Buying a property  in Spain can be pretty complicated.

Different language, different laws and a different market.

Riondato & Partnes has assisted various clients who had to face problems and inconvenients when purchasing a property.

Caution when buying a new built home

The worst property scams in Spain, as elsewhere, involve unfinished or unbuilt properties. While malicious intent is rare, caution is advisable when buying a property that does not yet exist. At minimum, you should:

  • Check the company exists and ensure the project is registered with the land registry.
  • Check that planning permission has been granted by enquiring at the local city hall.
  • Not sign a contract you don’t understand.
  • Enlist an independent party for any translations.
  • Demand proof that any sums paid (e.g., a deposit) are being held or spent appropriately.
  • Get proof that you’ll get a refund of your money if the property is not built.

As a non-resident, you may also buy land and have a property built yourself. In this case, good legal advice is even more important as you will need to ensure that contracts with builders are appropriate and watertight.

Protect your investment

There are many conflicts and problems arising from the sale of real estate that our office works, from the most generic and simple to others that are more complicated and complex. Below we make a brief list of some of the most frequent.

  • Related to earnest. The seller cancels the contract but does not return the signal or guarantee obtained by the buyer, or the latter cancels and demands the return of his deposit, etc.
  • Related to sale transaction as such. The buyer does not pay the money in full, the house has defects or is occupied, etc.
  • Related to administration. Urban or any type of problems, urban sanctions, demolition orders, embargoes, etc.
  • Related with tax matters. Parallel liquidations of the Treasury, penalties for improperly declaring the capital gain in the Personal Income Tax, etc.

What can we do to help you?

Our services depend largely on the needs of our clients, limiting ourselves to one or the other as required. In general, we develop services in all these fields:

  • Administration and urban planning. We carry out all the necessary work of study and consultation of the urban and administrative status of the property. We ensure that there are no planning or administrative sanctions (derived from taxes) on the property, which is on developable land, and of course it has all the appropriate public licenses.
  • Registry. We carry out consultation tasks in the Property Registry in order to study the possible presence of liens, easements, mortgages or other relevant registry charges. We verify by simple note that the seller is the owner for the purposes of the Property Registry, and that he has sufficient legitimacy to dispose of the property.
  • Civil. We draft the contracts that are necessary in order to formalize the sale. Down payment, guarantee, signal, etc. contracts. We accompany the client in such contracts, in order to ensure that the transaction is carried out in order.
  • Fiscal. We prepare before the operation the tax expenses related to the sale, advising the client on the taxes that he will have to pay and the amounts that will correspond in this concept. We formalize and present the corresponding tax declarations.
  • Management. We present all the necessary administrative documents in order to formalize the purchase and sale operation, first with the tax agencies, and second with the Property Registry with the idea that it is duly registered.

Any of these services, all or part of them, may be requested by the client to be budgeted for and performed by this office.

If you need a speaking english lawyer in Alicante, Elche, Benidorm, la Marina, Torrevieja and in Costa Blanca call us, we can help.