# Buying in Spain



## Johnscott (Mar 14, 2016)

Hi Can anyone advise or give any tips on buying a property in Spain I am flying to Alicante next month looking at properties in the Santa Pola / Gran Alicant area 

Are their any things I should be aware of when buying in Spain. 

Thanks in advance John Scott (Newcastle upon Tyne)


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## piersuk (Nov 13, 2015)

Without being rude, estate agents that just want to sell... Bank repo's that have no legality attached to them, established builds that have no legality, open (but often forgotten) costs of buying, buying off plot and on and on. (all of these can be safe but with appropriate advice)

I'm afraid the list is endless and we are just at the start of our process though been through this with friends. 

There are many rouges out there but the majority are nice decent folk. I would advise you find out from personal experience the name of a good local lawyer. You will know where to go when you are at that point having found somewhere. Don't be pressured in to signing anything even the holding fee contract. We were given a loose and poor contract which our lawyer put us right on.

Finally ask loads of questions of people in the are where you find somewhere you would like to live. We did and it worked for us. 

I'm sure others will give you some more specific area advice. 

Good luck :fingerscrossed:


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

The one thing I would say is that buying property in Spain is nothing like buying in England. So dont even try to apply the same rules and do lots of research beforehand


Jo xxx


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## tonymar (Jan 29, 2015)

Johnscott said:


> Hi Can anyone advise or give any tips on buying a property in Spain I am flying to Alicante next month looking at properties in the Santa Pola / Gran Alicant area
> 
> Are their any things I should be aware of when buying in Spain.
> 
> Thanks in advance John Scott (Newcastle upon Tyne)


Finding the right area first , 

Also if you dont have a bank account here , it can now be difficult to open one quickly , my friend has just found a property he wants to but , but cant open a non resident account without an NIE number , seems crazy as most people coming initially to find a house here will not have an account , then if they find their dream house and want to put a deposit on it , cant open an account to transfer funds into !

Any way hope you have a good visit and find a place ! there seem to be plenty of bargains about , shame the exchange rate isn't so good now .

Cheers Tony


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## Leper (May 12, 2010)

Hi John, I'm getting a dose of the skeebeejeebies having read your post. You intend buying property and not a tin of beans. You are the stuff on which estate agents thrive on. There is no easy way of buying on demand, unless you are a very lucky person.

Read back through months and months of posts here. Take notes. Keep an open mind. Believe nobody.

When you choose a particular town/area where you wish to live. Rent there for at least 6 weeks in the off season and you will learn (a) If Spain is for you and (b) If that area is what you want.

Remember you probably will never make money on the property too.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Look at this link for the UK gov
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/how-to-buy-property-in-spain
The video doesn't really contain any info, but scroll down to the written info and you'll find lots of good stuff


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## Gazeebo (Jan 23, 2015)

Can I just add that some friends are currently in the process of selling their villa and they have pointed out how important it is to keep all receipts for any outlay on the property, for instance building works, showing the IVA, so that if you come to sell this can be offset against capital gains tax.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

First thing - get yourself a NIE number This is your fiscal number in Spain and you will need it for almost everything, even deliveries to the door by couriers. 

Next, open a non-residents bank account. Make sure that the person you are dealing with knows what he is doing. The assistant manager at Santander didn't have much of a clue and screwed ours up big time so we were banned from opening a bank account by the Bank of Spain for three months. Note Santander in Spain is not the same as Santander in UK, nor are the Barclays, Lloyds, etc. and, despite the familiar names, they work differently. Pick a bank that has branches near where you will want to live - no point in having to drive 50km just to go to a branch of your bank.

Assuming that you have carried out plenty of research regarding climate, etc. (remember that temperatures vary with altitude [maybe 10° with a difference of only 3-400 metres - that makes the difference in summer of 45° versus 35° - the latter bearable the former sweltering] as well as with latitude) and it is quite easy to find yourself at over 1,000m above sea-level (that is higher than anywhere in England and almost as high as Snowdon.) Identify the type of environment you want - coastal/beaches, inland, living in a City, town, village or in the campo; on an urbanisation or individual house or block of flats. Among other expats or not (you won't get completely away from them.)

By all means, look at what estate agents have got to offer but sign nothing (absolutely nothing) because that could tie you to paying that agent commission even if you buy from a different one. Be aware that the same property may be with more than one agent at different prices. Once you find something that you like and would consider purchasing, you need to get a lawyer and preferably a good translator/interpreter (extra expense BUT if you pick your lawyer on the basis that he/she speaks English yet turns out to be a lousy lawyer...) and by *good *translator/interpreter you want one who knows the ins and outs of buying property and legal matters (there are those who, when they come across something they don't understand, omit the translation and that could be a very important point.)

It is very easy to be tempted by what, at first, seems to be your 'dream' home but then the next day come across one the you like even better. Make sure you are sure before you commit to anything.

Regarding the NIE see this thread:
http://www.expatforum.com/expats/sp...spain/1013018-london-consulate-nie-story.html


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

baldilocks said:


> First thing - get yourself a NIE number This is your fiscal number in Spain and you will need it for almost everything, even deliveries to the door by couriers.


Prime example, this evening. I had a delivery by SEUR and they always want the NIE, even more so, this evening since it was a dozen bottles of wine - good stuff not available locally or in supermarkets..


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