From the date the contract of sale is signed, the buyer has two months in which to lodge the contract with the Land Registry Office for 'specific performance purposes'. This is very important for the buyer's protection, for two reasons:

Firstly, once the contract has been lodged, the buyer is recognised as the beneficial owner of that property until the day he becomes the beneficial and legal owner by transferring the title deed into his name. Therefore the buyer's interest is protected, because the Land Registry Office has a clear declaration that the buyer has bought the property in question.

Secondly, it will ensure that the title deed will pass over to the buyer even if the vendor is not willing to act for that purpose. Title deeds are normally ready in approximately three years, after completion of the project, which is standard practice in Cyprus (unless the property sold was built some years ago and is a single project; in these cases the Title Deed is available when the contract is signed).

If the vendor is delaying or refusing to pass over the Deeds, the buyer can file an action against the vendor and ask the court inter alia for an injunction for specific performance, otherwise the buyer would have to take action for damages which is an undesirable, especially when the property could be worth maybe another 40% in three years time.