Selling your home: what belongs in your home file

When you sell a home, the questions come in. From your estate agent, from buyers, from their surveyor and from the notary or conveyancer. How old is the boiler? When was the roof last checked? Was there a permit for that extension? If you have those answers ready, the sale runs more smoothly and buyers trust what they see.

We call that collection of papers and details a home file: everything about your property in one place. This guide covers what goes in it, what is usually required and what is simply very useful.

Why a home file helps

• You meet your disclosure duties. In most European countries, a seller has to tell buyers about known defects. The exact rules differ per country, but a complete file helps you not to forget anything.
• Less back and forth. Buyers and their advisers tend to ask the same questions. Having the answers ready saves days.
• Trust. A buyer who can see the boiler has been serviced and the roof inspected knows what they are getting.

To be clear: this is a practical checklist, not legal advice. Your agent and notary or lawyer will tell you what is needed in your country and situation.

What is usually required

Energy performance certificate

Across the EU, an energy performance certificate (EPC) is required when you sell or rent out a home. Under the EU buildings directive, the energy rating also has to be shown in property advertisements, and a certificate is valid for at most ten years. Each country organises the details itself, including who may issue a certificate and what fine applies if you do not have one. In the Netherlands, for instance, the certificate has to be registered before the transfer at the notary.

If you already have one, check that it is still valid.

Title and ownership documents

Your notary or lawyer handles the transfer, but it helps to have your own purchase deed and title documents from when you bought the home. They show things like rights of way or other easements and any special conditions.

For an apartment: owners’ association papers

If you are selling a flat in a building with an owners’ association, buyers want to know how that association is doing. Make sure you have, or know where to request:

• the deed of division and the association’s rules;
• the latest annual accounts and budget;
• the long-term maintenance plan and the size of the reserve fund;
• minutes of recent meetings, especially where big decisions were taken;
• your monthly service charge.

Leasehold or ground rent

If the land is leasehold, the terms, the ground rent and the remaining term belong in the file.

What makes your file strong

Not required, but valuable. The more of this is complete, the fewer questions you get.

Installations and appliances

Item	What to keep
Boiler or heat pump	Brand, type, year installed, last service report
Solar panels	Number, year, invoice, warranty for panels and inverter
Built-in kitchen appliances	Brand, model, purchase date, warranty, manuals
Mechanical ventilation	Type, last filter change
Fuse box / consumer unit	Any inspection or replacement, with date
EV charger, air conditioning, awnings	Invoice, warranty, manual

If appliances stay in the home, buyers appreciate receiving the receipts and warranty papers too. Whether a warranty transfers to the new owner depends on the manufacturer’s or installer’s terms, but an overview with purchase dates and shops still helps. How to keep those receipts organised is covered in our guide to the EU legal guarantee on appliances.

Maintenance and renovations

• Maintenance history: when was the boiler serviced, the chimney swept, the roof checked, the exterior painted? With dates and who did it.
• Major works: what was done, when, by whom and under what guarantee. A new roof, windows, insulation or an extension.
• Permits: for an extension, a dormer or other works that needed permission, buyers want to see that it was granted.
• Drawings: floor plans and drawings of renovations. If you do not have them, your municipality’s building archive may.

If you have kept a home maintenance schedule for a few years, this part of the file is largely done.

Financial and other

• recent property tax and municipal charges;
• utility and service costs, so buyers can estimate their fixed costs;
• an asbestos survey, if you have one, especially for older homes built before the national asbestos ban (between the 1980s and 2005, depending on the country);
• reports from earlier building surveys;
• guarantee certificates from contractors, such as the roofer.

Practical notes for the next occupant

Not for the deed, but for handover day. A short “where is what” sheet is almost always appreciated:

• where the main water valve and gas shut-off are;
• which fuse or breaker belongs to which room;
• the correct boiler pressure and how to top it up;
• bin collection days;
• which installer and plumber know the house.

How to build the file

1. Start with what you have. Scan paper documents and gather digital files from your inbox in one place.
2. Sort by topic: property, financial, building, installations.
3. Fill the gaps. Ask the installer for a missing service report, the association’s manager for its papers, the municipality for drawings.
4. Keep it up to date. Add each service or purchase as it happens. Then your file is ready the moment you decide to sell, rather than after weeks of searching.

So the best time to start a home file is not when you sell. It is now.

How Domeaz helps

In Domeaz the papers of your home live together: the energy certificate, purchase deed, owners’ association papers or building drawings, each stored as a document with the home. Appliances are recorded with brand, model, serial number, receipt and warranty, and maintenance with date, who did it and what it cost. “Where is what” details, like the main water valve and the fuse box, go into the home information.

You can export everything at any time as a single zip file, with all your documents, photos and receipts. Domeaz is free to start and stores your data in the EU. More about Domeaz.