Overwhelmed by everything that’s involved with buying a property in Spain? This breakdown of the steps, listed in chronological order, will help you organise yourself and complete the process successfully.
1) Hire a lawyer
Even though hiring a lawyer or the equivalent of a solicitor is not mandatory in Spain, it’s a good idea to have someone who understands the process and can walk you through it. This is particularly important if you’re buying as a non-resident.
2) If you are buying as non-resident – apply for an NIE number and open a bank account
If you don’t live in Spain usually and are buying a property as a non-resident for use as a holiday home for example, then there are several extra steps you’ll have to take, that residents will have already done. This includes applying for a foreign identity number or NIE. Your lawyer can help you do this. You will also need to open a Spanish bank account, so you can pay associated fees such as utility bills etc.
3) Find out what charges are associated with the property
Once you have found a property you like, you will need to check a few things before making an offer on it. One of these is to find out if the property has any charges associated with it. If these are not sorted beforehand, then you could get lumped with them. Check if there’s any debt for example, if it has a mortgage and if there are any limitations imposed on it by the owners’ association. For example, some buildings may not allow you rent out and say that only owners must live there. You can request what’s called a nota simple directly from the property registry or through a notary office to find out.
4) Find out how much mortgage you will be granted
If you need to buy the home with a mortgage then you’ll need to know what budget you have before you can put in an offer. This means contacting various banks to find out what they can offer you. To grant you a mortgage, the bank will also need to carry out a valuation on the property.
5) Make sure you have extra for expenses
If you’re buying the property outright and aren’t getting a mortgage, it’s important to remember that you’ll need quite a bit extra on top of the sales prices. In fact, you’ll need an extra 12% to14% for notary fees, Property Transfer Tax, the Property Registry and any possible real estate agency fees.
6) Put in your offer and negotiate
Once you’ve found out all the above, you’ll know how much you can afford to pay for the property and can put in an offer. Don’t forget, like in other countries you can negotiate and don’t have to pay the full asking price.
If you are looking to buy a property in Spain ad need a mortgage, email mark@vci-network.com for the latest criteria