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In brief
Accepting an apartment in a new build is done with a handover protocol between the buyer and the developer, usually after the building has been commissioned. The protocol records the condition in which possession is handed over; ownership passes under the notarial deed, not under the protocol. It records the defects found and the deadline for putting them right, while minimum warranty periods under Ordinance No. 2 of 2003 apply to individual construction works. The on-site inspection takes two to three hours and is among the most valuable steps a buyer takes after the purchase itself.
What is the handover protocol?
The handover protocol is the document by which the developer hands over the home and the buyer confirms the condition in which they receive it. It records the meter readings, the keys and documents handed over and - most importantly - every snagging item on the workmanship.
The rule that saves disputes: a defect noted in the protocol is easier to prove and should be given a deadline for repair. Signing without noting anything does not automatically wipe out the buyer's rights over hidden defects that could not reasonably have been spotted at handover - but anything visible and easily checked is far harder to prove once you have signed. That is why the protocol is not signed "on trust", but after walking through the home.
For the buyer of apartments in Burgas the document has a second role: it fixes the condition of the home and the meter readings at the moment of handover. The minimum warranty periods for the construction works run from the commissioning of the building, while the buyer's specific rights against the developer also depend on the contract and the nature of the defect. The electricity and water meter readings recorded in the protocol are the baseline your utility accounts start from - a discrepancy here is hard to fix months later.
The protocol is not a standalone document - it comes as part of the paperwork for the whole deal. Which documents you should have to hand even before this stage we set out in the article on the documents and steps before buying a new build.
When does acceptance happen: where it sits between Act 15 and Act 16?
Acceptance of the home by the buyer usually follows the commissioning of the building - the moment the competent authority issues the permit for use, known in practice as Act 16. Before it comes Act 15, which records the formal acceptance of the completed construction works by the developer or project owner from the contractor.
For the buyer this means two separate events that should not be confused:
• Act 15 establishes the building's readiness for formal acceptance by the developer or project owner. Commissioning, or the permit for use (Act 16), is the subsequent administrative stage, after which the building may lawfully be occupied.
• The handover protocol is between you and the developer - it records the condition in which possession of your specific home is handed over (ownership is settled by the notarial deed).
Moving in and address registration become possible after the permit for use. If your contract provides for turnkey delivery, check exactly what the degree of completion includes - we covered the topic in detail in the article on turnkey finishing in Burgas.
The timing clause also deserves attention: when buying an apartment, the preliminary contract usually sets a deadline within which the developer invites you to the acceptance after the permit for use, and a deadline within which you must attend. Failing to attend without good reason may be read as acceptance with no defects noted - read these clauses in advance and take the date seriously.
How to prepare for the day of acceptance?
Preparation decides more than the inspection itself - an unprepared buyer sees only what they are shown. Three things make for good preparation.
The documents to hand
Bring the contract and the annexes with the stated degree of completion: what flooring, what windows, what sockets and outlets the developer promised. The inspection is a comparison between promised and delivered, not an aesthetic stroll.
The tools
The list is short and cheap: a phase tester or a small socket tester, a phone charger, a spirit level or a tilt app, a tape measure, a strong torch, tape and stickers to flag snags, and a notebook or phone for photos. With these you cover most of the visible problems at the inspection.
The time and the light
Allow at least two hours and an inspection in daylight - the afternoon sun shows up unevenness in walls and sills mercilessly. Do not accept "a quick look at 6 pm, the colleague is waiting". This is your right and in your interest.
What is checked system by system?
The systematic check runs through six groups - below is the working order that professional snagging inspectors also use.
|
System |
What you check |
Common oversight |
|
Electrical |
every socket and switch, consumer unit, doorbell, intercom |
dead outlets behind future furniture |
|
Plumbing |
pressure, hot water, shafts, traps, fall towards them |
slow drainage and reverse fall on the balcony |
|
Windows |
smooth closing, seals, glazing units free of scratches |
warped sashes and loose fittings |
|
Walls and floors |
flatness, cracks, quality of screed and skim |
unevenness visible only at an angle to the light |
|
Heating and cooling |
outlets, capacities, outdoor units per design |
missing or displaced outlets |
|
Common areas and parking |
access, lighting, doors, parking space per layout |
a parking space different from the one bought under the contract |
Electrical installation
Check every point with the tester: sockets, switches, lighting outlets, the consumer unit and fuses, the intercom connection. Record the electricity meter reading in the protocol.
Plumbing and bathrooms
Run all the taps at once and check the pressure; pour water into the traps and check the drainage; inspect the connections under the basins for moisture. On the terraces check the fall towards the drain - a puddle after rain is the most common complaint in a seaside building.
Windows and glazing
Every sash should open, close and lock smoothly, the seals should sit flush, and the glazing units should be free of scratches and of condensation between the panes. In a coastal wind the quality of the fitting shows from the first winter - this is the check with the highest payoff in Burgas.
Walls, floors, ceilings
Look at the surfaces at an angle against the light, check sills and screeds with a level, and flag cracks with a sticker and a photo. Cosmetic snags are recorded too - "it'll sort itself out in the renovation" is at your expense; what is written down is at the developer's.
What happens with the defects found?
The defects found are set out in the protocol with a deadline for repair - this is the standard and proper practice. The developer puts them right at its own expense, and for more substantial items a follow-up inspection of the corrected work is scheduled.
The buyer also has stronger tools for substantial deviations: refusing acceptance until they are put right, when the home does not match what was agreed. Here the contract is your ally or your weakness - it depends on what the handover clauses say. When in doubt, consult a lawyer before signing, not after.
The practical advice: separate minor cosmetic snags, which are noted and fixed as you go, from substantial problems with installations and structural elements, which are grounds to halt the procedure. The list of the most common hidden problems, visible only on a careful inspection, we gathered in the article on the five hidden defects at a viewing of a seaside new build.
How to accept the parking space, storage unit and common areas?
The parking space and the storage unit deserve the same seriousness as the home - yet in practice they are most often skipped. The check takes fifteen minutes and saves months of hassle.
Parking space
Match the number and location against what you bought under the contract and the allocation layout - misassigned parking spaces are a classic error when a whole building is handed over. Park for real: the manoeuvre must be doable with your car, the columns and services must not obstruct the doors, and the lighting and access by fob or card must work.
Storage unit or cellar
Check the numbering, the locking, the lighting and any traces of moisture on the walls and floor - the storage levels are the first place waterproofing problems show up. Record the snags in the same protocol.
Common areas
Walk through the entrance, the stairwell and the landing: lighting, intercom, letterboxes, lift, doors with access control. The common areas are run by the owners' association, but their condition at handover is the developer's responsibility - and it is part of what you paid for in the price per square metre.
When is it right to refuse acceptance?
Refusing acceptance is a legitimate tool, not a conflict - for substantial deviations it protects your strongest card: the money or the keys have not yet been finally exchanged. Three groups of problems justify a refusal until they are put right:
• Core installations not working: electricity, water, drainage, heating - a home without them is not fit for handover, no matter how much the person with the folder is in a hurry.
• Substantial deviations from what was agreed: a different degree of completion, a mismatch in the layout, missing equipment from the specification in a turnkey home.
• Signs of moisture and leak problems: active stains, condensation in enclosed spaces, water in the underground levels around your storage unit or parking space.
The refusal is put in writing: what was found, why it is substantial, the deadline within which you expect repair, and a fresh invitation to acceptance. The tone is businesslike - the aim is a working home, not a dispute. With a reputable developer the procedure passes smoothly; with an unreliable one, the written refusal is the first document you will need.
How does the follow-up inspection work?
The follow-up inspection checks only the items already recorded - which is exactly why the first protocol must be exhaustive. Bring your copy and go point by point: fixed, partially fixed, not fixed. The new state is recorded again, with fresh deadlines for what remains.
A practical detail: photograph every snag at the first acceptance and the same frame at the follow-up. The "was it like that" argument disappears when there are dated photos. In new construction in Burgas with dozens of homes handed over in a short period, good-faith oversights are normal - the documentation is what tells them apart from systematic ones.
What warranties apply after acceptance?
The signed protocol is not the end of the builder's liability - minimum warranty periods for individual construction works and installations are provided under Ordinance No. 2 of 2003. The periods differ by type of work: longest for the structure, shorter for the installations and the finishing works. How exactly a given buyer can exercise their rights against the developer also depends on the purchase contract, the nature of the defect and the other applicable rules - so review the warranty clauses in your contract.
How the warranty is exercised in practice: a written claim to the developer with a description and photos, a reasonable deadline for inspection and repair, and a record of all the communication. Submit the notice in the manner and to the address set out in the contract, and use a method that lets you prove its content and receipt.
For the buyer the takeaway is simple: keep the protocol, the contract and all the correspondence. When buying an apartment in a new build, complete records are essential when enforcing warranty rights.
Which documents should you receive at handover?
Besides the keys, at handover also ask for the documents that are hard to find later:
• a copy of the handover protocol with all the snags and deadlines;
• documents and warranty cards for the installed equipment - boilers, air conditioners, intercom;
• schemes or instructions for the installations, where they exist;
• details of the owners' association manager and the building's rules;
• information on the electricity and water accounts and how to transfer them.
Transferring the accounts into your name is the new owner's first administrative task - do it using the readings recorded in the protocol.
The first month as an owner: what to get done?
The first weeks in the new home are also a period of active watching - that is when the problems the inspection misses show up. The working list:
1. Transfer the electricity and water accounts and declare the property to the municipality for tax and the waste-collection fee within the legal deadline.
2. Take out home insurance - with a mortgage the bank requires it anyway.
3. Live with your senses open: watch for moisture, condensation, noise from installations and drainage problems - and photograph anything unusual.
4. Test the heating and cooling in real conditions in the first season - a warranty claim is easier in the first year than in the fifth.
5. Get involved in the owners' association: the first general meetings of a new building set the rules, the budget and the maintenance for years to come.
Why is acceptance easier with a reputable developer?
The whole procedure above has two versions: with a developer who treats it as a normal part of the job, and one for whom every snag is a dispute. The difference is checked before the purchase: completed buildings, owners willing to talk, the response to claims.
At Piccadilly Residence the process is run by the team of the developer TV Property - a company with more than 30 years in construction, for which handover with a protocol, deadlines on the snags and working warranties are standard practice, not the exception. How quality control looks at turnkey completion by the developer we also showed in the piece on turnkey apartments - cost, quality and control.
For buyers of apartments in Burgas this is perhaps the most practical criterion for choosing a new build: ask how acceptance runs before you sign the preliminary contract. The answer tells you a great deal about everything else.
Short answers on acceptance
Can I refuse to sign the protocol if there are many snags?
Yes - for substantial deviations from what was agreed, you can refuse acceptance until they are put right and request a fresh handover. For minor cosmetic defects the standard practice is signing with the snags recorded and a deadline for repair. What counts as "substantial" depends on the contract, so read the handover clauses in advance.
What happens if I find a defect after signing?
Minimum warranty periods under Ordinance No. 2 of 2003 apply to individual construction works - you submit a written claim to the developer with a description and photos, in the manner and to the address in the contract. Exactly how the right is exercised also depends on the contract and the nature of the defect. Visible defects not recorded in the protocol are harder to claim, which is why the inspection at acceptance matters so much.
Should I hire a professional snagging inspector?
If you doubt your own abilities - yes, the service exists in Burgas too and costs a fraction of the price of a missed defect. Much of the checking, though, is within reach of a prepared buyer with simple tools and two hours. The key is not to sign without a walk-through, with an inspector or without one.
When can I move in and start a renovation?
After the permit for use of the building and the handover of the home with a protocol. If you plan changes to installations or conversions, coordinate them with the developer and the owners' association and take care not to affect the warranties - unauthorised interference in an installation may terminate the warranty liability for it.
Is acceptance different with turnkey completion?
The procedure is the same, but the check is wider: besides the installations and windows, you also accept the flooring, bathrooms, interior doors and installed equipment against the agreed specification. Bring the specification and compare item by item - with turnkey, the discrepancies are most often in the details of the workmanship.