Every property transaction in Germany is handled with the assistance of a notary’s office. This article explains the role notaries play in German property transactions and how they help move a sale forward, to help buyers understand Germany’s property transaction system in more depth.
Notaries Are Empowered by Government Law
The Federal Notaries Act (Bundesnotarordnung, BNotO), enacted in 1961 and amended repeatedly since, including as recently as 2026, is the unified notarial law applied across Germany, setting out rules for notarial institutions, notary associations, and supervisory and disciplinary procedures. It is also the legal basis for notarial bodies such as regional notary chambers and the Federal Chamber of Notaries. Germany’s notarial institutions sit between state bodies and private institutions, and their most distinctive feature is independence and impartiality. Article 1 of the Federal Notaries Act establishes that notarial bodies are independent entities within the public sector — meaning they form a system distinct from other public-sector bodies, while also establishing the neutrality of notarial institutions. Notarial-office numbers in Germany are set according to the needs of orderly administration of justice in each state, not a fixed population ratio; the current national average is around 4.14 notaries per 100,000 people, varying widely by state.
Role in a Property Sale
Because of their independence and neutrality, notarial bodies act as an independent third party in German property sales, handling the administrative and documentary matters related to the transaction, to ensure that both buyer and seller can transact in a relatively fair environment. Germany’s Condominium Act (Wohnungseigentumsgesetz), Article 4, and the Housing Construction and Leasing Act, Article 11, both stipulate that contracts involving real-property rights — particularly the sale, gift, transfer between spouses, exchange, or trust of building leasehold rights and similar — must expressly be notarized for the contract to take effect. Notarization is therefore indispensable to a property sale in Germany.
What the Notary’s Office Handles
1. Drafting the sale contract
The notary’s office drafts the sale contract after receiving the transaction details. Both buyer and seller can negotiate the drafted content; after receiving the draft contract, both sides have about two weeks to discuss it with their own lawyer or agent, review the content, and propose changes.
2. Explaining the contract terms to both parties in detail
Once the contract terms are confirmed, buyer and seller must go together to the notary’s office to hear the notary explain the contract. The notary reads the contract terms aloud in German in front of both parties, and addresses any questions either side has.
3. Witnessing the signing
After the explanation, buyer and seller sign the contract on the spot in front of the notary, who acts as a witness.
4. Handling the documentation
Four to six weeks after both parties sign, the notary’s office sends the contract to both parties in electronic and physical form, and also sends the transaction’s records to the local land registry office to make a provisional transfer entry in the land register.
5. Requesting payment
At the same time, once the notary’s office has confirmed the sale is proceeding as scheduled, it sends a letter requesting the buyer transfer funds to the seller. This means the buyer does not need to worry about confusion over amounts, and the seller does not need to worry about failing to receive the sale proceeds.
Summary
Notarial offices hold an important role in German property transactions, sparing both buyer and seller a great deal of worry, because the neutrality granted to them by law ensures that no one is treated unfairly as a result.
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