WHEN LEVYING TAXES AND FEES Notaries take into consideration prices 15% lower than in the beginning of the year

The Guidebook for indicative values of real estate properties - 2009 for Bucharest and the Counties of Călăraşi, Giurgiu, Ialomiţa, Ilfov and Teleorman was sent, as per the Fiscal Code, to all public notary offices and Public Finance Offices affiliated to the Court of Appeal Bucharest. Notaries refer to this as a guideline for calculating taxes and fees for real estate transactions. The indicative values of real estate properties in the 2009 guidebook are below those of 2008, following the price corrections which occurred on the real estate market ever since the end of 2008.

Yesterday, the Board of Directors of the Chamber of Notaries Public Bucharest has announced that the real estate valuation companies which elaborated the guidebook have established a price correction rate of -15% for all the indicative values which are used as a base for calculating taxes and fees. The newly reduced values of immovable assets are applicable as of January 26th, according to a press release sent to our editors.

Tiberiu Tănase, the Secretary General of the Chamber of Notaries Public of Bucharest, made the following statement for our newspaper: "We have filed the guidebook for 2009 with the public finance office, however the guidebook includes the mention that, due to the unpredictable and atypical evolution of the market that is affected by the crisis, price corrections may occur during the year. All public finance offices will be notified of these corrections. Real estate valuators have studied the evolution of prices and of the leu-Euro exchange rate, and have notified us on the necessity of this 15% cut in the value of properties".

Mr. Tănase also said that the big appreciation of the leu against the Euro is not reflected in the Guidebook, as the informative property prices are calculated in Euros. Prices in Euros have dropped vertiginously during a very short period, thus potential buyers will not be seriously affected by the depreciation of the leu against the Euro.

The Guidebook for indicative values of real estate properties - 2009 for the City of Bucharest and the counties of Călăraşi, Giurgiu, Ialomiţa, Ilfov and Teleorman was made by "Euro-Expert" SRL and "Expert Valuation" SRL and is applicable as of January 1st, 2009. For the first time since the annual drafting of this guidebook, valuators have indicated the need for a downward price adjustment, because of the international crisis which has frozen real estate transactions in Romania, starting with the autumn of 2008. The freeze has caused a serious drop in prices at which deals were concluded, as well as in prices requested by owners.