Property Conveyancing

HERRERA Y MORENO ABOGADOS attends in particular to non-resident citizens in Spain who decide to purchase a home here or who wish to establish their business.

Our firm, located on the Costa del Sol, has extensive experience and deep knowledge in the matter to guarantee our clients the fully satisfactory acquisition or sale of a property for non-resident citizens.

As experienced property attorneys, we handle all matters related to your transaction and ensure that your purchase is secure.

We can provide you with quality advice on all legal aspects, including a sale and purchase. Our experience of more than 24 years in this field allows us to guarantee you a successful performance in aspects such as:

• Tax advice for non-residents who rent their property
• Assistance with procedures at Notaries and Registries
• Various procedures before Spanish Administrations and Organizations
• Valuations, Reports, Licenses, Communities of Owners, etc.
• Constitution of the horizontal property regime and division of farms
• Management in business parks, office buildings, shopping centers
• Corporate structuring that suits your investment

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR THE SALE OF A PROPERTY IN SPAIN FOR NON-RESIDENTS:

Once you have signed the booking agreement, which is normally non-refundable, your lawyer will ask for the following documentation:

• Copy of the property titles (deed
• Copy of the last receipt of the Property Tax (IBI)
• Copy of your last Spanish Income Tax Declaration (form 214 if you are not a resident)
• Copies of all the invoices of public services (water, electricity, gas, telephone, etc.)
• Receipt of community expenses
• Copy of the property titles of the mortgage. If you applied for a mortgage when you bought the property

Once all of the property verifications have been completed, and both parties are happy, the attorneys set a date to complete at the notary.

In accordance with the Notarial Rules, the notary has the obligation to verify the registry of the property that is sold, before signing the deed.  In addition, you must fax the new title deed immediately to the land registry once the deeds have been signed.

In addition, you should keep in mind that Spanish law establishes that the real market value must be declared in any new deed and provides penalties if they find that a value has been declared low.

You should also note that, unless you are a tax resident in Spain, it is now the buyer’s responsibility to deposit 3% of the purchase price with the Spanish tax authorities on behalf of the seller.

The tax authorities retain this deposit until they have assessed the taxes, including the capital gains tax, which the Seller owes them.  Once Seller’s tax position has been assessed, excess funds must be returned to Seller.  Authorities can take up to a year before returning any money.

Once you have sold the property and signed the land titles, you will need to notify the appropriate providers to transfer the collection charges for electricity, water and garbage from your name.  You must also notify the City Council that you are no longer the property owner.  Finally, you must make your tax returns in Spanish to recover, if applicable, the unused balance of the withholding paid to the Spanish tax authorities.

There is an important difference between the way in which Spaniards and other countries collect their taxes.

The taxes that you must take into account are:

• Capital Gains Tax (the Capital Gains Tax is a municipal tax on the increase in the value of the land over the years)
• Capital Gains Tax

A non-resident seller is responsible for paying a capital gains tax of 19% on the profit from the sale of their property unless it was purchased before January 1, 1987. However, most people They do not know that exemptions are available to those who have owned their property since 1994 and before.