Hi All I am due to complete on a property this week and have just received my completion statement from the lawyers and i am unsure on some of the items listed for payment and could do with a bit of guidence please items unsure of 290 euros to change the water and electric plus 30 euros from the providers themselves. 700 euros to apply the habitation certificate in the town hall this is a resale property 150 euros communication of the Plusvalia to the local authorities .Non of thes items were on the original quotation of fees and exspenses some guidence would be helpfull.
In Spain, legally you have bought a house when you have signed the title deed in the notary (Escritura). But, once you have done that, there are other issues that need to be dealt with, such as:
– Getting the title deed register in the Land Registry.
– Paying all the taxes.
– Communicating the purchase to the Town Hall.
– Change the ownership in Catastro.
– Change the ownership in water and electricity contracts, or getting new contracts (in the last case, the companies require for a small amount as deposit, like those 30 euros).
– Communicating the purchase to the community of owners.
All these issues can be dealt with by yourself or you can hire someone else to do it for you. Sometimes, buyers hire a “gestoria” (administrators), or hire the lawyers to take care of all these as well, or pay the “notaria” to do it.
In any case, dealing with these issues is charged with fees separately from the “legal” costs (notario will issue a different invoice, and lawyers will specify their fees separately).
The amount varies from place to place. Fees in Costa del Sol are not the same as in Madrid, for example.
Finally, fees for applying for the habitation certificate (first license occupation) depend on where you are doing businesses as every Town Hall establish their own “ordenanzas” to rule how to do so and – also – will depend on the complexity of each case and the value of the house bought.
Also, bear in mind that lawyer fees are also stablished bearing in mind the knowledge and experience of the lawyer hired: hiring a novice lawyer (fresh out of the university) is not the same as hiring a senior lawyer.
In conclusion, 700 euros may be the normal fees in your area, or might be justified in your particular case.
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