other situations, depositing funds is mandatory if a person has owned the premises for less than 3 years. If the property is transferred with an additional payment, a tax of 13% will be charged on the additional amount.