I am buying a studio apartment and Key Property is handling both the sale and purchase of same. They are acting for the Vendor and also as a type of Mortgage broker to us. What should I be wary of as they are currently asking for the balance of monies after the mortgage prior to going to notary -we are travelling over for this next week. We were advised we did not need a solicitor as they handle everything on our behalf.
One thing’s for certain: You’re getting very bad advice from Key Properties, whoever they are.
I don’t know how much money you are spending but presumably a fair whack – property doesn’t come cheap any more. If you feel comfortable spending that amount of money without taking any measures to protect your interests then go ahead. But please bear in mind the following:
When buying property in Spain, especially resale property, you ALWAYS need a solicitor working on YOUR behalf to check things over for you. And that means finding your own solicitor, not one recommended to you by the estate agent you are buying from. At the very least you want a solicitor to check the ‘nota simple’ from the land registry, just to confirm that the vendor has the right to sell the property and that you aren’t taking on any unexpected debts (debts ascribed to property in Spain stay with the property even after a sale, so if you buy a property with debts secured against it you will be buying the debts too). Also I would never go to the Escritura (signing of public deeds before Notary) without a solicitor in tow as there can be many a slip betwixt cup and lip.
Pay special attention to the timing and nature of payments. Every payment should be clearly documented in a contract checked by your lawyer. Essentially when buying resale properties there are 2 main payments, though this may vary from case to case. Usually you pay a 10% deposit at the time of signing a ‘contrato de arras’ (deposit contract). The contract, signed by both parties, states – and I’m simplifying things here – what you have paid, to whom, when, why, how the remainder will be paid, and what happens if either one of the parties fails to go through with the transaction. The next and final payment takes place before the Notary at the signing of deeds and that includes the mortgage. Any payments outside of this structure would have my alarm bells ringing. I’m sorry but I didn’t really understand the structure of payments as you described them so I can’t tell if there is any cause for concern.
I don’t want to alarm you unduly but lots of untoward things happen to foreigners buying property in Spain and I hope that in making these comments I can reduce the risks that you run by giving you a clearer idea of where the risks lie.
Kind regards
Mark
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