General Terms and Conditions
These terms and conditions comply with Directive 2011/83/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2011 on consumer rights, Act No. 250/2007 Coll. on consumer protection, Act No. 102/2014 Coll. on consumer protection in the sale of goods or provision of services under a distance contract or an off-premises contract, other legal regulations of the Slovak Republic and the highest standards of fair brokerage of the sale, lease and purchase of real estate.
Article I.
GENERAL PROVISIONS
1. These General Terms of Brokerage (hereinafter the “Terms” or “GTC”) govern the rights and obligations of the Broker and the Client in connection with brokering the purchase, sale, lease or rental of real estate arising from a concluded Brokerage Agreement (hereinafter also the “Agreement”), part of whose content is determined by reference to these Terms. These Terms form an integral part of the Agreement. Legal relations established by the Agreement are governed by the provisions of the Agreement, the provisions of these Terms and the applicable legal regulations. The provisions of the Agreement take precedence over the provisions of these Terms.
2. Legal relations governed by these Terms are subject to the relevant provisions of Act No. 513/1991 Coll., the Commercial Code, as amended.
Article II.
DEFINITIONS
Terms stated in this Article with a capital initial letter have the meaning given in this Article in these Terms or in other documents to which these Terms relate, unless stated otherwise in these Terms or in other documents.
Brokerage Agreement– (brokerage contract) under which the Broker undertakes to arrange for the Client, for a commission, the conclusion of a Contract for the transfer of ownership of the Real Estate or a Lease Contract for the Real Estate with a third party, and the Client undertakes to pay the Broker a commission if the result was achieved through the Broker’s efforts.
Lease Contract– a contract under which the landlord leaves real estate or part of it to a third party (tenant) for use for an agreed payment (rent). A sublease contract or any other contract by which the Client leaves the Real Estate to a third party for temporary use is also considered a Lease Contract
Real Estate– real estate determined (or characterised by type) in Act No. 162/1995 Coll., the Cadastral Act, which is the subject of the Brokerage Agreement.
Lump-sum Reimbursement of Expenses– a lump-sum compensation representing all expenses incurred by the Broker in connection with fulfilling the obligations arising from the Contract. The Lump-sum Reimbursement of Expenses represents in particular the costs of advertising and professional assistance provided, including legal assistance provided by a law firm. Unless the Parties agree otherwise, the Lump-sum Reimbursement of Expenses amounts to eighty percent of the Broker’s commission determined in the Brokerage Agreement. The Parties declare that the Lump-sum Reimbursement of Expenses determined in this way is sufficient and reasonable.
Non-exclusive brokerage– a form of brokerage in which the Client is entitled to conclude a brokerage contract with persons other than the Broker or to arrange the conclusion of the Contract itself. Provisions 7.3 and 10.4 of these Terms do not apply to non-exclusive brokerage.
Viewing: accompanying potential buyers and interested parties in the premises of the real estate being sold or offered and answering their questions. Taking one’s own photographs during a viewing is expressly prohibited.
Real estate services– brokering the sale, lease or purchase of real estate.
Party (plural Parties)– the contracting party (parties) to the Contract, i.e. the Broker and/or the Client.
Serious reason– a reason on the part of a contracting Party which, for objective reasons, directly makes it impossible to fulfil an obligation set out in the Contract or the Terms. Serious reasons include war, state of war, state of exception, state of emergency, hospitalisation of a Party for more than ten days, serious injury to the health of a Party, death of a relative of a Party in the direct line, a sibling, spouse or partner. Serious reasons do not include reasons of which the Party was aware before concluding the Contract or whose consequences it could have foreseen.
Exclusive brokerage– a form of brokerage agreed for a fixed period, during which, by the Client’s will, the Broker is the only person entitled to broker the sale of the Real Estate, as set out in the Brokerage Agreement. Unless the Parties agree otherwise, in exclusive brokerage the Client is not entitled to arrange the conclusion of the Contract through a third party (e.g. another broker) or by itself. Provisions 7.3 and 10.4 of these Terms are effective and binding on both Parties only for the duration of the exclusive brokerage.
Client– the contracting party to the Brokerage Agreement who is designated as such in the Brokerage Agreement.
Contract– a Contract for the transfer of ownership of the Real Estate, a Purchase Contract or a Lease Contract for the Real Estate between the Client and a third party. The term contract also means any other unnamed contract or agreement from which mutual rights and obligations arise.
Contract for the transfer of ownership of the Real Estate– any contract, for consideration or free of charge, resulting in the transfer of ownership of the Real Estate or the transfer of a business share or equity interest in a company that owns the Real Estate.
Article III.
GENERAL OBLIGATIONS OF THE BROKER
1. The Broker undertakes to arrange for the Client, for a commission, the conclusion of the Contract in accordance with the conditions set out in the Brokerage Agreement.
2. The Broker is obliged to act with professional care and in accordance with the legal regulations of the Slovak Republic
3. The Broker is obliged to inform the Client without undue delay of all important facts related to the brokerage, in particular facts that may influence the Client’s decision to conclude the Contract.
4. The scope of services provided by the Broker to the Client is set out in the Brokerage Agreement.
5. The Broker is not liable to the Client for the fulfilment of obligations of third parties under concluded Contracts.
Article IV.
OBLIGATIONS OF THE BROKER when brokering the sale or lease of the Real Estate
1. The Broker is obliged to actively search for third parties interested in concluding the Contract with the Client.
2. The Parties have agreed that when the Real Estate is offered for sale, the Broker will offer the Real Estate at the price requested by the Client plus the Broker’s commission, and when the Real Estate is offered for lease, the Broker will offer the Real Estate at the (monthly) rent requested by the Client plus the cost of utilities requested by the Client.
3. If the Broker takes over the keys to the Real Estate, the Broker undertakes to:
(A). take careful care of the keys and protect them against loss, damage, theft or destruction,
(B). maintain order and quiet in the Real Estate when visiting it,
(C). visit the Real Estate only in connection with performing activities under the Agreement, while ensuring that no damage is caused to the real estate and/or the Client’s property in it during the visit/viewing,
(D). lock the Real Estate carefully when leaving and secure it against unauthorised interference
4. The Parties will confirm the handover of the keys in a handover protocol.
Article V.
OBLIGATIONS OF THE BROKER when brokering the purchase or lease of the Real Estate
1. The Broker is obliged to actively search for third parties – owners of real estate who are interested in concluding the Contract with the Client.
2. The Parties have agreed that if the Client is interested in purchasing real estate, the Broker will search for real estate at the price requested by the Client, and if the Client is interested in leasing real estate, the Broker will search for real estate at the (monthly) rent requested by the Client including the cost of utilities.
Article VI.
GENERAL OBLIGATIONS OF THE CLIENT
1. The Client undertakes to pay the Broker a commission if the Contract was concluded through the Broker’s efforts, as follows from the Brokerage Agreement.
2. The Client is obliged to inform the Broker without undue delay of all important facts related to the brokerage, in particular facts that may influence the Client’s decision to conclude the Contract.
3. The Client is obliged to provide the Broker with the cooperation necessary to achieve the result of the Brokerage Agreement.
4. At the Broker’s request, the Client is obliged to hand over to the Broker all documents and materials the Broker needs to fulfil the subject of the Brokerage Agreement.
Article VII.
OBLIGATIONS OF THE CLIENT when brokering the sale or lease of the Real Estate
1. The Client is obliged to make the Real Estate accessible to third parties who have expressed interest in a personal viewing of the Real Estate. At the same time, the Client is obliged, upon request, to submit to the Broker all documents showing the Client’s right to dispose of the Real Estate.
2. The Client is obliged to allow access to the Real Estate to persons acting on behalf of the Broker (hereinafter the “Agent”), court experts and other qualified persons, and to allow them to carry out all acts necessary to obtain detailed information about the Real Estate.
3. If the Parties have agreed on exclusive brokerage, the Client undertakes not to conclude, during the term of the exclusive brokerage, any brokerage agreement, brokerage contract, contract for arranging the sale of a thing or any other similar contract whose subject would be brokering the transfer of ownership of the Real Estate or the lease of the Real Estate. Otherwise, the Client undertakes to pay the Broker the Lump-sum Reimbursement of Expenses amounting to 100% of the commission. The Parties declare that the amount of the Lump-sum Reimbursement of Expenses is reasonable with regard to the increased expenses and activity of the Broker in exclusive brokerage, as in the case of exclusive brokerage the Broker incurs significantly higher expenses for advertising and related services.
4. The Lump-sum Reimbursement of Expenses determined in point 7.3 is payable to the Broker’s account no later than 10 days from delivery of the request addressed to the Client.
5. If the Broker carries out a viewing of the real estate with a third party who had already been introduced to the Client earlier (e.g. by another broker), the Client is obliged to inform the Broker of this in writing (e.g. in the viewing protocol), without delay and no later than at the first viewing of the third party with the Broker; otherwise the third party is deemed unknown to the Client.
OBLIGATIONS OF THE CLIENT when brokering the purchase or lease of the Real Estate
1. If the Broker carries out a viewing with the Client of real estate that had already been introduced to the Client by another person (e.g. another broker), the Client is obliged to inform the Broker of this in writing (e.g. in the viewing protocol), without delay and no later than at the first viewing with the Broker; otherwise the Real Estate is deemed unknown to the Client.
Article IX.
PROVISIONS ON COMMISSION
1. The Broker becomes entitled to the commission on the day the Contract is signed, unless agreed otherwise in the Brokerage Agreement.
2. The commission is payable upon signing the Contract, unless agreed otherwise in the Brokerage Agreement.
3. The commission is paid by bank transfer or in cash. The Client may pay the commission in cash only to an authorised person of the Broker.
Article X.
PROVISIONS ON COMMISSION when brokering the sale or lease of the Real Estate
1. If the subject of the brokerage is the sale or lease of the Real Estate, the amount of the Broker’s commission is set out in the Brokerage Agreement. The Parties declare that this way of agreeing the brokerage commission is sufficiently clear and definite.
2. If the price for the sale or lease of the Real Estate requested by the Client is reduced below the amount stated in the Brokerage Agreement, the Broker’s entitlement to the commission remains in the amount set out in the Brokerage Agreement, unless the Parties agree otherwise.
3. The Broker is also entitled to the commission if the Client, without further cooperation of the Broker, concludes the Contract with a third party whom the Broker identified as a person suitable for concluding such a Contract (e.g. by carrying out a viewing of the Real Estate with this person). The Broker is equally entitled to the commission if the Client concludes the Contract with a person who is connected in terms of property or personnel with the person identified by the Broker as suitable for concluding such a Contract. The Broker is also entitled to the commission if the Client concludes the Contract with a person close to the person identified by the Broker as suitable for concluding such a Contract.
4. If exclusive brokerage has been agreed between the contracting parties for the sale or lease of the Real Estate and the Client concludes a Contract for the Real Estate without any connection to the Broker’s activity during the effective exclusive brokerage, or if the Client refuses without Serious reasons to conclude the Contract with a third party, the Client undertakes to pay the Broker the Lump-sum Reimbursement of Expenses amounting to 100% of the commission. The Parties declare that the amount of the Lump-sum Reimbursement of Expenses is reasonable with regard to the increased expenses and activity of the Broker in exclusive brokerage.
5. The Lump-sum Reimbursement of Expenses determined in point 10.4 is payable to the Broker’s account no later than 10 days from delivery of the request addressed to the Client.
Article XI.
PROVISIONS ON COMMISSION when brokering the purchase or lease of the Real Estate
1. If the subject of the brokerage is the purchase or lease of the Real Estate, the amount of the commission is set out in the Brokerage Agreement. The Parties declare that this way of agreeing the brokerage commission is sufficiently clear and definite.
2. The Broker is also entitled to the commission if the Client, without further cooperation of the Broker, concludes the Contract with a third party whom the Broker identified as a person suitable for concluding such a Contract (e.g. by carrying out a viewing of real estate owned by this person). The Broker is equally entitled to the commission if the Client concludes the Contract with a person who is connected in terms of property or personnel with the person identified by the Broker as suitable for concluding such a Contract. The Broker is also entitled to the commission if the Client concludes the Contract with a person close to the person identified by the Broker as suitable for concluding such a Contract.
3. When brokering the purchase or lease of real estate, the Broker’s entitlement to the commission also remains if the Client concludes a Contract for real estate that was introduced to the Client by the Broker, even though its parameters differ from those the Client stated to the Broker as required or that were defined in the Brokerage Agreement.
4. When concluding the Brokerage Agreement, the Broker is entitled to request from the Client an advance payment towards the Lump-sum Reimbursement of Expenses or the commission.
Article XII.
DELIVERY
1. Documents are delivered to the other Party at the address stated in the Brokerage Agreement, or at another address that this Party has expressly designated as its delivery address. The day of delivery of a document is the day on which the addressee received it, or the day on which the addressee refused to accept it, or the day on which the document was returned to the sender as undelivered.
2. Communication between the Parties takes place primarily by e-mail (to the addresses stated in the Brokerage Agreement) or by telephone. Consent expressed by the other Party in an e-mail message is considered a supplement or amendment to the Brokerage Agreement. An e-mail message is deemed delivered on the day following its sending, unless an earlier date of delivery is proven.
3. A Party that has changed its address is obliged to inform the other Party without undue delay.
Article XIII.
TERMINATION OF THE BROKERAGE AGREEMENT
1. The Brokerage Agreement terminates upon fulfilment of its subject, by agreement of the parties, by written notice, or upon dissolution of the Broker without a legal successor.
2. If the Parties have agreed on non-exclusive brokerage in the Brokerage Agreement, each of the contracting parties is entitled to terminate the agreement in writing at any time, unless agreed otherwise.
3. If the Parties have agreed on exclusive brokerage in the Brokerage Agreement, either contracting party may terminate the agreement at the earliest after the period for which the exclusive brokerage was agreed has expired, and before that period expires only if the Broker is demonstrably inactive.
4. The notice takes effect on the day the written notice is delivered to the other Party, or on a later day if a later day is stated in the notice.
Article XIV.
FINAL PROVISIONS
1. The Brokerage Agreement is concluded for an indefinite period.
2. The Brokerage Agreement enters into force and effect on the day of its signing.
3. The Brokerage Agreement is executed in two counterparts, one for each contracting party. Any changes and amendments may only be made by agreement of the parties and exclusively in writing.
4. The Client acknowledges that their personal data are processed in accordance with Act No. 18/2018 Coll. on the protection of personal data and on amendments to certain acts.
5. The Client gives consent to the use of general information about the Real Estate and photo documentation of the Real Estate for the purpose of advertising in print media, on the Internet, etc.
6. These Terms form an integral part of the Brokerage Agreement concluded between the Broker and the Client and are binding on both Parties. Legal relations arising from it are governed by the Terms in effect at the time the Brokerage Agreement was concluded.
7. The Brokerage Agreement and the Terms are governed in their entirety by the legal order of the Slovak Republic.
