Buying and Selling Procedure
If you have to sell in Asturias
Selling Procedure
We are a professional team who have been selling properties in Spain for 20 years. Our aim is to make the buying and selling procedure as simple and painless as possible. We have an excellent website which allows us to fully represent your property to as many potential buyers as possible. Your property will be displayed on our custom built website. We provide great quality photos and a comprehensive description. This means that buyers can see exactly what it is you are selling.
In addition to our own website, we invest heavily in the marketing of your property through several online property portals. These portals attract quality buyers from all over the world, including Europe, USA and Asia.
We speak English and Spanish and are able to understand most of your documentation. However, it’s advisable to have the escritura and cadastral plans thoroughly checked prior to finding a buyer. This will ensure that everything is ready once a buyer is found. Since it is the sellers responsibility to make sure all the paperwork is in order, we recommend using legal representation to rectify any discrepancies.
Once we have a buyer interested in your property we will arrange an appointment with you for a convenient time to visit. We will accompany the buyers to see your property and conduct the viewing. If we receive an offer from the buyers we will inform you immediately and await your decision. Either to accept the offer or if you want, to make a counter offer. Once a price has been agreed we will draw up a private sales contract for both parties to sign and agree to the sale and purchase of the property.
If you are looking in Asturias
Buying Procedure
Asturias Property are a professional company with both directors having 20 years experience selling property in Spain. We have a knack for matching the right property to the right buyer.
Our aim is to ensure the buyers are fully informed and qualified before any visit is arranged. This ensures that we do not waste time showing properties that do not match the buyer’s preferences. Which is why we offer a full and comprehensive description of the properties on our website with many quality photos.
Enquiries via email or phone calls are dealt with promptly so that you are not kept waiting and wondering. We know that buying a new property can be a stressful experience, so we aim to respond within 24 hours of your enquiry. Our team encourage you to give us as much information as possible. Tell us in detail about the type of property you are looking for to ensure we find the right one in the shortest time.
Once you have chosen a property and we have negotiated a price, we prepare a private sales contract, which will be submitted to your appointed lawyer for approval. This contract will include, the seller’s name, the buyer’s name, the property details including the cadastral reference, the agreed sale price, the amount of deposit being paid, (usually 10% – 15%) and the time period agreed by both parties as to when the sale will be concluded in front of the Notary.
When your lawyer is happy with the terms of the private contract, both parties sign the document and you (the buyers) will pay the deposit to the agent to hold until the sale is complete.
FAQ - The Selling Procedure
Should I redecorate my property before selling it?
Yes if the property is unlived in or hasn’t been decorated for a while. You will have a better chance of selling it if you clear out rubbish and unwanted furniture. Not only from inside the house but around it as well. Get rid of building rubble and waste materials. A simple coat of exterior white paint will increase the value of your property.
What documents do you need to sell my property?
Once we agree to market your property, we need a copy of:
• Escritura (or Nota Simple)
Your title deeds.
• Latest IBI statement
The tax you pay annually to the Ayuntamiento or APAT.
• Certificate of Energy Efficiency
Unless your property is isolated and has less than 45 m2 built or is currently uninhabitable and in a state fit only for renovation, you will need to commission an Energy Efficiency Certificate. Any technical architect can do this for you.
• Sales contract
We have a standard document which we ask you to sign. This authorises us to put your property on the market without any cost to you and in which you undertake to pay our commission if we sell your property.
• Other Documentation
If you have floor plans, that will help us a lot. Also a Licencia de Primera Ocupación, Certificado de Legalidad Urbanistica, DAFO etc.
What additional costs are involved when selling a property?
There are several cost elements involved in selling your property:
Energy Efficiency Certificate
It is a legal requirement to have an EEC before marketing your property. There are a number of architects offering the service and we can organise on your behalf if you wish. Exceptions to this includes if it is an isolated rural property less than 45 m2 built or if it is a renovation being sold as inhabitable.
Estate agent commission
Our commission is payable in two halves, the first payment becomes due once you sign a contrato privado and the remaining payment when you complete the sale at the Notary. Our commission is charged as a percentage of the sale price.
Notary’s fees
According to Spanish law the seller pays approximately 60% of the costs of the Notary and the buyer pays approximately 40%. However, this is open to negotiation between the parties.
Plus Valía
This is a municipal tax based on the increase in the value of the land on which your property sits during the length of time you’ve owned it. Generally, the longer you have owned the property, the higher the tax.
Do I need to be present for each viewing?
No it is not necessary for you to be present during the viewing. If we have a key or another key holder has access to the property, then we can conduct the viewings alone. If you are present it is better to let one of our partners lead the viewing. The buyers tend to feel more at ease when the owner is not present.
If I accept an offer, what happens next?
We will continue to show your property to other potential buyers until the contrato privado or arras are signed by both parties..
Once the sales contract is signed we will mark the property as under offer and prepare everything ready for the Notary.
When will the sale be completed?
At the contrato privado signing, a date will be agreed by both parties on the competion at the Notary. Until that date you are still responsible for the property and need to keep it secure and insured. You will hand over the keys at the time of signing once you receive your cheque from the buyer.
How much Capital Gains Tax do I have to pay?
If you are fiscally resident you will be liable to declare the sale of your property in the next declaración de renta. You must prove fiscal residence via a certificate from Hacienda at the time of signing at the Notary. Otherwise the buyer’s lawyer must treat you as a non-resident and retain the 3% withholding tax that the purchaser is required to retain by law. This is 3% of the declared selling price which is paid over by the buyer’s lawyer to Hacienda in your name. This is, in effect, an advance payment of capital gains tax. If you do not believe you should pay this because you have made no capital gain, there is a mechanism for reclaiming it.
FAQ - The Buying Procedure
What do I need to do before I buy a property?
Firstly you will need to ensure that you have the funds available, either in the bank or with a secured mortage agreed.
Secondly you will need to have an NIE. A Número de Identificación de Extranjero. This is a fiscal number which everyone in Spain has and is used to pay taxes and to identify you when dealing with any government or administrative organisation.
Lastly you will need to open a Spanish bank account.
Does the listed sales price include all the costs?
No, the sales prices quoted are those sought by the sellers. You need to add additional costs of buying which, in Asturias, are approximately 11% – 12%.
When will the sale be completed?
If the property’s documentation is completely in order (which is rare) and you have the funds available, your NIE number and a Spanish bank account opened, the process can take place in one day.
However, it normally takes longer, allowing time for the seller to rectify their documentation and for the buyer to gather together resources, is usually 1 – 3 months.
Is it an easy and safe process to buy a property?
The process is totally safe, especially when using a reputable estate agent. A good lawyer will also ensure that the property has the correct title and that the buildings have been constructed with appropriate permissions or that they have been subsequently legalised.
Will the documentation be in my language?
We prepare all of our private contracts in Spanish and your native language so that not only your lawyer but you, too, can understand exactly what you are agreeing to. At the Notary the formal public title deeds will only be written in Spanish. For clients who do not speak Spanish we can recommend interpreters on the day of signing.
Do I need to appoint a Lawyer?
Yes, is is advisable. There is no legal requirement but you are spending a lot of money and it absolutely pays to hire a lawyer. This will cost approximately 1% of the purchase price.
Your lawyer will do more than ensure that what you are signing is legal. He will also handle a raft of administrative tasks which, in a bureaucratic country like Spain can be incredibly frustrating and long-winded. Appoint a lawyer experienced in the selling process in Asturias, not one based in another region, Barcelona or Madrid.