Registration and the deed
The owner may have a sum of money registered against the property at Lantmäteriet – an inteckning. The proof is the mortgage deed, and today almost all are digital deeds in the deed register (Land Code, chapter 6, section 1).
The security arises when the owner hands over the deed as security for the loan; a digital deed counts as handed over when the bank is registered as its holder (section 2).
What the security gives
If the property is sold by enforcement, the bank is paid from the proceeds up to the deed's amount, plus at most fifteen per cent of it and interest (section 3). That is why banks rarely lend more than the deeds' total.
From the law
«Bevis om inteckningen kallas pantbrev. Ett pantbrev utfärdas antingen i skriftlig form (skriftligt pantbrev) eller genom registrering i pantbrevsregistret enligt lagen (1994:448) om pantbrevsregister (datapantbrev).»
When buying
Deeds already registered pass to the buyer, and the buyer's bank can use them. Only if they are not enough does the buyer take out new ones – then stamp duty of two per cent of the new amount (Stamp Duty Act, section 24) and a handling fee are paid. Taking over existing deeds costs nothing.
Tenant-owned flats
A bostadsrätt is pledged without a deed: the bank notifies the association, which records the pledge. So there is no deed cost for a tenant-owned flat. Once the tenant-owner register (Act 2026:484) starts, pledges are registered there instead.
Laws change. Always check the version in force and consult a lawyer about your own case. The Swedish text of the law is the authoritative one.
Sources
The Land Code (Jordabalken) (1970:994) 6 kap. 1–3 §§; The Stamp Duty Act (1984:404) 24 §; The Mortgage Deed Register Act (1994:448). Lantmäteriet – Stamp duty and fees. Read 21 Oct 2026. The Swedish text of the law is the authoritative one; the quotations are in Swedish.