SPOG- Spanish Property Owners Guild- Buying a Resale Property in Spain

Buying a Spanish Resale Property

The process of buying a resale property in Spain is very different to what you are used to and can be fraught with potential danger. It is not like buying a holiday home in Bournemouth.

For a successful long term decision please consider the following:-

  • Agree your short and long term objectives with all the buying team
  • Agree your location and budget
  • Agree financing requirements
  • Find a lawyer, learn aboutSpanish inheritance and capital gains tax implications
  • Find a home finderservice or estate agent
  • Then start looking for a property

    Agree among your fellow buyers exactly what your common objectives are for buying in Spain. Then agree a location and budget and sort out the amount and sourcing of mortgages (most foreigners can only get a maximum of 70% on a Spanish Property but in reality most offers are at 50%)

    Debate and learn about the financial and fiscal implications     of owning Spanish Property read our articles about living in Spain. Then find an English speaking lawyer who is not associated in any way with an estate agent or builder near to your preferred location to represent you before you start to look for property.

    Choosing an Estate Agent.
    Anybody with the right amount of money can take out a license to sell property in Spain. No qualifications nor experience are necessary. There are now thousands of Spanish Estate Agents. Furthermore there is no regulation of their activities so that you have no one to turn to in the event of a problem other than a lawyer. By then it could be too late and expensive to untangle your legal commitments. Choose an experiencd agent who is a member of GIFE or API the recognized professiobal associations.

    Choosing a Property.
    There are 17 key points to consider, other than the obvious location, location and location when buying a Spanish resale property..
  • Legality of actual property.
  • Legality of Plot.
  • Legality of surroundings e.g. legality of the urbanisation.
  • Description on the escritura (Deeds)
  • Description on the Nota Simple.
    (The current shortened version of the deeds lodged at the Land Registry)
  • Description of Property on the Registro Catastral.
  • The actual description.
  • The actual sales price.
  • The value on the deeds.
  • Structural condition and quality of building standards of actual property and common areas, lift and pool.
  • Noise potential and adjacency to parking and local facilities.
  • Fiscal status of current owner (resident or not)
  • Outstanding charges and unpaid bills.
  • Access and parking. (Including disabled access for rental properties)
  • Potential for further development of nearby unbuilt areas.
  • Legal charges against the property
  • Services i.e. water, telephone, internet and power


Countryside Property
Most legality and planning problems arise when buying a Spanish property off the beaten track. If you are looking for a finca or an old ruin or a plot ask the agent to show you only those that are one hundred percent legal. Life is too short to be wrapped up in buying an illegal Spanish Property. It can take months, you could lose serious money.

Check with your Lawyer. Until your legal representative is one hundred percent sure of the answers to most of our seventeen points you should not sign a sales contract or pay any deposit.

Online Advice. Read our articles and what you are unsure of ask us by e-mail.

Buyer Beware. As the complete process of Buying a Property here in Spain is very different from what you are used to it is far more important to learn about the procedures beforehand, "Buyer Beware" is a citizens responsibility in Spain. Ignorance is no defence.

Spanish Bureaucracy. When you add the further complications and implications of annual tax returns, maintenance, community fees, wills and minimising inheritance tax liabilities making quick and uninformed decisions about a particular property can have serious long term ramification.