European Property Rights and Wrongs - Diana Wallis MEP
European Property Rights and Wrongs - Diana Wallis MEP
European Property Rights and Wrongs - Diana Wallis MEP
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misrepresentation of ownership have all caused widespread problems for foreign<br />
buyers. The destabilisation of property markets that results can have a massive<br />
negative impact on the economy <strong>and</strong> reputation of the state.<br />
ELRA<br />
If much of a successful <strong>and</strong> safe real estate transaction is about having access to<br />
the right information <strong>and</strong> correctly administering a transaction to create a registrable<br />
right then the key to successfully managing that process must lie with the<br />
L<strong>and</strong> Registry body. ELRA was created in 2004 by a group of L<strong>and</strong> Registries who<br />
recognised the need for representation <strong>and</strong> co-operation on an EU wide basis.<br />
Their stated aim is the “development <strong>and</strong> underst<strong>and</strong>ing of the role of l<strong>and</strong> registration<br />
in real property <strong>and</strong> capital markets”. They have grown to a membership<br />
of organisations from 20 Member States <strong>and</strong> continue to grow; they are now<br />
co-funded by DG Justice <strong>and</strong> involved in many other EU wide initiatives in the<br />
field of law <strong>and</strong> real property matters. ELRA are leading the way for other professional<br />
organisations to co-ordinate across borders <strong>and</strong> find a common way whilst<br />
respecting local frameworks.<br />
ELRA outline below the CROBECO project which aims to provide a common<br />
framework for purchasing property cross-border throughout the EU Member<br />
States via electronic conveyancing <strong>and</strong> processes, this is an extract from the seminar<br />
presentation given by Gabriel Alonso L<strong>and</strong>eta, President of ELRA.<br />
Modern l<strong>and</strong> registries are the instrument the State utilises to protect real<br />
rights on immovable assets <strong>and</strong> imbue trade with certainty. L<strong>and</strong> registries are<br />
not mere databases. Registration publicity is not mere information, but qualified<br />
information, information with legal value <strong>and</strong> effects.<br />
L<strong>and</strong> registries (LR) dispense reliable information during the decision process<br />
<strong>and</strong> provide legal protection once the right is acquired. But account must be taken<br />
to the fact that not all EU registries have the same organisation <strong>and</strong> the same effects,<br />
<strong>and</strong> not all registries dispense the same degree of protection. In broad terms<br />
we can distinguish two systems in the EU. Deeds system is restricted to filing <strong>and</strong><br />
publicising contracts, to which the system gives the effect of mere third-party enforcement.<br />
Registered contracts prevail over unregistered contracts, but the registry<br />
does not guarantee the buyer’s right. (Negative effect). In the more developed<br />
Title registration systems, only titles <strong>and</strong> jus in rem (rights to things) are entered in<br />
66<br />
Linking up national L<strong>and</strong> Law systems