Tips for buying a property in Costa del Sol

Buying a home in Spain is not easy. Gatell & Associates has a large experience on doing it and knows the regulations to make sure that our clients obtain what they really want. You can do it on your own but if you look for professional advice we are here to help.  ?

In our spanish post By buying an off-plan property (comprar sobre plano in Spanish) we gave you some legal advice to do it. In this case we wil given you not only legal but also common senses tips to buy a house in Costal del Sol successfully

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1º) Locate you dream or apartment house with clear and realistic thinking. Bear in mind that you ‘ll have to do the math of your budget and if it´ s needed a mortgage because you have good credit, earn a good income and have few debts, you could qualify for a substantial loan. But this doesn’t mean you should buy an expensive house. If you pretend to expand your family, you like to travel, and you would like to maintain financial stability and good savings, you cannot be at the  limit of your debt, and that includes the mortgage on your house. If you still don´ t know which one to buy, just contact us with your preferences and we will provide you with a list of possible choices.

2º) Once you know your dream home. Do your due diligence:

a) Verify the existence of the property and who ´   s the real owner in the Land Registry. We can help you to verify this point for a small fee.

b) If you contract a Lawyer verify he or she is under the Correspondent Bar Association. Most of us belong to Malaga Bar.

c)  That the house or apartment has the appropriate planning permission which is carried it out by the department of town planning (Urbanismo in Spanish).

d) That there are no outstanding debts attached to the property, such as a mortgage, community debts or property tax. In Spain, any debt or mortgage tied to a property is transferred to the new owner when the property is sold so you need to ensure that there are no debts attached to it when it is sold, or that if there are, they are covered by the terms of the contract.

e) Communities By laws. There are fairly strict rules about how to live in Communities. Be sure that you not only like your new house, but also the lifestyle that the community offers you. Many homeowner associations can come with weird restrictions!

     Legal items when buying a property

Unfortunately, a  large numbers of inexperienced foreign buyers have provided an opportunity for unscrupulous estate agents and developers to sell properties which are not legitimate.

The services of a notary are not legally obliged to complete the sale, but it is advisable and required by many mortgages.

We work with several ones but our preferred is in Fuengirola:

Fuengirola is a middle point in the Costa del Sol and specialized in this type of transactions

The seller is responsible for hidden defects in the property, even if they are not aware of them. However, in practice gaining restitution for such defects can be difficult and costly.

Paying the costs and taxes associated with buying a home can be completed by the buyer or their agent. It is the buyer’s responsibility, however, to ensure taxes are paid.

The buyer is also responsible for registering the property. The notary may provide this service for a fee, and/or may notify the registry office that the sale has taken place, without completing full registration

Looking for a property or legal advice to buy a property in Costa del Sol. Better call Gatell & Asociados….    ? at   34  699 872 871 or send us a mail to:

info@gatellasociados.com