Investment property: Sweden

Updated 5 October 2026

Any foreigner can buy property in Sweden: there are no permits, quotas or nationality restrictions.

Title to houses and land is registered by the Swedish mapping, cadastral and land registration authority, and the register is open and reliable. Demand is concentrated in Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö, plus waterside country houses. A purchase does not give the right to live in Sweden: residence is granted for work, business, study or family.

Three forms of ownership

• A freehold house with land. Title is registered in the land register, and the buyer pays stamp duty.
• A cooperative apartment. Most city flats are sold this way: you buy a share in a housing cooperative with the right to use the flat. The cooperative's board approves new members, and the owner pays a monthly fee for upkeep. No stamp duty.
• A freehold apartment. This form has existed since 2009 and is rare; it is registered like a freehold house.

Before buying into a cooperative, always review its annual report and debt: they decide whether the monthly fee will rise.

How much the purchase costs to complete

Dollar amounts use the European Central Bank rate of 5 October 2026, about 10 kronor per dollar.

• Stamp duty on title registration: 1.5% of the price or last year's assessed value, whichever is higher, plus SEK 825, about $85. Companies pay 4.25%. On a SEK 5 million house, about $497,900, the duty is SEK 75,000, about $7,470.
• Mortgage deeds: 2% of new deeds plus SEK 375, about $40, each. Existing deeds pass to the buyer free of charge.
• Filing deadline for registration: three months from the purchase.

Owner's taxes

• Annual municipal property fee for a home in 2026: 0.75% of the assessed value, capped at SEK 10,425, about $1,040.
• Renting out. Income is taxed at 30% after deducting SEK 40,000 a year, about $4,000, and 20% of the rent.
• Sale. Gains on selling a home are taxed at an effective 22%.

How the purchase works

1. Search and viewings. Properties are sold through open bidding, and bids bind neither buyer nor seller.
2. Due diligence. For a house: land register extract, encumbrances and mortgage deeds; for a cooperative: statutes, annual report and debt.
3. Contract. The deal becomes binding only once a written contract is signed, usually with a deposit of about 10%.
4. Payment and handover. The balance is paid on the day the keys are handed over.
5. Registration. A house is registered in the land register, a cooperative flat in the cooperative's member register.

Risks for a foreign buyer

• Swedish banks rarely lend to non-residents, so purchases are usually made with own funds.
• Without a Swedish personal identity number, banking, insurance and utilities are harder.
• A heavily indebted cooperative can sharply raise the monthly fee.

What we do

We shortlist a property for your goal, explain cooperative versus freehold, check the land register, encumbrances and cooperative finances, take part in the bidding, and support the contract, payment and title registration with locally licensed partners. If your goal is to live in Sweden, we tell you upfront which residence grounds fit.

What we do

• Property shortlist for your investment goal
• Legal due diligence on the property
• End-to-end transaction support
• Ownership structuring (company, trust)
• Property management and letting

See also

Company formation · Business account · Personal account · All country programs

FAQ