British Embassy advice before you buy property in Spain

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    • #56203
      Anonymous
      Participant

      I’ve just noticed this page at the British Embassay in Madrid’s website:
      http://ukinspain.fco.gov.uk/en/help-for-british-nationals/living-in-spain/property-in-spain/before-you-buy/

      All sensible stuff. And always nice to get an official thumbs up (for SPI) that is. 😀

    • #104096
      Anonymous
      Participant

      Soon, you will be on the honour’s list. All very sound advise & typical of the body who can write volumes but little or no practical help e.g find an independent lawyer, obtain a guarantee how does one do this. When a buyer a new built and putting a deposit there is no guarantee document issued. Besides at this stage and until such time as the notary is involved the guarantee will not be issued. A buyer may have paid upto 40% of the price at this stage. Further is the foreign office going to provide a list of Banks that do not honour the guarantees !!!

      If they have a list of lawrers than they should vet them. Anything less than taking a collective action on behalf of the people being affected at all level is just a waste of time as far as the buyers are concerned.

      Ten year’s build guantee/warranty. Does anybody knows who gives this ? Where does it state in the contract. Once the block is complete the Developers are not seen & even durig the completion phase even the snaggings are not done.

    • #104296
      Anonymous
      Participant

      Soon, you will be on the honour’s list. All very sound advise & typical of the body who can write volumes but little or no practical help e.g find an independent lawyer, obtain a guarantee how does one do this. When a buyer a new built and putting a deposit there is no guarantee document issued. Besides at this stage and until such time as the notary is involved the guarantee will not be issued. A buyer may have paid upto 40% of the price at this stage. Further is the foreign office going to provide a list of Banks that do not honour the guarantees !!!

      If they have a list of lawrers than they should vet them. Anything less than taking a collective action on behalf of the people being affected at all level is just a waste of time as far as the buyers are concerned.

      Ten year’s build guantee/warranty. Does anybody knows who gives this ? Where does it state in the contract. Once the block is complete the Developers are not seen & even durig the completion phase even the snaggings are not done.

    • #104097
      katy
      Blocked

      Further is the foreign office going to provide a list of Banks that do not honour the guarantees !!!

      If they have a list of lawrers than they should vet them. Anything less than taking a collective action on behalf of the people being affected at all level is just a waste of time as far as the buyers are concerned

      I don’t think the FCO should be expected to use taxpayers money to vet spanish systems for people buying a house in the sun! They have done enough by pointing out procedures and pitfalls. It is something the spanish Government should be doing or the estate agents a a collective.

    • #104297
      katy
      Blocked

      Further is the foreign office going to provide a list of Banks that do not honour the guarantees !!!

      If they have a list of lawrers than they should vet them. Anything less than taking a collective action on behalf of the people being affected at all level is just a waste of time as far as the buyers are concerned

      I don’t think the FCO should be expected to use taxpayers money to vet spanish systems for people buying a house in the sun! They have done enough by pointing out procedures and pitfalls. It is something the spanish Government should be doing or the estate agents a a collective.

    • #104098
      Anonymous
      Participant

      I’m with Katy on this. It simply isn’t in the FCO’s remit to vet lawers. Also it would open up a real can of worms for them if any of those they recommended ended up in dispute with a client.

      The page strikes me as offering sensible, high level advice. It does stress that you should do your own research and take independent legal advice.

    • #104298
      Anonymous
      Participant

      I’m with Katy on this. It simply isn’t in the FCO’s remit to vet lawers. Also it would open up a real can of worms for them if any of those they recommended ended up in dispute with a client.

      The page strikes me as offering sensible, high level advice. It does stress that you should do your own research and take independent legal advice.

    • #104099
      Anonymous
      Participant

      “I don’t think the FCO should be expected to use taxpayers money to vet “

      They are not wasting tax payers money any more than they already do. They are already paid to do very little apart from pushing papers & beefing up their pension & other perks. .

      “It is something the spanish Government should be doing or the estate agents a a collective.”
      The Spanish Government is not doing anything as we all know infact they are a party to it by collecting Taxes etc. It is the British buyers who are being taken for a ride & one of the remit of any Embassy, High Commission to provide & protect its Citizens.

      The advise the Embassy has given can be obtained from purchasing any independent book on buying property or other matters.

      In short the Embassy has just repteated what these books will tell one and as such not helped any one apart from the pretence that something is bering done by them a reaction after they has be criticized over a prolong period.

    • #104299
      Anonymous
      Participant

      “I don’t think the FCO should be expected to use taxpayers money to vet “

      They are not wasting tax payers money any more than they already do. They are already paid to do very little apart from pushing papers & beefing up their pension & other perks. .

      “It is something the spanish Government should be doing or the estate agents a a collective.”
      The Spanish Government is not doing anything as we all know infact they are a party to it by collecting Taxes etc. It is the British buyers who are being taken for a ride & one of the remit of any Embassy, High Commission to provide & protect its Citizens.

      The advise the Embassy has given can be obtained from purchasing any independent book on buying property or other matters.

      In short the Embassy has just repteated what these books will tell one and as such not helped any one apart from the pretence that something is bering done by them a reaction after they has be criticized over a prolong period.

    • #104100
      katy
      Blocked

      They are not wasting tax payers money any more than they already do. They are already paid to do very little apart from pushing papers & beefing up their pension & other perks. .

      I don’t agree, I know a couple of people in the FCO and they work very hard and long hours. They have a lot of responsibility for the salaries they receive. They have to take all the flack and are unable to respond.

    • #104300
      katy
      Blocked

      They are not wasting tax payers money any more than they already do. They are already paid to do very little apart from pushing papers & beefing up their pension & other perks. .

      I don’t agree, I know a couple of people in the FCO and they work very hard and long hours. They have a lot of responsibility for the salaries they receive. They have to take all the flack and are unable to respond.

    • #104101
      Anonymous
      Participant

      Perhaps they could enlighten us what actually do they do for the long hours ??? What responsibilty they carry ? Have you ever come accross any one being being held responsible or any one ever sacked.

      The Foreign office until twenty four hours before did not even know that Argentina was at an advance stage of attacking Falklands. Did the Ambassador or the first secretary etc got sacked ?

    • #104301
      Anonymous
      Participant

      Perhaps they could enlighten us what actually do they do for the long hours ??? What responsibilty they carry ? Have you ever come accross any one being being held responsible or any one ever sacked.

      The Foreign office until twenty four hours before did not even know that Argentina was at an advance stage of attacking Falklands. Did the Ambassador or the first secretary etc got sacked ?

    • #104102
      Anonymous
      Participant

      Actually Shakeel the Foreign Secretary at the time, Lord Peter Charrington, took the blame and resigned. It is very possible that the ambassador had warned him about problems but that this advice was ignored. Truth is we’ll never know.

      http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1267958/bio

      Most of what the FCO do is pretty dull commercial stuff such as helping overseas trade missions. In general people have little clue what this involves. I know a number of decent hard working people there. Like any government department it has its share of shirkers but it is unfair to tar them all with the same brush.

    • #104302
      Anonymous
      Participant

      Actually Shakeel the Foreign Secretary at the time, Lord Peter Charrington, took the blame and resigned. It is very possible that the ambassador had warned him about problems but that this advice was ignored. Truth is we’ll never know.

      http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1267958/bio

      Most of what the FCO do is pretty dull commercial stuff such as helping overseas trade missions. In general people have little clue what this involves. I know a number of decent hard working people there. Like any government department it has its share of shirkers but it is unfair to tar them all with the same brush.

    • #104103
      Anonymous
      Participant

      Brianc_li, As we can only go by what we hear and as such rightly or wrongly we have to form an opnion on what we have.

      Lord Charrington may have resigned sitting in London. The fault still lies with the people on the ground. The same applies in London. I have had dealing with the Embassy in Madrid in respect of certain commercial issues and all I got from them was passing the buck.

      Sorry, guys you all will not convince me in any other way. Until their peformance vastly improves & in a transparent manner.

    • #104303
      Anonymous
      Participant

      Brianc_li, As we can only go by what we hear and as such rightly or wrongly we have to form an opnion on what we have.

      Lord Charrington may have resigned sitting in London. The fault still lies with the people on the ground. The same applies in London. I have had dealing with the Embassy in Madrid in respect of certain commercial issues and all I got from them was passing the buck.

      Sorry, guys you all will not convince me in any other way. Until their peformance vastly improves & in a transparent manner.

    • #104104
      rt21
      Participant

      @katy wrote:

      I don’t think the FCO should be expected to use taxpayers money to vet spanish systems for people buying a house in the sun! They have done enough by pointing out procedures and pitfalls. It is something the spanish Government should be doing or the estate agents a a collective.

      I totally agree with Katy on this one. If the embassy started to involve itself at that level it would detract from its other core obligations and would set an unwelcome precedent for all other UK embassies across the world. If the embassy has produced guidelines on house buying in Spain based on the sound advice given in various books then I feel they have gone as far as I would reasonably expect them to go.

      Richard

    • #104304
      rt21
      Participant

      @katy wrote:

      I don’t think the FCO should be expected to use taxpayers money to vet spanish systems for people buying a house in the sun! They have done enough by pointing out procedures and pitfalls. It is something the spanish Government should be doing or the estate agents a a collective.

      I totally agree with Katy on this one. If the embassy started to involve itself at that level it would detract from its other core obligations and would set an unwelcome precedent for all other UK embassies across the world. If the embassy has produced guidelines on house buying in Spain based on the sound advice given in various books then I feel they have gone as far as I would reasonably expect them to go.

      Richard

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