Guide to buying a Residential Property in Spain

For many years Spain has been and remains a very popular destination for property purchase by British nationals, the lure of the sunny climate and the relaxed lifestyle and friendly environment has drawn people to relocate, retire or simply enjoy regular holidays in Spain. There are no restrictions that apply to foreign purchasers of residential real estate in Spain.

Buying a property in Spain need not be complex with the right legal advisors by your side. Giambrone & Partners’ Spanish real estate lawyers in our offices in Spain have years of experience in assisting clients to buy property in Spain.

There are different procedures applied to non-EU citizens when buying Spanish real estate. A numero de identification del extranjero (“NIE”) is required, this is an individual’s identifying number that must be added to all documents. Our expert lawyers can help you obtain this essential number as well as helping you to open a bank account, another requirement.

You can start your property search while waiting for your NIE and an operational bank account. Once you have found a house that you are interested in buying the process can begin. A reservation deposit should be paid to secure the property and a reservation contract Contrato de Reserva will be drafted and signed by the purchaser. 

Giambrone & Partners’ Spanish real estate lawyers will review the information available on the property and ensure that the details of the property correctly match the information registered at the land registry. Establishing that the person or person selling the property are indeed the registered legal owners. Also, it is essential to ascertain that there are no debts or any other financial liabilities against the property. Additionally you should also ensure that previously there have not been any infringements of the planning laws resulting in legal proceedings and that the property was built in accordance with the building regulations and that any alterations are in accordance with the planning permission regulations. Giambrone & Partners’ real estate lawyers also make sure that there are no unusual restrictions placed against the property.

Sergio Filonenko Kibu,  an Associate, commented, “There are a number of other issues to consider such as the cadastral value of the property, this relates to the rateable value of the property and is generally lower than the property’s market value.” Sergio pointed out “As some of the regions in Spain are autonomous there can be variations in the regulations and costs across the country. It would be unwise to base your financial projections on estimates related to another region, when buying property in Spain. Whilst the variations may not be exceptionally significant, sometimes when budgets are tight, it can make the difference between the success and failure of a real estate venture.”

Once It has been established that the property does not have any breaches or debts against it a Notary can be instructed to draw up the contract of sale and issue the public deeds. The contract can then be signed and the balance of the purchase price can be paid.

If you intend to retire and/or live permanently in Spain you will require a visa as the UK is a non-EU country, the two most predominant choices of visa options to consider when retiring to Spain are as follows. A non-lucrative residency visa which is particularly aimed at non-earning financially viable individuals and after five years of residency you can apply for permanent residency.

A Golden Visa is an alternative type of visa that can be obtained subject to meeting certain requirements. One of which is making an investment in Spain, there is a wide range of types of investment that accompanies a Golden Visa, the most common is the purchase of a mortgage-free residential property with a value over €500,000. You can gain permanent residency after five years and after ten years you can apply for Spanish citizenship.

Giambrone & Partners’ immigration lawyers have considerable experience in advising British citizens as to the most appropriate type of visa for their purposes and assisting individuals to gain residency visas and citizenship in Spain.

If you would like to know more about buying a property in Spain please contact Sergio's clerk Helena Balster on HB@giambronelaw.com or please click here.