Right of disposal when buying a home: how to get the keys before the handover day

It sounds like a practical detail. But from the access date, liability, maintenance, insurance and utilities can pass to you. That is why the agreement must be clear before the keys change hands.

In brief

• Right of disposal is an agreement that you may use the home before the handover day.
• You have no automatic right to get the keys early. The seller can say no.
• The access date, access, liability and permitted work must be set out in writing.
• From the access date, the buyer typically takes over maintenance and utilities such as electricity, water and heating.^[1]
• Insurance cover must match the access date, not only the later handover day.
• Getting the keys early does not mean the deed (skøde), land registration (tinglysning) and the legal handover day disappear.
• If you actually move in, your moving date is the day you move your belongings in and sleep at the address.^[2]

What is the right of disposal when buying a home?

Right of disposal is the right to use a home from an agreed date, even though the official handover day is later.

In practice, it often means the seller hands over the keys so you can:

• Take measurements
• Paint walls and ceilings
• Sand floors
• Clean
• Let tradespeople in
• Prepare for the move
• Move in, if the agreement allows it

The right of disposal does not arise automatically because the home is empty. It must be agreed between buyer and seller.

The purchase agreement (købsaftale) is the parties' contract covering, among other things, price, handover day and other terms. The right of disposal should therefore be clearly stated in the agreement or in a later written addendum.^[3]

The access date and the handover day are not the same

The terms are easily mixed up, because both dates are about when you get the home.

The access date

The access date is the date from which you may use the home under the agreement you have made with the seller.

The handover day

The handover day is the date agreed as the legal and financial takeover date in the sale. It is used in the purchase agreement, the deed and the subsequent financial settlement, among other things.

You can therefore be holding the keys without the two dates having become one.

An example:

• Access date: 15 June
• Handover day: 1 July

From 15 June, you may use the home within the agreed limits. The formal handover still takes place on 1 July.

Can you get the keys before the handover day?

Yes, if you and the seller agree.

Boligejer.dk explains that buyer and seller can agree to hand over the keys before the original handover day. This happens, for example, when the seller has already moved out and the home would otherwise stand empty.^[4]

The seller does not have to accept the request. It can be an advantage for you if you want to paint or move without everything happening at once. For the seller, it means someone else gets access to the home while the sale has not yet reached the original handover day.

That is why a verbal yes at the kitchen table is not enough. The agreement must be something you can read again if doubt arises later.

What should the agreement on the right of disposal say?

A clear agreement can describe, among other things:

• The exact access date
• The time the keys are handed over
• Whether you may move in or only get the home ready
• Which work you may carry out
• Who pays for electricity, water and heating
• Who has the maintenance obligation
• How the risk of damage is allocated
• Which insurance policies must be active
• How the meters are read
• What happens if, against expectations, the sale does not go through

The seller will normally also want security that the sale can be completed before the keys are handed over. Boligejer.dk points to, among other things, a deposit (deponering), a signed deed and documentation of the sale as key matters before handover.^[4]

If the agreement on the right of disposal is made after the purchase agreement has been signed, it can be written as an addendum that both parties accept.

Who is liable from the access date?

When you get access to the home, you typically take on more than the right to paint a wall.

Boligejer.dk explains that the maintenance obligation and the costs of the home's utilities normally pass to the buyer from the access date.^[1]

This can include, among other things:

• Damage that occurs after the keys are handed over
• Frost damage or water leaks
• Snow clearing and gritting
• Damage in connection with tradespeople
• Electricity, water and heating
• Anything that changes the condition of the home before the handover day

The exact allocation depends on the agreement. So do not rely on standard wording for liability if the parties have in fact agreed something else.

Insurance from the access date

Your insurance must match the day you actually gain use of the home.

If you get the keys on 15 June but your insurance only starts on 1 July, a gap can arise in that period. This applies especially if you move in or set tradespeople to work.

So clarify in writing with the insurance company:

• When the home or buildings insurance begins
• Who is covered during the early access period
• How damage during renovation is handled
• When any change-of-ownership insurance (ejerskifteforsikring) should take effect
• Whether the seller's insurance continues in any way

Cover depends on the insurance policy. It is therefore not enough for the purchase agreement to say you have a right of disposal. The insurance company must know the date and the agreed use.

Also read BoligKlar's guide to change-of-ownership insurance.

Who pays for electricity, water and heating?

The buyer typically pays for consumption from the access date, because the buyer is the one using the home during the period.^[1]

So read the meters when the keys are handed over:

• Electricity
• Water
• Heating
• Gas, if the home has it

Take photos of the meters so the date and readings can be documented. Also note who will notify the utility companies of the move.

Consumption can later be included in the settlement statement (refusionsopgørelse) or handled under the specific agreement. You can read more in the guide to the settlement statement when buying a home.

What may you do in the home?

A right of disposal is not necessarily free rein to change everything.

Painting or cleaning may be unproblematic. Knocking down a wall, removing a kitchen or starting a major conversion is something else, while the seller is still registered as the owner and the sale has not reached the handover day.

The agreement should therefore distinguish between:

• Ordinary preparation
• Minor refurbishment
• Work carried out by tradespeople
• Changes to installations
• Demolition and major conversion

Get the seller's written acceptance before you start any major work. Also clarify who bears the cost if the work causes damage or the sale does not go through as expected.

If you are planning major changes, you can read the guide to renovating when buying a home.

Right of disposal, deed and land registration

The keys are your physical access to the home. The deed and land registration are a different part of the sale.

The deed is the document that registers the change of ownership. Land registration is the public registration of rights over the property. The process can run at the same time as you have the right of disposal.

A right of disposal does not in itself mean that:

• The deed has been finally registered
• All remarks (anmærkninger) on the deed have been cleared
• The purchase price has been released to the seller
• The settlement statement has been finalised
• The original handover day has changed

This matters because you may have access to the home while the legal and financial steps are still being completed.

Read more about completion, deed and land registration.

Can you change your registered address on the access date?

Your address in the Civil Registration System (folkeregisteradresse) follows the day you actually move.

Borger.dk describes the moving date as the day you have moved your belongings and sleep at the new address. The move must normally be reported no later than five days after you have changed residence.^[2]

If the disposal agreement allows you to move in before the handover day, and you actually do so, your real moving date can therefore fall before the legal handover day.

If you only have access to paint and still live at your old address, you have not moved yet.

So what counts is not when you get a key. What counts is when you actually move in and sleep at the address.

Example of a right of disposal before handover

You buy a home with a handover day of 1 August. The seller moves out on 10 July, and you agree that you get the right of disposal from 15 July.

The agreement says you may paint, sand floors and move in. You pay for electricity, water and heating from 15 July. The meters are read when the keys are handed over. The insurance company has confirmed cover in writing from the same date.

The deed and the rest of the sale still follow the agreed process towards 1 August.

The example shows the difference:

• You use the home from 15 July
• You take on the agreed costs and obligations from 15 July
• The original handover day is still 1 August

Checklist before you get the keys

Before the keys are handed over, the agreement should answer:

• On what date does the right of disposal start?
• May you move in, or only get the home ready?
• Which work is permitted?
• Who is liable for damage?
• Which insurance policies apply from that date?
• Who pays for electricity, water and heating?
• Will all meters be read and photographed?
• Have the deposit, guarantee and deed been handled as agreed?
• What happens if the sale does not go through?
• Has the agreement been signed by both parties?

If you have not yet signed the purchase agreement, you can also read about lawyer and bank conditions.

As the handover day approaches, you can use the guide to the first 14 days after the handover.

In short

A right of disposal can give you time to paint, move and get the home ready before the handover day.

But the key opens more than the front door. It can also shift liability, maintenance, utilities and insurance needs over to you.

So get the date, access, work, utilities, insurance and liability written clearly into the agreement. Then both you and the seller know what applies from the day the keys are handed over.

Once the dates are in place, you can calculate the costs of paint, floors, the move and everything that needs to be ready before you move in.

BoligKlar gives you a second pair of eyes and an overview. The specific legal terms of the agreement must be clarified with the professional who reviews the sale.

Frequently asked questions