Property owners in Finland must pay taxes and utilities. If you fail to pay your utilities, there may be penalties. To avoid this, you need to contact a professional who can provide you with a chime bank statement template. How much money will it take to maintain a typical apartment or house? How to rent a place, and whether it is possible to earn on it? Answers to these and other questions in our material.
Homeowners in Finland pay an annual property tax and utility bills. The final bill depends on the location, heating system, size of the house or apartment, and purpose of use (for permanent or temporary residence).
The maintenance costs of the apartment are made up of the utility bill and possible payments on the loan taken out by the housing association (HOA). Utility fees include heating, water supply, maintenance of cooperative properties, small routine repairs, accountant and building management services, annual property tax, insurance, cleaning of common areas, etc.
Sometimes the HMOs take out loans during the construction phase or later for renovation work. In this case, the apartment owner is obliged to contribute to the repayment of the loan in equal monthly installments. It is also possible to pay your share of the total GAO loan in one lump sum.
Owners of their own houses and villas pay all their own expenses: heating, water and sewerage, insurance, and annual property tax. The tax is calculated by the local tax office based on the size of the plot and the structures on the plot. Owners of separate houses usually pay a fee for the maintenance of the road leading directly to the plot and a fee for garbage collection.
Property taxes
In Finland, as in most European countries, all property owners pay an annual property tax, irrespective of their nationality and place of residence.
This tax is paid at the beginning of each calendar year. Therefore, even if you sold the object on January 2, you should pay the state the due amount: on January 1, you were still the owner.
Important: Apartment tax is included in the monthly utility bill, so it does not have to be paid separately.
Land tax
In Finland, the annual property tax on residential property, i.e., registered property for permanent residence, is 0.41% of the cadastral value. Dacha owners pay between 0.93% and 2.00%. The local municipality's tax office assesses the property's cadastral value and determines the amount of tax within the specified limits.
When buying a property in Finland, the realtor must provide information on the annual tax amount for a particular property in the current year.
If you own land for construction, the tax is 2-6% of the cadastral value of the plot until it is completed. When construction is completed, you must pay the tax prescribed by the local standard on both the land and the structure located on its territory.