Preliminary sale agreement checklist for Switzerland
Land sale contract and preliminary contract: checklist to review the notary's draftGrundstückkaufvertrag und Vorvertrag: Prüfliste zum Entwurf der Urkundsperson
Swiss law has no private preliminary sale agreement. A sale of land, a preliminary contract, a purchase option and a pre-emption right at a fixed price all need a public deed. This checklist helps a buyer or seller review the notary's draft before signing.
Use it once the parties agree on the price and the notary has sent a draft of the sale contract (Kaufvertrag), or of a preliminary contract (Vorvertrag) or purchase option (Kaufsrecht) if the sale cannot complete yet, for example for a flat that is still being built. Go through each item, ask the notary to explain or change any clause you do not understand, and take independent advice for a large or unusual purchase.
Reviewed October 28, 2026. Not legal advice. Have a notary or lawyer check your case before you sign.
Key facts
- Applies to
- German-speaking cantons, with Zurich details. The form rules are federal and apply in every canton.
- Form
- Public deed for the sale, the preliminary contract, a purchase option or a pre-emption right with a fixed price (OR Art. 216).
- Maximum duration of rights
- Purchase option 10 years, pre-emption and repurchase rights 25 years (OR Art. 216a).
- Notice of defects
- 60 days. For a defect that a normal inspection could not reveal, 60 days after discovery (OR Art. 219a para 1, since 1 January 2026).
- Shorter notice period
- A shorter period agreed in the deed has no effect (OR Art. 219a para 1).
- Limitation of defect claims
- 5 years from the transfer of ownership. It cannot be shortened against the buyer (OR Art. 219a para 3).
- New buildings
- If the building is still to be built or is less than 2 years old, the buyer can demand free repair of defects (OR Art. 219a para 2).
- Builders' lien
- Contractors can register a lien up to 4 months after they finish the work, even against a new owner (ZGB Art. 837 and 839).
- Benefit and risk
- Presumed to pass to the buyer on the handover date fixed in the contract (OR Art. 220).
- Leases in place
- Pass to the buyer, who can end a residential lease early only for urgent own use, with legal notice to the next legal date (OR Art. 261).
- Zurich costs
- No transfer tax since 2005. Notary and land registry fees apply, and the property secures the seller's property gains tax.
The checklist
Before the notary drafts the deed
Send the notary the contract data: parties, property, price, payment, handover date and special termsVertragsangaben
The notary drafts the deed from these data. In Zurich the Notariate publish a form for them.
Written mortgage confirmation from the bankFinanzierungsbestätigung
The deed binds you to pay. Without financing you risk damages. At least 10% of the lending value must be funds outside the 2nd pillar.
Check whether the buyer is a person abroad under the Lex KollerBewilligungspflicht nach BewG
Consent of the seller's spouse if the property is the family homeZustimmung des Ehegatten (Art. 169 ZGB)
Without express consent the sale of the family home is not valid.
Parties and property in the draft
Full identity of every seller and buyer, and how joint buyers will own (shares or joint ownership)Miteigentum, Gesamteigentum
The form of ownership decides who can sell later and what happens on death or separation.
Property description matching the current land register extract: plot number, area, condominium unit and value quotaGrundstückbeschrieb, Wertquote
The deed transfers what the land register describes, not what the listing promised.
Easements, land charges, notes and mortgages listed in the deed, and which mortgages the seller must clearDienstbarkeiten, Anmerkungen, Grundpfandrechte
The buyer takes over every right that stays registered. Mortgage notes the seller keeps must be released or transferred at completion.
Leases that pass to the buyer, with rents and depositsMietverträge (Art. 261 OR)
Leases pass with the property. You can end a residential lease early only for urgent own use.
Price, payment and taxes
Price, payment date and payment method, and the handover date that moves benefit and riskKaufpreis, Zahlungsmodalitäten, Antritt
Benefit and risk pass on the agreed handover date. Make it match the payment date and the land register filing.
Security for the seller's property gains taxSicherstellung der Grundstückgewinnsteuer
In Zurich the property secures the tax. If the seller does not pay, the buyer can end up paying it.
Who pays notary fees, land registry fees and any cantonal transfer taxGebühren, Handänderungssteuer
Warranty and defects
Scope of any warranty exclusion, and a list of defects the seller knowsGewährleistungsausschluss
An exclusion is common for existing buildings. It does not cover defects the seller fraudulently hid (OR Art. 199).
Notice period for defects and limitation periodMängelrüge, Verjährung (Art. 219a OR)
For a new or off-plan building: free repair, completion date, handover inspection and protection against builders' liensNachbesserung, Bauhandwerkerpfandrecht
The buyer of a building less than 2 years old can demand free repair. Unpaid contractors can register a lien for 4 months after finishing.
Preliminary contract, option and reservation
Any reservation agreement already signed. Ask the notary to record the refund or credit the payment against the price.Reservationsvereinbarung
Without a public deed it is void. So is a clause to keep the payment, unless it covers only costs the seller wasted in reliance on the sale.
For a preliminary contract or purchase option: end date, conditions, price and what happens to any down paymentVorvertrag, Kaufsrecht
Both need a public deed. A purchase option can last at most 10 years and can be noted in the land register.
Pre-emption rights of neighbours, co-owners or the municipalityVorkaufsrecht
A registered or legal pre-emption right can let someone else buy the property at your price.
Signing and completion
Read the final draft in full before the appointment and bring valid identity documentsBeurkundungstermin
Both parties sign the deed before the notary. After signing you are bound.
Confirmation of the land register entryGrundbucheintrag
You become owner only when the land register records the transfer (ZGB Art. 656).
Formalities
A private template would be void, and so is a private reservation agreement with a reservation fee (OR Art. 216). The notary must draft the deed, so this list gives the points to check.
- The notary drafts the deed from data the parties supply. Both parties sign it before the notary.
- A contract, preliminary contract or option signed only privately is void (OR Art. 216).
- The buyer becomes owner only when the land register records the sale (ZGB Art. 656).
- In Zurich the state notary office of the district draws up the deed and receives the land register filing.
- Bern, Basel, Aargau and the French- and Italian-speaking cantons use freelance notaries. They file the deed with the cantonal land register.
- A spouse must consent expressly to the sale of the family home (ZGB Art. 169).
- A person abroad may need a permit under the Lex Koller before the land register accepts the filing.
- The seller owes the cantonal property gains tax. The property secures the tax, so the deed usually provides security for it.
Common mistakes
- Signing a private reservation agreement with a fee before the deed. It is void, and its penalty clause usually is too. Reclaim the money if the sale fails.
- Accepting a broad warranty exclusion without reading it. It is allowed for an existing building, but not for defects the seller fraudulently hid (OR Art. 199).
- Not asking the seller to list the known defects in the deed.
- Missing the 60-day notice period after you discover a defect. Send the notice in writing and keep proof.
- Paying the full price without securing the seller's property gains tax. In Zurich the property secures it, so the buyer may pay it if the seller does not.
- Buying a new or recently renovated building without checking that contractors are paid. Ask for paid final invoices or a security in the deed.
- Forgetting the spouse. If the property is the seller's family home, the spouse must consent expressly, even if only one spouse owns it.
- Agreeing a preliminary contract or purchase option without a long-stop date or without saying what happens to the down payment if the main contract fails.
Legal basis
- Obligationenrecht (OR, SR 220), Art. 216 and 216a (form and duration)
- Obligationenrecht (OR, SR 220), Art. 197 and 199 (warranty and its exclusion) and Art. 219a (notice, free repair and limitation), Art. 219a inserted by the Federal Act of 20 December 2024 on building defects (AS 2025 270), in force since 1 January 2026
- Obligationenrecht (OR, SR 220), Art. 220 (benefit and risk) and Art. 261 (sale of a let property)
- Zivilgesetzbuch (ZGB, SR 210), Art. 169 (family home), 656 and 657 (land register, public deed), 837 and 839 (builders' lien)
- Bundesgericht, BGE 140 III 200 and Urteil 4A_109/2018 vom 8. November 2018 (reservation agreement is a preliminary contract and needs a public deed)