Buying

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WHAT YOU MUST KNOW EN DO BEFORE BUYING A HOUSE IN SPAIN!

NIE / TAXNo.

If you do not have the Spanish nationality and want to buy a house, the minimum requirement is to have an NIE-No.
NIE (NĆŗmero deĀ IdentificaciĆ³n deĀ Extranjeros) = Foreigners Identification Number or Tax ID.
We can arrange this for you but you have to be present in order to attend the provided appointment at the Police Station. Depending on availability the costs can be approximately Euro 120,-. Note that in general you will be requested to provide an NIE-No to also purchase other things. For example, when you want a Mobile-Phone subscription you also need a NIE-No…

There may be a very long waiting period, (months!) to obtain a NIE. If youĀ  already know that you are going to make a purchase, do not wait any longer and make sure you have this NIE certificate as soon as possible. If you do not have this number, you cannot proceed in the purchase process! For a mortgage application in Spain, a NIE will always be required.
Alternatively, you can apply for a NIE yourself via the Spanish consulate in your country, here also you need to make an appointment and attend personally.
Link to the Spanish Consulate in UK: click here
Other country? click here

Isn’t all this working? Please contact Express Legal Solicitors, for this you can also click on their logo below. They can also take care of your NIE application.

GUIDANCE

At best your guidance is done by 1 person who has all local contacts. Through this 1:1 contact no information is lost and therefore you’ll have more certainty Ā there will be no loose ends. As a rule, you as a buyer have a buying broker on your side who will assist you with all your questions and notify you of everything you as a buyer should know. You can use the following thinking what a buying broker can do for you:

-Data exchange with Abogado (lawyer).

For the legal aspects we recommend highly to get a lawyer, (‘abogado’) in hand. An abogado collects and controls the legal aspects of purchasing property and informs the notary with all data in the deed which must be recorded. In the UK we are accustomed a notary checks all and if agreements are in proper order. In Spain this is not the case and this must be done in advance by yourself. In general notaries do not speak English. The abogados, linked to our organization have extensive experience, speak or actually are English and can handle anything what is included in the purchase agreement. Moreover, our abogados have good contacts with various notaries which is guaranteed for a quick and clear settlement.

The law firm with whom we have a very good cooperation is ‘Express Legal Solicitors‘. The communication between us and this office is optimal and this guarantees prompt and clear settlement of your purchase with our mediation.

ELS LOGO

-Structural monitoring and advice.
We have years of experience and knowledge of construction methods. This is not only gained ‘in the books’ but rather from practice. When evaluating a home, we think for you as a homebuilder, (we have built several houses) and attend you to what is good but what is even more important, what is wrong and what should be taken into account.

– Make appointment for house-viewings

– Check cadastral data

– Price Negotiation

– Insurance

PURCHASE COSTS

If you buy an existing house in Spain, you as a buyer should count to approximately 12% of the purchase price.

Here you should consider:

ITP, (Impuesto deĀ TranmisionesĀ Patrimoniales) =Ā transfer tax. Height is 10% of the purchase price in the case of an existing home.

Important: we let our lawyer check the fiscal/tax value which is known to the tax authorities.
Due to a recent change, (January 2022) introduced by the tax authorities it may be possible that you are requested to pay extra tax, this will depend on the reference value assigned by the autonomous government, if itā€™s higher than the ā€œrealā€ purchase price this will result in extra tax to be paid.

IVA, (Impuesto sobre elĀ ValorĀ AƱadido) =Ā VAT (Value Added Tax). Height is 10% of the purchase price as cost of ownership. This you have to pay in case of a new construction.

AJD, (Impuesto sobreĀ ActosĀ JuridicosĀ Documentados) =Ā Stamp duty. Height is 1,5% of the purchase price in the case of new construction.

Honorarios notarialesĀ =Ā Notary fees. Hold approximately between 0.6% and 1% of the purchase price. Ask us before if we have a price-agreement with a notary.

Registro CatastroĀ =Ā Cadastral registration fees. The transfer must be registered with the local land registry. This costs about Euro 400,-.

Honorarios abogado = Lawyer fees. Directive is about 1% of the Purchase-price. Mostly about Euro 1.000,- as a minimum. Inform yourself by us if we have a price-agreement with an abogado. It could save you hundreds of Euro’s.

Summary of costs

For an EXISTING house, (approx 12%)

1 ITP, (transfer tax)
2 Notary
3 Cadastral
4 Lawyer, (= your choice)

For a NEW CONSTRUCTION, (approxĀ 13%)

1 IVA, (VAT)
2 AJD, (Stampright)
3 Notary
4 Cadastral
5 Lawyer, (= your choice)

Our guidance to you as a buyer is completely free of charge !

Once you are a homeowner then you will -like in the UK- have to pay for hometaxes. For example the fees for municipal waste disposal, etc.

Most important is the Property tax:
IBI, (Impuesto sobre BienesĀ Inmeubles) =Ā Ā Property tax. A property-owner pays between 0.3% and 0.6% property tax.
Note: The percentages differ per municipality.Ā Even though you are a “non-resident”, you must pay this tax.

Good to know

If you have decided to buy a house we will draw up a comprehensive breakdown of costs so you are fully aware where you stand.
In this breakdown all parts are shown, purchase price, tax, all the way to the cost of opening of a Spanish bank account which is a requirement.