If you are interested in using our services to buy or sell a property, please contact us.
A Guide to Buying Property in Spain
- By working together, we will do our utmost to help you to find your ideal property.
- When you finally make a choice and you wish to make an offer, Andersen Fox will then discuss this offer with the vendor. If not acceptable, we will try to negotiate a mutually agreeable price. Most (but not all), vendors are prepared to negotiate on price.
- Finance – at this point, should a mortgage be required, Purchaser will arrange with his/her bank, or finance company, to have the property valued. When this has been carried out and both parties are satisfied, it is time for the next step. As the final approval of a mortgage can take from between 3 to 4 weeks, depending on each individual case, it is necessary to begin with the applications as soon as possible, to avoid losing the property.
- Instruct Lawyer to act for you in the purchase. Andersen Fox can recommend several good multi-lingual speaking and trustworthy lawyers, we will then supply them with all the relevant paperwork on the property. The lawyer will make all the necessary checks at the Land Registry, Town Hall and Community (if property is located in one of the many urbanizations) to ensure the property is free of all debts and charges. The lawyer will then draw up the Pre-Purchase Contract, with a mutually agreed completion date and an inventory of any furniture being included in the sale which is approved and signed by the Vendor.
- Purchaser will arrange the transfer of 10% deposit of the purchase price, to his/her lawyers Clients’ Bank Account in which it will be held until the final date of purchase.
- When the deposit has arrived and the mortgage (if relevant) is approved, Andersen Fox will arrange with the Vendor and Purchaser (or his/her lawyer) to sign the Pre-Purchase Contract. The contract will state the date agreed by both parties for the final completion. It is at this point that the property is taken off the market and no further offers considered. This 10% deposit is considered un-refundable once the Pre-Purchase Contract has been signed by both parties and penalties can be applied to either party not proceeding to completion.
- Purchaser will open a Bank Account to arrange further funds to be transferred. Again Andersen Fox can recommend several. Please remember that you will need approx. 10% above the purchase price of the property to cover your Buying Costs, i.e. legal fees and taxes. A bank account is also necessary to set up direct debits to cover rates, electricity and water etc., of the property.
- Get an N.I.E. number. This is your fiscal identification for Spain. This is obtained from the local Police Station. Your lawyer will arrange for this you.
- The Completion Date will arrive and an appointment will have been made at a local Notary’s Office with Purchaser, Vendor and lawyer/s, who will make sure the new Escritura (Deeds) to be signed, have all the correct details. The Deeds will be read through and translated for you, before you sign. The vendors will arrange to cancel their direct debits for services to the property. The purchaser’s lawyer will arrange the new direct debits. All parties then sign, including the Notary. The Bankers Draft for the balance of the declared value is handed over to the Vendor, and funds to lawyer to pay the 7% I.T.P. (transfer tax), Notary’s fees, Land Registry and Lawyer’s fees. The keys are handed over and possession of the new property takes place,
- The Purchaser’s lawyer will process all of this and give a final Statement of Accounts and the new Escritura (Deeds) when registered, to the Purchaser.
After your purchase ANDERSEN FOX will be happy to assist you in any way possible with any queries or help you may need during the first few weeks of possession of your new property.
Useful Advice and Information on Selling your Property
We are appreciative that you have asked Andersen Fox to list and sell your property. We do understand that sometimes owners find this whole process daunting and stressful. We are here to take away this stress and make the whole experience more pleasant and relaxing.
We have prepared the following guidline to inform you of how our company operates and to give you advice on how you can help both us and yourself in selling your property.
TO LIST YOUR PROPERTY FOR SALE WE REQUIRE :
A copy of your title deeds (escritura de compraventa)
A copy of your latest I.B.I. and Basura receipts (rates & rubbish collection)
How much your community fees are.
A copy of your latest water receipt (unless included in your community charges).
PRICING OF YOUR PROPERTY
We understand that you wish to receive the best possible price and we will endeavour to do this for you. The price, however, has to be realistic and we will advise you on this taking into account our many years experience, the state of the present market and also how quickly you wish to sell.
Some owners decide on listing at a higher price than advised with a view to testing the market. This does mean, however, that any opportunity of clients who would possibly consider to view/buy at a lower price could be lost, or that a busy time period with many potential clients is missed. A property can also be ‘over-exposed’ to the market, where buyers see it advertised for a long time with several reductions making it seem less attractive or unsaleable. At the same time, it is advisable to leave a margin for negotiation. No matter how reasonable the price is, most buyers will expect to make an offer and negotiate.
ACCESS FOR VIEWING WITH CLIENTS
An important factor is that we can easily make arrangements to show your property to any clients with no delay.
If you reside at the property, we will telephone to make an appointment with you. Most of the time we try to schedule our appointments in advance, giving our owners 24 hours notice, but due to extensive advertising our clients often arrive at our office without a previous appointment and wish to view more or less on that day. If possible we try to accommodate them. However, if you are not available or it is not convenient to you at that time, we will select other properties to view and try to re-schedule an appointment with you.
This also applies when the keys are held with a neighbour or friend. Many owners tell us that their friends ‘are always in’ and that there will be ‘no problem’. Although this can work, we often find much difficulty with this situation. Our office is open from 10.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m. Monday to Friday. Some days we may have several clients at different times of the day to view the same property and friends and neighbours may not feel as accommodating if they are called upon several so frequently.
We will inform you or the keyholder at which time we expect to be at your property, but the clients may spend more time than usual in a previous property or perhaps decide not to look at it at all, so we are not able to give accurate times of viewing although if it looks as if we are going to be delayed or earlier than agreed, we do try to telephone you.
If you do not occupy the property permanently or if you are out working most of the day, it is therefore not only convenient but could be the selling factor if we do have a set of keys.
N.B. All our keys are marked with a reference number only (no addresses) and all viewings are accompanied by ourselves, even if with other agents.
We do not send clients to look at properties from the outside, whether they are occupied or not, but ask them to make an appointment, where we will accompany them to the property.
CLIENT QUALIFICATION
Before taking clients out to view properties, we normally interview them first to find out what their approximate price range and requirements are. We ask when they are expecting to buy : if they have money readily available or will need a mortgage or if they need to sell an existing property first. When we have some information we select a few properties for the clients to view. If they are able to visit our office before the viewings we can show them photographs and details on the computor to help them choose. The client may already have chosen several specific properties to view, which he has seen promoted in one of our adverts or website. After the initial viewings we will then have an even better idea of what the client is looking for and choose properties accordingly.
SHOWING YOUR PROPERTY
You have instructed us to market your property and we will try to do our job well. Please leave us to show your property to our clients. We spend time initially to have the correct details for your property and also to have a good idea of what our clients are looking for. Sometimes, a simple remark or perhaps a clash of personalities can jeopardize the sale. Some clients like to be informed of every single details in the property, look in the cupboards and pat the dog on the head, some clients prefer to walk around quietly to absorb the feeling of the property rather than conversing with the owners or even with us. DO NOT BE OFFENDED – they may buy your property. Do not worry, for the quiet clients may have already asked us a multitude of questions on the way.
A FEW OWNERS HAVE ASKED FOR CONSTRUCTIVE ADVICE .- SO HERE IT IS
Properties always look more attractive when tidy, clean and well maintained, but it is important to open the blinds or shutters to let light in and to switch on lamps (during the winter months) Small rooms look larger when tidy and kitchens will be noticed and liked more if kitchen tops are uncluttered. Try to avoid strong cooking smells if possible prior to a visit. Remember, that the more people in a room, the smaller it looks and feels. It is also a good idea to keep children and pets out of the way.
KEEPING US INFORMED
Please inform us immediately, if you change the price of your property or if it is sold. We can then alter all our records and inform our colleagues and make sure our clients are receiving the correct information. We have
invested money in reaching them and it is a waste of time to show, advertise or promote property which is no longer for sale.
Even when you do not hear from us or if we are not showing your property on a regular basis, we are still doing our best in promoting it for you. We advertise in property magazines as well as sending descriptions of properties to colleagues here and overseas. We also are long time members of ‘Infocasa’ a well established property programme and have made many sales in association with them. If you have several agents selling your property we suggest that you have the same price for everyone to avoid any client being made uneasy by seeing one property being advertised by many agents at different prices.
KEEPING YOU INFORMED
After each viewing, and if you live here in Spain, we will contact you to inform you of any comments which the clients made regarding your property. E.G. Are they interested? What did or didn’t they like? Comments on price etc. We consider this feed-back to our owners essential. If you live abroad, we would normally update you during your next visit or by email when required.
If a client makes an offer, we will contact you immediately. Even if the offer is substantially lower than your asking price we feel obliged to inform you….it is your decision and not ours.
SELLING COSTS TO THE VENDOR
The vendor is liable for capital gains tax (which can be explained to you by your lawyer, taking into consideration all your particular details). You will also be liable to pay the Plus Valia Tax. The remaining costs are to the purchaser. We suggest that when deciding on your selling price that you take these costs into consideration.
SALES PROCEDURES AND CONTRACTS
When a client makes an offer we will, of course, contact you for your comments, but the important thing is to leave it to us to negotiate on your behalf. Many reasons for this. We know which properties the client has seen and his comments and have established a rapport during the viewings. As we are not emotionally involved, we can argue the benefits of your property from a stronger and a more neutral point of view. We will be in continuous contact to inform you of the progress and to discuss all aspects of the offer with you.
Once the price and the terms of the contract have been agreed then each parties lawyer will be contacted to be involved with the following processes. The lawyers will draw up a pre-sales agreement (private contract) and will be signed by both parties if in agreement and at the same time a deposit of 10% of the purchase price will be paid by the purchaser. This is normally held by the lawyer of the vendor in a client account until completion. This deposit is now considered non-refundable. This means that should the purchaser not complete the purchase for any reason, the deposit will be released to the vendor. If, however, the vendor does not agree complete according to the agreement, the money is refunded to the buyer. This is the reason that the deposit money is held by the lawyer, so that in any event of either parties not completing then the money is easily released without having to go through any lengthy court procedures to re-claim this. A completion date is also stated in this private contract which is binding to both parties.
Just before completion, for administration purposes, we will require the latest receipts for;-
I.B.I. & Basura
Community Fees
Water (if not included in the community fees)
Electricity
Telephone (if relevant)
Alarm System (if relevant)
Your lawers should arrange to have the above services contacted to change them over to the name of the new owners. Standing orders can also be arranged with your bank.
Calculations of the proportional costs between you and the buyers e.g. you may have paid rates (I.B.I) for the full year ahead and thus require a refund or the buyer may be paying the next electricity bill and thus require a refund for your share of the electricity consumption. A full Settlement of Costs will be accessed by either your lawyer or ourselves.
TO SELL - OR NOT TO SELL
The most important question you have to ask yourself is ‘Do I really want to sell my property?
There could well be the scenario where your property is listed with us and within a few days we have a serious buyer. This can happen, so we do need to know that you are resolute in your decision as this could waste time, money and effort as well as the emotions for everyone involved. On the other hand some owners have been so used to viewings over a lengthy time and suddenly find themselves with a buyer, that they then become overwhelmed by the prospect of finally moving and could have second thoughts.
It is difficult not to be disappointed after many visits from clients looking at your home, even if the comments are generally positive and people appear to like and want your property. It is even worse if a client makes an offer and then changes his mind. But these things do happen even though we try to avoid them as much as we can.
If someone does make an offer to buy your property – think this over seriously. Perhaps you think that the offer is lower than you expected and you may even feel slightly insulted by this, but try not to let personal feelings cloud your judgement, because you may regret your refusal later. Let us try to re-negotiate for you. When considering whether to accept an offer you may find it useful to consider firstly, how much real interest you have received in your property so far and how long it may take to find another buyer. Does it suit you personally to delay a sale? Will your costs accumulate whilst waiting further. Do you think properties will sell easier in future …..and so on.
