Decline in real estate practice turnover affects notary offices

In 2023, the Financial Supervision Office (BFT) examined nearly 5,000 financial data provided by civil-law notaries. This revealed that a number of offices have been hit hard by declining revenue figures in real estate.

Due to these declining figures, these offices have been placed in the "increased risk" category. A total of 41 of the approximately 760 notary offices are now in this category, according to the BFT annual report (pdf) . According to the BFT, this is a snapshot. In 2022, 26 offices fell into this category.

To research
In addition to the financial assessment of notary offices, the BFT conducted 134 investigations last year. At 84 offices, the investigation examined estate funds and per-address fees. The role of the notary in potentially speculative land transactions was also investigated. Ten offices were involved in this investigation. Both investigations are ongoing this year.

Third-party accounts and income
The notary profession manages a significant amount of money daily. At the end of 2023, all escrow accounts held a total of €5.4 billion. This figure excludes firms that collaborate interdisciplinary. Furthermore, the average practice income per partner per notary office for regular notary offices is most often between €100,000 and €300,000 per year. For interdisciplinary firms, it exceeds €500,000.