American mortgage (americká hypotéka)
An American mortgage is a non-purpose loan secured by a lien (zástavní právo) on a property.
Annuity payment (anuitní splátka)
The specific monthly amount you send the bank under annuity repayment.
Annuity (anuita)
An annuity (anuita) mortgage is repaid in equal monthly payments, and the word also means the payment itself.
Attorney or notary escrow (advokátní / notářská úschova)
Deposit of the purchase price with an attorney (§ 52e et seq. of Act No. 85/1996 Coll., on the Legal Profession) or a notary (Notarial Code, Act No. 358/1992 Coll.) in a separate account until agreed conditions are met, typically the registration of the buyer's ownership in the land registry.
Down payment (akontace)
Akontace in English is a down payment: the part of the price you pay from your own money; for a Czech mortgage at least 20 % of the bank's valuation, 10 % under 36.
Cap rate (kapitalizační míra)
The ratio of annual net operating income (NOI: rent minus operating costs, excluding loan payments) to the property's current market value.
Property cash flow (cash flow z nemovitosti)
The difference between actual rental income and all of the owner's expenses for a month or a year, including the full mortgage payment (interest and principal), operating costs and income tax.
Czech National Bank (ČNB) (ČNB)
The central bank of the Czech Republic.
Holding period test for tax exemption on sale (časový test)
A condition for exempting income from the sale of a property from income tax under § 4(1) of Act No. 586/1992 Coll.
Loan drawdown (čerpání úvěru)
The payout of money under an approved and signed loan agreement.
Net monthly income (čistý měsíční příjem)
Income after income tax and social and health insurance contributions, in other words the amount that actually reaches your account.
Net rental yield (čistý výnos)
Annual rent minus the costs borne by the owner (repair fund and management, insurance, annual property tax, repairs, loss from vacancy, possibly a property manager), divided by the total acquisition price including purchase costs.
Additional collateral (dozajištění)
Establishing a lien (zástavní právo, § 1309 of the Civil Code) over another property besides the one being bought, to lower the LTV or to secure a loan for something that cannot be pledged on its own.
Annual property tax (daň z nemovitých věcí)
An annual tax on land, buildings and units under Act No. 338/1992 Coll.
Cooperative flat (družstevní byt)
A flat owned by a housing cooperative, in which a member lives under a tenancy tied to their cooperative share.
DSTI (debt service to income) (DSTI)
DSTI (debt service to income) is the share of net income that goes on loan payments; since 1 July 2023 it is a bank rule, not a ČNB limit.
DTI (debt to income) (DTI)
Debt to Income: an applicant's total debt expressed as a multiple of their net annual income.
Fixation period (doba fixace)
The fixation period (doba fixace) is how long the rate stays fixed: 1 to 10 years at Czech banks.
Gift of property (darování nemovitosti)
Transfer of ownership of a property by a gift agreement (darovací smlouva, § 2055 et seq. of the Civil Code).
Income tax on rental income (daň z příjmů z pronájmu, § 9)
Rental income in Czechia is taxed under § 9 of the Income Tax Act; you deduct either actual expenses or a flat 30 % (max CZK 600,000).
Inheriting a property with a mortgage (dědictví)
A situation where, after the borrower's death, both the pledged property and the unpaid loan pass to the heirs.
Lifelong right of residence (právo dožití, výměnek)
A colloquial name for a personal servitude guaranteeing a specific person lifelong housing in, or use of, a property (residential servitude or right of use, § 1283 and § 1297 of the Civil Code, občanský zákoník).
Loan term (doba splatnosti)
The total time over which the mortgage is to be repaid, as agreed in the loan agreement.
Mortgage interest tax deduction (odpočet úroků)
Interest paid on a loan for your own housing can be deducted from the income tax base under § 15(3) of Act No. 586/1992 Coll.
Probate proceedings (dědické řízení)
Court proceedings on the estate, conducted after a death by a notary appointed as court commissioner (Act No. 292/2013 Coll., on Special Court Proceedings).
Property developer (developer)
A company that prepares, finances and builds new flats or houses and sells them to end buyers.
Tax return (daňové přiznání) as proof of income
For a mortgage, the personal income tax return serves as the main proof of income for the self-employed (OSVČ) and others who have no confirmation from an employer.
Temporary protection and mortgages (dočasná ochrana)
A residence status Czechia grants to people fleeing the war in Ukraine under Act No. 65/2022 Coll. (lex Ukrajina), based on an EU Council decision.
VAT on new builds (DPH u novostavby, 12 % / 21 %)
Value added tax (DPH) that a developer adds to the price of a new flat or house under Act No. 235/2004 Coll.
Energy performance certificate (PENB) (PENB)
The everyday name for the energy performance certificate of a building (průkaz energetické náročnosti budovy, PENB) under Act No. 406/2000 Coll., on energy management.
Enforcement proceedings (exekuce)
Compulsory enforcement of a final decision (exekuční titul) by a court bailiff (soudní exekutor) at the creditor's request, under Act No. 120/2001 Coll.
Leverage (finanční páka)
Finanční páka is leverage in English: using borrowed capital, typically a mortgage, to buy a property with a smaller own contribution.
Rate fixation (fixace)
Rate fixation (fixace) is the bank's commitment not to change your mortgage rate for an agreed period, however market rates move.
Repair fund (fond oprav)
The colloquial name for money unit owners regularly pay to the SVJ (owners' association) or cooperative for repairs, maintenance and investment in the common parts of the building.
ČBA Hypomonitor
Monthly statistics on new mortgages from the Czech Banking Association (Česká bankovní asociace, ČBA), covering volume, number of loans, average loan size and the average realised interest rate.
Gross rental yield (hrubý výnos)
Annual rent divided by the property's purchase price, expressed as a percentage.
Mortgage adviser / broker (hypoteční poradce)
A consumer credit intermediary who compares offers from several banks, helps with documents and guides the client through approval and drawdown.
Mortgage for applicants under 36 (hypotéka pro mladé)
A shorthand for the milder terms that apply when at least one applicant is under 36 and is buying a home to live in, typically their first.
Mortgage loan (hypoteční úvěr)
A loan secured by a lien on a property, provided by a bank or another lender licensed under Act No. 257/2016 Coll., on consumer credit.
Payment schedule for a new build (harmonogram plateb)
A breakdown of when and how much the buyer pays the developer of a new build: deposits tied to signing contracts and to construction stages (shell, occupancy approval), then the balance on the purchase agreement.
Swiss Life Hypoindex
A monthly indicator of offered mortgage rates in Czechia, published by Swiss Life Select.
100 % LTV mortgage
A mortgage that covers the whole purchase price with no own funds.
Insolvency (insolvence)
A state in which a debtor cannot meet debts that have fallen due, and also the court proceedings that deal with it under Act No. 182/2006 Coll., the Insolvency Act.
Investment mortgage (investiční hypotéka)
A mortgage on a property the borrower will not live in, typically a flat to let or a third or further property.
IRR, internal rate of return (vnitřní výnosové procento) (IRR)
The internal rate of return is the annual rate at which the present value of all of an investment's cash flows is zero: own equity at the start, ongoing cash flow and sale proceeds at the end.
Client changes (klientské změny)
Modifications to a flat in a new build beyond the developer's standard, requested by the buyer, such as a different layout, wiring or plumbing, floors, tiles or sanitary ware.
End of the fixed-rate period (konec fixace)
The day the agreed fixed-rate period ends and the bank starts charging a new rate.
Exchange-rate risk (kurzové riziko)
Exchange-rate risk arises when a loan is in a different currency from the borrower's income.
Land registry (katastr nemovitostí)
Katastr nemovitostí in English is the land registry (cadastre): the public register of Czech real estate under Act No. 256/2013 Coll., run by the Czech Office for Surveying, Mapping and Cadastre (ČÚZK) through its cadastral offices.
Loan consolidation (konsolidace úvěrů)
Merging several debts (consumer loans, credit cards, an overdraft) into one new loan with a single payment.
Occupancy approval (kolaudace, kolaudační rozhodnutí)
Official permission to use a completed building.
Purchase agreement (kupní smlouva)
A contract by which the seller undertakes to hand over the property to the buyer and transfer ownership to them, and the buyer undertakes to pay the purchase price (§ 2079 et seq. of the Civil Code, občanský zákoník).
Receipt of repayment (kvitance)
A creditor's written confirmation that a debt has been discharged (under § 1949 of the Civil Code, občanský zákoník, whoever performs is entitled to one).
Security deposit (kauce, jistota)
Kauce in English is a security deposit: cash the tenant pays the landlord to secure rent and compensation for damage (§ 2254 of the Civil Code, občanský zákoník).
Short-term rental (krátkodobý pronájem, Airbnb)
Accommodating guests for nights or weeks via platforms such as Airbnb or Booking.
Application for registration in the land registry (návrh na vklad)
A form-based filing that opens proceedings to record a right in the katastr nemovitostí (Czech land registry) under Act No. 256/2013 Coll., the Cadastral Act.
Immovable property (nemovitost)
Under § 498 of the Civil Code, immovable things are land and underground structures with a separate purpose, rights in rem attached to them, and rights the law declares to be immovable.
Lease agreement (nájemní smlouva)
A contract by which the landlord lets a flat or house to a tenant for temporary use in return for rent (§ 2201 et seq. of the Civil Code, občanský zákoník; special rules for flats in § 2235 et seq.).
New Green Savings programme (Nová zelená úsporám, NZÚ) (NZÚ)
A state grant programme for energy savings in family houses and apartment buildings, administered by the State Environmental Fund of the Czech Republic (Státní fond životního prostředí ČR) and financed mainly from the sale of emission allowances.
NRKI, the Non-Banking Credit Register (Nebankovní registr klientských informací) (NRKI)
A credit register into which non-bank lenders (leasing companies, instalment and consumer credit firms) enter data on their clients' loans, recording both proper repayment and arrears.
Vacancy (neobsazenost)
The time when a let property has no tenant and earns no rent: between tenancies, during renovation or while a new tenant is sought.
Debt relief, personal bankruptcy (oddlužení)
A way of resolving the bankruptcy of an individual under § 389 et seq. of Act No. 182/2006 Coll., the Insolvency Act, popularly called “personal bankruptcy”.
OSVČ (self-employed person) (OSVČ)
OSVČ (osoba samostatně výdělečně činná) in English means a self-employed person, usually trading on a trade licence (živnostenský list).
Payment deferral (odklad splátek)
A temporary suspension or reduction of mortgage payments agreed with the bank, usually for a few months after a job loss, an illness or the start of parental leave.
Property valuation (odhad nemovitosti)
A valuation of the property that the bank commissions before granting a mortgage, so that it knows what the collateral is worth.
Withdrawal from a contract (odstoupení od smlouvy)
A unilateral legal act that cancels a contract from the outset; the parties return what they have provided (§ 2001 et seq. of the Civil Code).
Bridging loan (překlenovací úvěr)
A bridging loan finances a transitional period until money arrives from another source.
Co-ownership in shares (podílové spoluvlastnictví)
Ownership of one thing by several persons, each with a defined share, e.g. 1/2 or 60/100 (§ 1115 et seq. of the Civil Code, občanský zákoník).
Debt assumption (převzetí dluhu)
A new debtor takes the place of the original one and carries on repaying the debt.
Declaration of ownership (prohlášení vlastníka)
A deed by which the owner of a building (often a developer) divides it into units and defines what belongs to each flat and its share in the common parts of the building and the land (§ 1166 of the Civil Code, občanský zákoník).
Drawdown conditions (podmínky čerpání)
The steps and documents the client must complete before the bank pays out money under a signed loan agreement.
Early repayment (předčasné splacení)
Repaying all or part of a mortgage early.
Flat handover (přejímka bytu, předání)
The physical takeover of a completed flat from the developer, during which the buyer inspects the flat and records any defects found in a handover protocol (předávací protokol) with a deadline for their removal.
Flat-rate expenses (paušální výdaje)
A way for a business owner to claim expenses without receipts by deducting a fixed percentage of income.
Foreign income (příjem ze zahraničí)
Salary or other income paid by a foreign employer or payer, usually in a foreign currency.
Income confirmation (potvrzení o příjmu)
A bank form that the employer completes and signs.
Interest certificate (potvrzení o zaplacených úrocích)
A document from a bank or building savings bank (stavební spořitelna) stating the interest a client paid in a given year on a housing loan.
Mortgage arrangement fee (poplatek za vyřízení)
A one-off payment to the bank for processing the application and providing the mortgage, set out in the bank's rate sheet.
Mortgage pre-approval (předschválení hypotéky)
A preliminary check of the applicant's creditworthiness before a specific property has been chosen.
Payment protection insurance (pojištění schopnosti splácet)
Insurance that covers the borrower's payments when sickness, disability or job loss leaves them unable to pay, and usually clears the debt on death.
Pending-change flag in the land registry (plomba)
A mark on the title sheet (list vlastnictví) showing that legal relations to the property are affected by a change, meaning that proceedings (registration, record, note) are pending at the cadastral office.
Prenuptial agreement (předmanželská smlouva)
The everyday name for a marital property agreement under § 716 et seq. of the Civil Code.
Pre-emption right (předkupní právo)
The holder's right to have the owner offer them the property before selling it to anyone else.
Pre-mortgage loan (předhypoteční úvěr)
A loan the bank provides while a lien cannot yet be registered on the property being financed.
PRIBOR (Prague interbank rate) (PRIBOR)
PRIBOR (Prague Interbank Offered Rate) is the rate at which Czech banks lend to each other; 3-month PRIBOR was about 3.9 % in October 2026.
Profit share / dividend (podíl na zisku)
The part of a business corporation's profit paid out to shareholders on the basis of a general meeting decision under § 34 of Act No. 90/2012 Coll., on business corporations; in a joint-stock company it is called a dividend.
Property insurance (pojištění nemovitosti)
Insurance of the building itself, whether a house or a flat unit, against natural and other perils such as fire, escaping water, windstorm and flood.
Signing the mortgage agreement (podpis smlouvy)
The moment the client concludes the loan agreement with the bank; the pledge agreement and the application to register the lien are usually signed at the same time.
Staged drawdown (postupné čerpání)
The bank pays out the mortgage not in one sum but in tranches that follow the progress of construction, a renovation or the developer's payment schedule.
Sum insured (pojistná částka)
The upper limit of the insurance benefit agreed in the policy.
Annual tax reconciliation by the employer (roční zúčtování daně)
A recalculation of the advance tax on employment income for the whole year, carried out by the employer at the employee's request (§ 38ch of Act No. 586/1992 Coll.).
APRC (RPSN) (RPSN)
APRC (annual percentage rate of charge, RPSN in Czech) is the total yearly cost of a loan as one percentage.
Birth number (rodné číslo, RČ) (RČ)
A ten-digit personal identifier divisible by eleven (§ 13 of Act No. 133/2000 Coll., on Population Records).
ČNB two-week repo rate (2T repo sazba)
The ČNB two-week repo rate is 3.75 % (since 19 June 2026); it is the Czech National Bank's main interest rate.
Guarantor (ručitel)
A person who declares in writing that they will satisfy the creditor if the debtor fails to pay (§ 2018 et seq. of the Civil Code).
Parental allowance (rodičovský příspěvek) as income
A state social support benefit (Act No. 117/1995 Coll.): CZK 350,000 in total for a child born from 1 Jan 2024, drawn until the child turns 3 (multiples CZK 525,000, or CZK 700,000 if born from 1 Jan 2026).
Refinancing (refinancování)
Paying off an existing mortgage with a new loan, usually at another bank and at a better rate.
Refixation (refixace)
Agreeing a new interest rate and fixation length with your existing bank when the current fixation ends.
Reservation agreement (rezervační smlouva)
An agreement by which the seller or developer undertakes not to offer the property to anyone else for an agreed period, usually in return for a reservation fee or deposit from the prospective buyer.
Retention offer (retenční nabídka)
An individual offer of a lower rate that your existing bank makes to keep you, most often before the fixed period ends and once you announce you are refinancing elsewhere.
Risk life insurance (rizikové životní pojištění)
Life insurance without a savings or investment component that pays out the sum insured on death, or on disability or serious illness of the insured person.
Agreement on a future purchase agreement (smlouva o smlouvě budoucí kupní, SoSBK) (SoSBK)
A contract by which the parties undertake to conclude a purchase agreement within a set period on terms already agreed (§ 1785 et seq. of the Civil Code, občanský zákoník).
Building permit (stavební povolení)
A decision of the building authority entitling the builder to start construction.
Building savings (stavební spoření)
Purpose-linked saving with a building savings bank under Act No. 96/1993 Coll., with state support of 5 % of annual deposits up to CZK 20,000, at most CZK 1,000 a year.
Co-applicant (spolužadatel)
A person who applies for the mortgage together with the main applicant and whose income and liabilities the bank includes in the creditworthiness assessment.
Co-borrower (spoludlužník)
A person who signed the loan agreement together with the borrower and is liable for the whole debt jointly and severally (§ 1872 of the Civil Code, občanský zákoník).
Co-ownership (spoluvlastnictví)
A situation in which one thing belongs to several people at once.
Credit scoring (scoring)
The bank's internal points model for estimating how likely an applicant is to stop repaying.
Early repayment fee (sankce za předčasné splacení)
A fee the bank may charge when the client repays all or part of the mortgage outside the free-of-charge situations.
Joint marital property (SJM, formerly BSM) (SJM)
The community of property between spouses (společné jmění manželů) under § 708 et seq. of the Civil Code.
Servitude (služebnost)
A right in rem obliging the owner of a property to tolerate something or refrain from something in favour of another (§ 1257 of the Civil Code, občanský zákoník).
SOLUS and BRKI registers
Credit registers the bank consults when assessing an applicant.
SVJ, the owners' association (společenství vlastníků jednotek) (SVJ)
A legal entity formed by the owners of units in a building, which manages the building and the land (§ 1194 et seq. of the Civil Code, občanský zákoník).
Bank interest margin (úroková marže)
The difference between the rate a bank charges the client and what it pays for money over the same period; for fixed-rate mortgages, that cost is roughly the swap rate of matching length.
Credit history (úvěrová historie)
The record of what loans a person has had and has now, and how they repaid them, including credit card and overdraft limits, arrears and closed contracts.
Default interest (úrok z prodlení)
Penalty interest the debtor pays on an overdue amount for each day of delay (§ 1970 of the Civil Code).
Interest rate swap (úrokový swap, IRS) (IRS)
An interest rate swap is a derivative in which two parties exchange a fixed interest payment for a floating one linked to PRIBOR.
Interest rate (úroková sazba)
The price of a loan, expressed as a percentage of the amount owed per year.
Loan agreement (úvěrová smlouva)
A contract by which the bank undertakes to provide money and the client to repay it with interest (§ 2395 of the Civil Code).
Principal repayment (úmor)
The part of the regular payment that reduces the debt, i.e. the principal.
Purpose-bound mortgage (účelová hypotéka)
A mortgage that can be used only for housing: buying, building or renovating a home, or paying off an earlier housing loan.
Renovation loan (úvěr na rekonstrukci)
A renovation loan finances the repair, modernisation or conversion of a home.
Age limit for a mortgage (věková hranice)
The age by which the borrower must have repaid the mortgage, which in turn caps the longest possible term.
Contract anniversary (výročí smlouvy)
The date on which the loan agreement was concluded, recurring every year.
Deletion of a lien (výmaz zástavního práva)
Removal of a lien entry from the title sheet (list vlastnictví) once the lien has ceased to exist, most often because the mortgage has been repaid (§ 1376 of the Civil Code, občanský zákoník), refinanced or released.
Easement (věcné břemeno)
Rights in rem over someone else's property that restrict the owner in favour of another person or plot (§ 1257 et seq. of the Civil Code).
Insurance assignment (vinkulace)
An arrangement under which the payout from property insurance (or life insurance) goes to the bank rather than straight to the insured.
Own funds (vlastní zdroje)
Money the buyer pays from their own resources on top of the mortgage: savings, proceeds from selling another property, a gift from parents or building savings.
Registration in the land registry (vklad do katastru nemovitostí)
Entry of a right in rem (ownership, a lien, an easement, a pre-emption right) in the katastr nemovitostí (Czech land registry) on the basis of a deed (Act No. 256/2013 Coll.).
Release of a co-borrower (vyvázání spoludlužníka)
A change to the loan agreement by which the bank releases one of the joint debtors, leaving the remaining debtor to repay the debt alone.
Release of collateral (vyvázání zástavy)
Freeing a property from the bank's lien before the mortgage is fully repaid.
Settlement of community property or co-ownership (vypořádání SJM / spoluvlastnictví)
Division of shared assets and debts after the community property of spouses (společné jmění manželů, SJM) ends (§ 736 et seq. of the Civil Code, občanský zákoník) or after co-ownership in shares is dissolved (§ 1140 et seq.).
Variable rate (variabilní sazba)
An interest rate that changes during repayment in line with a reference rate, in Czechia usually 3M PRIBOR, to which the bank adds a fixed margin.
Collateral value (zástavní hodnota)
The amount the bank assigns to a property as security for the loan.
Expert opinion (znalecký posudek)
A formal opinion by a court expert entered in the Ministry of Justice list under Act No. 254/2019 Coll., on experts, expert offices and expert institutes.
Green mortgage (zelená hypotéka)
A mortgage with a preferential rate for an energy-efficient property or for a renovation that cuts energy consumption substantially.
Lien (zástavní právo)
A right in rem that secures a debt: if the debtor stops paying, the lien creditor can sell the property and be paid from the proceeds ahead of others (§ 1309 et seq. of the Civil Code).
Loan acceleration (zesplatnění úvěru)
The moment when the bank declares the entire remaining debt due at once because the borrower has breached the loan agreement, typically by not paying instalments.
Pledge agreement (zástavní smlouva)
A contract between the bank (pledgee) and the property owner (pledgor) that establishes a lien to secure the mortgage (§ 1309 et seq. of the Civil Code).
Probation period (zkušební doba) and mortgages
The probation period is the initial part of employment during which both employer and employee can end it without giving a reason.
Secured creditor (zajištěný věřitel)
A creditor whose claim is secured by the debtor's assets; with a mortgage, by a lien on the property registered in the land registry (§ 2(g) of Act No. 182/2006 Coll., the Insolvency Act).