PurchasingProperty in Spain: the Legal Course of Action Explained
Youve found the house and negotiated a price. Youve arranged your Spanish mortgages All there is to do now is complete the purchase. How?
Buying property in Spain is highly regulated. The best thing you can do to protect yourself and your money is to hire an English-speaking lawyer or legal counsel to help you during the purchase and negotiation. Make sure that the Spanish property is free of restrictive clauses and debts.
There are two different categories in the Spanish legal processes for the purchase of property. First you have the Contrato privado de compraventa, or the preliminary contract, and then you have the Escritura de compravents, or completion contract.
A preliminary individual sale bill should be signed after both sides agree to the cost. The vendor must provide proof that he or she owns the property free of any charges before this Contrato privado de compraventa has been signed. It is Spanish law to charge all outstanding debts to the actual property, and any remaining debt would be the new owner’s responsibility. Nota Simple tells about outstanding debts.
Details such as completion date, price and description will be written in the first sales contract. Expect to pay a deposit that ranges between 5 and 15 percent of the purchase price. A bonded client account is where the funds will be kept for you. It is possible though not advisable to sign the private preliminary sales contract without putting down a deposit.
Escritura de compraventa is otherwise known as the second or final contract stage. The customer will need to pay all fees and the price of the product on the date of completion. Both the vendor and the buyer must sign the contract at the same time. This contract is equivalent to a deed on the purchased property. The purchaser will receive the public deed of conveyance, known in Spain as the escritura, in front of a Notary Public. A copy of this deed will also be passed to the tax office and to the property registry as well to make everything legal. In Spain, Notary Publics are public officials required to witness a deed of sale, but you should also make sure to have your own independent expert legal advice to make sure that your own interests are protected during this legal process. Remember too that as the buyer you will be responsible for paying the Notary Public’s charges along with the real estate sales taxes.
