The purchase and sale of a home in Spain works slightly differently than in the Netherlands or Belgium.
For example, you do not make an appointment every time with a different broker for a viewing. You work with one broker who arranges all viewings for you. The costs of these services are for the selling party. In addition, there are many other legal, fiscal and organizational differences with the purchase and sale of a property in Spain. These may differ per area. The FM (t)huis team in Spain is Dutch. The contracts are also translated into Dutch, so that you always know exactly what you are signing. The team has knowledge of the local market and works closely with local specialists who know the area personally. This way you always have the best and independent service. Our team at FM (t)huis in Spain guides you from A to Z so that you always know where you stand and are not faced with any surprises.
Of course it is important to know what your Spanish dream home looks like. Will it be a sea view apartment? Or luxury villa with several bedrooms and a private pool? Or an authentic finca in the interior of Andalusia that you can furnish as a Bed & Breakfast? Your wishes are leading and the FM (t)huis in Spain team is happy to help you map out your housing wishes. In addition, it is important to know in advance what your financial options are. There are some additional costs beyond the asking price. Namely 10 to 11% for existing buildings and 13 to 14% for new construction.
Think of tax (7%), notary costs (1%), lawyer costs (1%), and 1% other costs.
For new construction, the tax is 10%
A full mortgage is never possible. The rule here is that you must be able to finance the buyer's costs and approximately 30% to 40% of the purchase price yourself. If you map out your financial options in advance, you will avoid disappointment. We can have this mapped out for you, without obligation.
It is possible to have an introductory meeting take place at the location of your choice. Based on that conversation, we put together your housing wishes and budget and we start our search for your dream home for you. Of course it is also possible to do this via Teams, Zoom, telephone and/or e-mail.
After it is clear what your wishes and possibilities are, we will look for suitable homes.
You will receive a proposal by e-mail and can then indicate whether the proposed homes appeal to you. If we have not immediately found the right property for you, we will use your feedback to further refine the search. Of course you can also consult the property database yourself via our website. You can also forward homes that you find elsewhere on the internet to us as long as you do not register with the house in advance. We recommend that you send us the link of the selected property(s) at the beginning of your search process via iIdealista, Kyro and similar websites. We will request the information for you and pass it on to you as soon as possible. Unfortunately, the houses on these are often no longer available and placement on these sites is only a trigger for the provider to make new contacts.
Have you seen one or more properties that appeal to you? Then it's time to travel to the Costa del Sol. In consultation with you, we make arrangements with the selling brokers to view the properties. We will pick you up at your hotel on the day in question. From here we will spend a day looking at houses and of course the surroundings. We will not only show you the selected properties, but also the environment with its facilities, since it is not only about the inside of the house, but also the location. Lunch will be provided by us. In addition to guiding you during the day, we think critically about whether the homes really match your search profile. The whole is important.
If, after the viewings, there is a home that makes your heart beat faster and you therefore decide to purchase, we will negotiate the price and the sales conditions for you. Your interests come first for us, after all, we are your purchasing agent. When it comes to new construction, you should bear in mind that it is almost impossible to negotiate a discount. With existing buildings you are dependent on the seller. Want to sell it fast? Then we can make a lower offer than the asking price. Is the seller in no hurry? Then there is a chance that the room for negotiation in the asking price is less.
Once the seller has accepted your offer, a reservation contract will be drawn up to take the property off the market.
From that moment on, no more viewings and/or bids may take place. Depending on the purchase price, you pay € 3,000 to € 15,000 in this phase to take the house off the market. You deposit this amount into the escrow account of your own lawyer or the real estate agent if it concerns existing construction. For new construction, it goes directly to the builder. This contract is usually valid for about 2 weeks. During this period we will arrange other matters with you, such as the lawyer, possibly a mortgage adviser and even the rental adviser.
The lawyer will investigate the legal status of the house for you. Of course we try to make an offer subject to the correct legal status of the property so that you do not lose your reservation amount. This is a bit more difficult with new construction. You run the risk that you will not get the reservation amount back if you decide not to purchase the property. We work together with law firms that specialize in real estate and, of course, advise you extensively in advance about the steps to be taken.
After the reservation, it is also important that a NIE number (official ID in Spain) is requested for you and that you open a bank account. We also guide you in this and go with you. If desired, you can also issue a power of attorney with which we can provide these services for you.
After signing the reservation contract, a purchase contract is usually drawn up within 2 weeks or a month. This contains all rights and obligations of the buying and selling party. You will usually be asked to make a down payment at that time, especially if the transfer date is somewhat further in the future. In this phase you top up the reservation amount that you have transferred to 10% of the purchase price. This 10% will then be transferred to the bank account of the current owner. If, after this down payment, you decide to cancel the purchase, this 10% cannot be reclaimed. If the current owner decides to dissolve the purchase after receipt of this 10%, in some cases you may be paid 20% of the agreed purchase price.
In general, you can go to the notary to sign the transfer deed within 2 to 3 months after signing the purchase contract.
If all parties are willing to cooperate and all documentation about the home is correct and present, it is possible to speed up this process. This even within two weeks! Before the transfer at the notary, we as a broker, whether or not together with you, will do a check-up of the house. The notary then takes care of the registration of the deed in the national register. He will read the excerpt from the title deed (the 'escritura'), arrange the financial settlements on the spot and then you will receive the keys to your Spanish home.
The transfer of the contracts for electricity, water and other matters is then done by your lawyer as part of his purchase supervision. With the insurance of the house, and for example the internet, we can help you again. Are you thinking about taking out at least provisional insurance for the house, which starts on the day of transfer?
When you have received the keys to your new Spanish home, you will of course want to decorate it to your own taste or perhaps even renovate it. We can help you with this too! We put you in touch with the best specialists in these areas. If desired, during or before the reservation period so that you know in good time what the costs and options are.
