A handover moves control, not the restriction
A restriction attaches to the account and the entity behind it, not to a login email. Changing the owner email, payment profile or contacts changes who operates the account, but it does not reset how the platform assesses it. So the question splits in two: technically you may be able to change access, but what you receive is still a restricted account. An account that has received a termination notice should not be a transaction target at all.
Restricted covers three levels with very different risk
The first level is the app: a rejected, removed or warned app while the account itself works normally. The second is the account: limited publishing, unresolved policy issues, or identity and organization verification left incomplete so releases cannot go out. The third is termination, including notices triggered by a related account being terminated. When a seller says there is a small issue, ask which level. Level one that is resolved can be evaluated. Level two depends on whether the seller can fix it alone. Level three means stop.
Pages the seller should show you in a live session
Ask for a screen-share where the seller logs in while you watch, rather than handing over credentials first. You need to see recent policy and account messages in the inbox, any unresolved items on the policy status pages, the account type (personal or organization), verification state and account ID in developer account details, the release status of each app, and whether a payments profile exists and who it belongs to. Page names and locations change with console updates, so rely on what the console shows at that time. A seller who avoids the inbox or offers only screenshots deserves less trust.
Accounts with apps need an app-level history check
If you are buying a Google Play developer account with apps, check each app as well: whether it is live, whether policy issues remain open, recent rejections or removals, whether Play App Signing is enabled, and who controls the signing key. Repeated app-level violations can affect your future updates even if the account looks clean today. Also confirm you actually need those apps, since unwanted ones bring their compliance history with them.
Stop conditions, instead of negotiating price
Pause if any of these appear: a termination notice or related-account warning; incomplete verification the seller cannot complete; a recent unresolved account-level warning in the inbox; a refusal to show the console live; or claims that do not match what you see. A case that can still be evaluated looks like this: one app was rejected in the past, it was resolved, nothing is open on the account, and the seller can explain why. The test is whether an account-level problem is unresolved now, not whether anything ever went wrong.
Write the status basis into the agreement and split later responsibility
The agreement should state that status is judged on the console as shown on the delivery day, and list account type, verification state, no open account-level notices, and the app list with statuses. It should also state the limit: whether the account is restricted afterwards depends on your listings, ads and data declarations, and nobody can guarantee otherwise. Policies, fees and review processes change, so follow the platform pages at that time. Do not treat a transfer as a way to deal with an existing restriction. It does not work and only adds risk.
FAQ
Can I buy an account that received a policy warning but was not terminated?
It can be evaluated if the warning is resolved, you know whether it was app-level or account-level, and the inbox shows nothing open. An unresolved account-level warning is a reason to stop.
What if the account is restricted again after the handover?
Work out the cause first. If the issue existed at delivery, compare against the status record in your agreement and raise it with the seller. If it came from content you published afterwards, it falls under your own compliance and should go through the appeal route in the platform notice.