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7 essential steps to buying in Spain

If you are planning to invest in property in Spain make sure you don't leave your brain on the plane but follow these essential steps.

Published: 5 October 2015 11:50 CEST
7 essential steps to buying in Spain
Photo: Cristina Quicler /AFP

1. Assume that you have to do all the things in Spain that you'd do back home. The most important is to keep your wits about you and don't take anything for granted. Question all the time and ask again if you don't understand the answer. Also ask the same questions of other people and get a feel for what's right.


Photo: Shaun Curry / AFP

2. Set yourself a research budget. That money should cover all the costs of looking and getting reliable advice and must be treated as an investment. It'll cost hundreds, but it will save you thousands. 


Philippe Huguen /AFP 

3. After all the Internet research, go to Spain before you commit yourself to anything. The web is marvellous, but it can't tell the sights just off the edge of the photo or the noise and smells, pleasant and unpleasant! The cost of a few quick weekend trips looking at different areas and repeated visits to the same area once you have decided on a place will give you a real feeling for the atmosphere of places and people.


Photo: Dominique Paget / AFP

4. Remember that not all agents are bad and not all are good. However, they are paid their fee by the seller and will only get that when you buy so don't faff around too much or they will lose faith in you and move onto more decisive clients. On the other hand, don't be rushed and make sure, if you are buying the property with a partner, that you both have given full and frank opinions on the property and the information you've been given. If one isn't happy with it, they could make life miserable for themselves and the others by “I told you so”, at every minor future problem.


Photo: Josep Lago / AFP

5. You need a good lawyer who can talk fluently to you in your own language and understand fully what you are saying too. Make sure that he or she has support as sometimes at crucial moments they can be away on holiday or dealing with court cases and such like. You don't want to be left 'hanging' without assistance. They don't have to be local to the property, but must give you the feeling that they can empathise with your thoughts and problems and that they have a professional conscience, by getting answers to the questions that you don't know need to be asked. Also, the art of communication does not always come high up in the profession's priorities, so don't wait for a report on what's happening, ask for it too. Often you'll be pleasantly surprised that there has been significant progress, but somebody just hasn't thought to tell you.


Photo: Josep Lago / AFP

6.  Have the property inspected by a knowledgeable surveyor who again will have gone through all the situations you find yourself in and have the experience of years of finding solutions for clients problems. They too have to be able to talk frankly with you and give impartial advice, again answering those questions you don't know to ask, as well as those you do. Remember that they are perhaps the only professional that actually visits the property and looks at the paperwork and so, whilst the lawyer can give you 100 percent perfect paperwork, it's not much use if it only covers half the property you think you're buying or the place is crumbling about you as you sit regretting in the sun.  Being able to take a survey report into negotiations on the price of the property can easily save you many, many times the cost of the report.


Photo: Mac Hotels / Flickr

7.  Last and most important is to enjoy the process and the country, while keeping your wits about you. After all that's what you're here for, to enjoy a better life!

This guide has been provided by Campbell D Ferguson, FRICS, a member of the Residential Property Professional Group of RICS Spain, and owner of Survey Spain SL.

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PROPERTY

Q&A: What to do if you buy a property built illegally in Spain

Buying an illegally built property in Spain is fairly common but can have several consequences down the line. Here's what you need to know, how to make it legal, whether you can sell it, and the benefits of doing so.

Published: 25 April 2024 09:35 CEST
Q&A: What to do if you buy a property built illegally in Spain

Unfortunately, over the years, many properties have been built illegally in Spain, not adhering to local rules and regulations. Foreigners who don’t know the legislation can easily fall into the trap of buying one of these properties, only to find out later down the line.

Maybe it’s when they come to sell or perhaps it’s when they want to do works or improvements on the property.

There are several reasons a home could have been built illegally in Spain. Firstly, it could have been built on the wrong type of land. This is it could have been built on suelo rústico, rural land where residential properties are prohibited, also called no urbanizable. 

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It could have also been built too near the coast. This is down to the Ley de Costas or Coastal Law, which was brought into force in December 1989 in order to protect the costas from overdevelopment and high rises spoiling the landscape. 

The law defines different areas of the beach and dictates which is public land, owned by the state and which parts can be owned privately and built on.

If you buy or own a house in one of these non-buildable zones, there are many problems you could face down the line, often sooner rather than later. This is because there are several rules you have to abide by concerning works, reforms and extensions. In some cases, they may not be allowed at all and everything must be approved first by the local government by providing a detailed project.

Because of coastal erosion, this issue is getting worse as some shoreside homes that were once built outside of these areas are finding that they’re now illegal.

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The house may have also had extensions made to it that were built without a license, meaning that the extra parts are illegal.

Q: How do I know if my home is legal or not?

A: Unfortunately it can be difficult to know if your property is legal or not. You could have bought and signed for it with a notary and it could be inscribed on the Property Registry, but this still doesn’t mean it was built to the correct specification and on the right land.

The only way to truly tell is to find out if your home ever had a Licencia de Primera Ocupación or First Occupation license, also referred to as a Cédula de Habitabilidad or Certificate of Habitability. This means that according to the authorities, it is suitable to live in and has the correct licenses.

READ ALSO: How to get Spain’s certificate of liveability for properties

Q: What happens if my property doesn’t have a habitability certificate?

A: If your property has never had a Certificate of Habitability, you must regularise the legal situation. First you’ll need to start a legalisation file (expediente de legalización) and contact the town hall. Depending on the seriousness of the case (ie. where exactly it was built, if there’s any structural danger, whether the entire property is illegal or just an extension) the cost of making an illegal property legal can be considerable. As such, each case must be studied individually with the help of an expert to determine whether it is even feasible or worth the investment.

The next step is to bring in an architect and check whether the property complies with all the building regulations. If it does, you simply need present the expediente de legalización to your local town hall, who will confirm whether or not the property adheres to building regulations and can be made legal.

If it doesn’t, you’ll need to consider whether it will comply with the regulations after some renovations. If that’s the case, you’ll need to draw up a renovations project document (proyecto de reforma) outlining the proposed changes and how they will adhere to building regulations. It must be presented to the town hall along with your expediente de legalización.

According to law firm Acal, the legalisation process can be broken down into steps as follows:

  • Contact the town hall.
  • Begin with the expediente de legalización when the town hall confirm whether or not the property can be made legal.
  • Pay the corresponding fees and taxes (in this case it will be IBI) depending on your municipality and region.
  • If you need to make renovations, obtain the proyecto de reforma and hire an architect.
  • Obtain a building permit from the town hall.
  • Once completed, register the property in the Land Registry.

READ ALSO: What is Spain’s IBI tax and how do I pay it?

Q: Do I really need to make my property legal?

A: Yes, because it will benefit you in the long run. It doesn’t matter what the previous owner told you when you were originally buying the property, owning a property that isn’t fully legal (or legal at all) can create problems and even lead to fines worth up to 20 percent of the property’s value in extreme cases.

By going through the legalisation process and making the relevant renovations, if necessary, you gain a legal property for all purposes and with all the benefits that entails.

You will not have problems setting up, paying, or cancelling electricity, water or gas utility services. You won’t have to undertake reforms and renovation work unofficially, avoiding the eyes of the authorities. Instead you’ll be able to register your property in the Land Registry, which will make things much easier when you decide to sell it or pass it on.

In terms of selling it, perhaps that is the biggest benefit of legalising your illegal property: by registering it properly, you will be able to benefit from its full value when selling it. When a property is illegal, the appraised value will probably be no more than 40-45 percent of its real value at best.

The renovations needed to get your property in shape to meet the building regulations could be costly, but will they cost you half of the total value of your property? 

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