Law no. 207/2025, publicly referred to as the “Nordis Law”, entered into force on 11 December 2025, introducing substantial changes to the legal framework applicable to real estate projects under development.
The new regulation aims to strengthen buyer protection and contractual discipline in the real estate market and has a direct impact on investment structuring, financing mechanisms, and legal risk management for both investors and buyers.
- Purpose of the regulation
Law no. 207/2025 was adopted against the background of significant market dysfunctions, with the primary objective of preventing situations in which buyers or investors bear disproportionate risks compared to developers, particularly in relation to:
- early-stage development projects;
- inadequately secured sale and purchase promises;
- substantial advance payments made prior to completion.
2. Key aspects for buyers and investors
2.1. Advance payment capped at 5% of the total price
Law no. 207/2025 introduces a fundamental change regarding the financing of real estate projects under development by capping the advance payment that may be requested from a buyer at a maximum of 5% of the total purchase price, at the time of entering into a sale and purchase promise agreement.
This measure:
- significantly reduces the buyer’s financial exposure at early project stages;
- limits the practice of financing development works through buyers’ funds;
- reallocates development risk to the developer or institutional lenders.
From an investor’s perspective, this limitation requires a reassessment of project cash-flow structures and financing models previously used on the Romanian real estate market.
2.2. Strict regulation of pre-apartment allocation (“pre-apartmentation”)
The law introduces strict conditions regarding pre-apartment allocation, significantly restricting the reservation and marketing of individual units in the absence of minimum legal certainty elements.
In practice, pre-apartmentation is permitted only if, cumulatively, the following conditions are met:
- clear and undisputed title over the land;
- completion of key stages of the construction permitting process;
- clear technical delineation of future individual units.
In the absence of these conditions, any form of reservation, advance payment or contractual commitment may qualify as an unlawful practice, with direct consequences for the validity of the contractual arrangements.
2.3. Restrictions on additional payments prior to completion
The law limits the developer’s ability to request additional payments, regardless of their contractual denomination (fees, instalments, contributions), prior to completion of the construction works and registration of the property.
Contractual mechanisms that:
- indirectly exceed the 5% cap;
- transfer development risks to the buyer at an early stage;
- condition unit reservation on significant advance payments,
may be deemed non-compliant with the new legal framework.
2.4. Strengthened guarantees in favour of buyers
The new regulation requires a strict correlation between amounts paid by buyers and the guarantees granted in return, encouraging the use of:
- escrow accounts;
- bank guarantees;
- clear contractual refund mechanisms in case of non-performance.
For investors, this aspect is essential when assessing the level of capital protection associated with a real estate project.
3. Legal risks of non-compliance
Failure to comply with the provisions of Law no. 207/2025 may result in:
- administrative fines;
- nullity of certain contractual clauses;
- mandatory refund of amounts received;
- exposure to complex commercial litigation.
4. Practical recommendations
In light of the new legal requirements, we recommend:
- careful legal review of sale and purchase promise agreements prior to execution;
- conducting comprehensive legal due diligence on target real estate projects;
- renegotiating payment mechanisms and contractual guarantees;
- obtaining specialized legal advice before committing significant investment capital.
Considering the above our firm may assist you with specialized legal advice for:
- compliance assessments under Law no. 207/2025;
- structuring real estate investments;
- negotiation and adaptation of contractual documentation;
- representation in disputes arising from the application of the new legal framework.
Should you require further information please do not hesitate to contact us.
