Embargo on house
Mar 27th 2014 | 9:03 pm
#1
Thread Starter
Just Joined
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 5
Embargo on house
We have been living in Spain for a few years now and have always tried to do things right e.g. pay our taxes and be legal.
OH is self employed here in Spain. He has work but has struggled over the years to pay his social security payments.
He has paid all his taxes every three months.
I found out a few days ago that he owes 5,000 euros on his s.s. this has added up with interest and fines.
He did go and see them a year ago when he first started to get into difficulty but was told that they had put an embargo on his work van but they offered no help.
Everyon told him to sign off self employed but he is proud and wanted to do things right.
He had a phone call from s.s. a couple of weeks ago saying they needed to speak with him. He went to see them and took a translator with him as his Spanish is ok but he wanted to be sure about what they were saying. They told him he needs to pay the 5,000 but also advised him to keep signing off every other month or so to catch up with payments.
They told him that they had now put an embargo on our house for the 5,000 euros.
This week a letter from them addressed to me saying they have now put an embargo on our home for the 5,000 euros and that we ourselves cannot sell the property. They sent the letter to me as I own half the house.
There is no mortgage on the house.
We were under the impression that the embargo would stay there until we sold the house and we could then pay off the debt but we are now not sure as this letter seems to indicate that they can sell the house.
Does this now mean that the government can now sell our house to get the 5,000 euros my husband owes them. What about my half share of the house what happens to that. Will they just auction our property off for whatever they can get for it as long as it covers the 5,000 euros.
Anyone have any experience of this. We can´t employ a lawyer as we don´t have the money to do so.
We can´t tighten our belts anymore, we have never had a holiday since we have been here, don´t go out etc. etc. we really do not have a very good quality of life her.
I know people will say go back to the u.k. but we are penniless so how would we go about finding somewhere to live until we got jobs.
Cany anyone give us any advice on this please.
OH is self employed here in Spain. He has work but has struggled over the years to pay his social security payments.
He has paid all his taxes every three months.
I found out a few days ago that he owes 5,000 euros on his s.s. this has added up with interest and fines.
He did go and see them a year ago when he first started to get into difficulty but was told that they had put an embargo on his work van but they offered no help.
Everyon told him to sign off self employed but he is proud and wanted to do things right.
He had a phone call from s.s. a couple of weeks ago saying they needed to speak with him. He went to see them and took a translator with him as his Spanish is ok but he wanted to be sure about what they were saying. They told him he needs to pay the 5,000 but also advised him to keep signing off every other month or so to catch up with payments.
They told him that they had now put an embargo on our house for the 5,000 euros.
This week a letter from them addressed to me saying they have now put an embargo on our home for the 5,000 euros and that we ourselves cannot sell the property. They sent the letter to me as I own half the house.
There is no mortgage on the house.
We were under the impression that the embargo would stay there until we sold the house and we could then pay off the debt but we are now not sure as this letter seems to indicate that they can sell the house.
Does this now mean that the government can now sell our house to get the 5,000 euros my husband owes them. What about my half share of the house what happens to that. Will they just auction our property off for whatever they can get for it as long as it covers the 5,000 euros.
Anyone have any experience of this. We can´t employ a lawyer as we don´t have the money to do so.
We can´t tighten our belts anymore, we have never had a holiday since we have been here, don´t go out etc. etc. we really do not have a very good quality of life her.
I know people will say go back to the u.k. but we are penniless so how would we go about finding somewhere to live until we got jobs.
Cany anyone give us any advice on this please.
Mar 27th 2014 | 9:08 pm
#2
Banned
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 19,367
From: Mallorca
Re: Embargo on house
We have been living in Spain for a few years now and have always tried to do things right e.g. pay our taxes and be legal.
OH is self employed here in Spain. He has work but has struggled over the years to pay his social security payments.
He has paid all his taxes every three months.
I found out a few days ago that he owes 5,000 euros on his s.s. this has added up with interest and fines.
He did go and see them a year ago when he first started to get into difficulty but was told that they had put an embargo on his work van but they offered no help.
Everyon told him to sign off self employed but he is proud and wanted to do things right.
He had a phone call from s.s. a couple of weeks ago saying they needed to speak with him. He went to see them and took a translator with him as his Spanish is ok but he wanted to be sure about what they were saying. They told him he needs to pay the 5,000 but also advised him to keep signing off every other month or so to catch up with payments.
They told him that they had now put an embargo on our house for the 5,000 euros.
This week a letter from them addressed to me saying they have now put an embargo on our home for the 5,000 euros and that we ourselves cannot sell the property. They sent the letter to me as I own half the house.
There is no mortgage on the house.
We were under the impression that the embargo would stay there until we sold the house and we could then pay off the debt but we are now not sure as this letter seems to indicate that they can sell the house.
Does this now mean that the government can now sell our house to get the 5,000 euros my husband owes them. What about my half share of the house what happens to that. Will they just auction our property off for whatever they can get for it as long as it covers the 5,000 euros.
Anyone have any experience of this. We can´t employ a lawyer as we don´t have the money to do so.
We can´t tighten our belts anymore, we have never had a holiday since we have been here, don´t go out etc. etc. we really do not have a very good quality of life her.
I know people will say go back to the u.k. but we are penniless so how would we go about finding somewhere to live until we got jobs.
Cany anyone give us any advice on this please.
OH is self employed here in Spain. He has work but has struggled over the years to pay his social security payments.
He has paid all his taxes every three months.
I found out a few days ago that he owes 5,000 euros on his s.s. this has added up with interest and fines.
He did go and see them a year ago when he first started to get into difficulty but was told that they had put an embargo on his work van but they offered no help.
Everyon told him to sign off self employed but he is proud and wanted to do things right.
He had a phone call from s.s. a couple of weeks ago saying they needed to speak with him. He went to see them and took a translator with him as his Spanish is ok but he wanted to be sure about what they were saying. They told him he needs to pay the 5,000 but also advised him to keep signing off every other month or so to catch up with payments.
They told him that they had now put an embargo on our house for the 5,000 euros.
This week a letter from them addressed to me saying they have now put an embargo on our home for the 5,000 euros and that we ourselves cannot sell the property. They sent the letter to me as I own half the house.
There is no mortgage on the house.
We were under the impression that the embargo would stay there until we sold the house and we could then pay off the debt but we are now not sure as this letter seems to indicate that they can sell the house.
Does this now mean that the government can now sell our house to get the 5,000 euros my husband owes them. What about my half share of the house what happens to that. Will they just auction our property off for whatever they can get for it as long as it covers the 5,000 euros.
Anyone have any experience of this. We can´t employ a lawyer as we don´t have the money to do so.
We can´t tighten our belts anymore, we have never had a holiday since we have been here, don´t go out etc. etc. we really do not have a very good quality of life her.
I know people will say go back to the u.k. but we are penniless so how would we go about finding somewhere to live until we got jobs.
Cany anyone give us any advice on this please.
You need a lawyer. Public defender? As I have never needed one, I don't know if such a thing exists, but you need one. Now. Perhaps someone else can direct you.
Edit: is there anyone you can borrow the €5k from? Cash in a life insurance policy? Anything?
In any case, YOU NEED SOUND PROFESSIONAL ADVICE, NOT OPINIONS ON AN INTERNET FORUM. You can fix this this. But it will take some sweat.
Good luck.
Last edited by amideislas; Mar 27th 2014 at 9:20 pm.
Mar 27th 2014 | 9:22 pm
#3
Moderator
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 15,149
From: Costa Valencia
Re: Embargo on house
We have been living in Spain for a few years now and have always tried to do things right e.g. pay our taxes and be legal.
OH is self employed here in Spain. He has work but has struggled over the years to pay his social security payments.
He has paid all his taxes every three months.
I found out a few days ago that he owes 5,000 euros on his s.s. this has added up with interest and fines.
He did go and see them a year ago when he first started to get into difficulty but was told that they had put an embargo on his work van but they offered no help.
Everyon told him to sign off self employed but he is proud and wanted to do things right.
He had a phone call from s.s. a couple of weeks ago saying they needed to speak with him. He went to see them and took a translator with him as his Spanish is ok but he wanted to be sure about what they were saying. They told him he needs to pay the 5,000 but also advised him to keep signing off every other month or so to catch up with payments.
They told him that they had now put an embargo on our house for the 5,000 euros.
This week a letter from them addressed to me saying they have now put an embargo on our home for the 5,000 euros and that we ourselves cannot sell the property. They sent the letter to me as I own half the house.
There is no mortgage on the house.
We were under the impression that the embargo would stay there until we sold the house and we could then pay off the debt but we are now not sure as this letter seems to indicate that they can sell the house.
Does this now mean that the government can now sell our house to get the 5,000 euros my husband owes them. What about my half share of the house what happens to that. Will they just auction our property off for whatever they can get for it as long as it covers the 5,000 euros.
Anyone have any experience of this. We can´t employ a lawyer as we don´t have the money to do so.
We can´t tighten our belts anymore, we have never had a holiday since we have been here, don´t go out etc. etc. we really do not have a very good quality of life her.
I know people will say go back to the u.k. but we are penniless so how would we go about finding somewhere to live until we got jobs.
Cany anyone give us any advice on this please.
OH is self employed here in Spain. He has work but has struggled over the years to pay his social security payments.
He has paid all his taxes every three months.
I found out a few days ago that he owes 5,000 euros on his s.s. this has added up with interest and fines.
He did go and see them a year ago when he first started to get into difficulty but was told that they had put an embargo on his work van but they offered no help.
Everyon told him to sign off self employed but he is proud and wanted to do things right.
He had a phone call from s.s. a couple of weeks ago saying they needed to speak with him. He went to see them and took a translator with him as his Spanish is ok but he wanted to be sure about what they were saying. They told him he needs to pay the 5,000 but also advised him to keep signing off every other month or so to catch up with payments.
They told him that they had now put an embargo on our house for the 5,000 euros.
This week a letter from them addressed to me saying they have now put an embargo on our home for the 5,000 euros and that we ourselves cannot sell the property. They sent the letter to me as I own half the house.
There is no mortgage on the house.
We were under the impression that the embargo would stay there until we sold the house and we could then pay off the debt but we are now not sure as this letter seems to indicate that they can sell the house.
Does this now mean that the government can now sell our house to get the 5,000 euros my husband owes them. What about my half share of the house what happens to that. Will they just auction our property off for whatever they can get for it as long as it covers the 5,000 euros.
Anyone have any experience of this. We can´t employ a lawyer as we don´t have the money to do so.
We can´t tighten our belts anymore, we have never had a holiday since we have been here, don´t go out etc. etc. we really do not have a very good quality of life her.
I know people will say go back to the u.k. but we are penniless so how would we go about finding somewhere to live until we got jobs.
Cany anyone give us any advice on this please.
BE is a very large expat website, so if you have problems finding your way around we have concierges who will try to direct you. The moderators for the Spanish forums are Mitzyboy and Fred James, moderators are there to ensure that the site runs smoothly within the rules of BE. Problems and complaints should always be addressed to a moderador who will look into the matter and deal with it efficiently and fairly. Our members who post in the Spain Forums are friendly and helpful with a wealth of knowledge of the issues of living in Spain. At the top of the page you will find a quirkily named thread called Free Beer which is full of important and useful information. Hope you enjoy your time participating in the forums.
Please let me know if you need any further help.
Rosemary
Mar 27th 2014 | 9:23 pm
#4
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 5,753
From: Alicante province
Re: Embargo on house
Contact your nearest expat HELP or similar organisation and go and see them. They will have access to proper advice and such a situation is not new to them. Many of them have an internet presence with phone numbers.
Nobody will be able to take your house away to settle a 3,000 Euro debt to the Social.
Nobody will be able to take your house away to settle a 3,000 Euro debt to the Social.
Mar 27th 2014 | 9:31 pm
#5
Banned
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 19,367
From: Mallorca
Re: Embargo on house
Contact your nearest expat HELP or similar organisation and go and see them. They will have access to proper advice and such a situation is not new to them. Many of them have an internet presence with phone numbers.
Nobody will be able to take your house away to settle a 3,000 Euro debt to the Social.
Nobody will be able to take your house away to settle a 3,000 Euro debt to the Social.
Mar 27th 2014 | 9:48 pm
#6
Thread Starter
Just Joined
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 5
Re: Embargo on house
Thank you for the replies. We would like a lawyer but lawyers don´t work for free. It would help if they would let us sell the house ourselves at least we would try and get a better price for it.
Mar 27th 2014 | 9:51 pm
#7
Banned
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 19,367
From: Mallorca
Re: Embargo on house
I've heard that the state will provide an Abogado for free if you can prove you're skint. Even that would be better than nothing.
Mar 27th 2014 | 9:55 pm
#8
Thread Starter
Just Joined
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 5
Re: Embargo on house
Thank you amideislas but would the state really provide an Abogado for free when they are the ones wanting our home.
Mar 27th 2014 | 10:02 pm
#9
Banned
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 19,367
From: Mallorca
Re: Embargo on house
One has nothing to do with the other. Those seeking to take your house wouldn't know that you've applied for legal aid. Different departments.
Again, go to a expat organisation or even the consulate and find out what they advise.
I have every confidence that you can prevent losing your home, and may even be able to make life a lot easier. But not taking proper action is the worst thing you can do. Get the advice of those who know.
Again, go to a expat organisation or even the consulate and find out what they advise.
I have every confidence that you can prevent losing your home, and may even be able to make life a lot easier. But not taking proper action is the worst thing you can do. Get the advice of those who know.
Mar 27th 2014 | 10:04 pm
#10
Thread Starter
Just Joined
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 5
Re: Embargo on house
Where do we apply for legal aid and would we get it as my husband is self employed and does have work but like I said we are struggling like many others to pay the overheads in this country.
Mar 27th 2014 | 10:10 pm
#11
Banned
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 19,367
From: Mallorca
Re: Embargo on house
Good question to ask an expat organisation. In the final analysis, you may not even need a lawyer if you have knowledgeable advice and help with paperwork, etc.
Mar 27th 2014 | 11:11 pm
#12
Forum Regular
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 31
Re: Embargo on house
Hi, just in case it may be of help to you, there is a Facebook page
called Citizens Advice Bureau Spain, and I believe some of the people on it are lawyers who may be able to advise or assist you. Worth giving it a try.
Good luck
called Citizens Advice Bureau Spain, and I believe some of the people on it are lawyers who may be able to advise or assist you. Worth giving it a try.
Good luck
Mar 27th 2014 | 11:42 pm
#13
Moderator
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 15,149
From: Costa Valencia
Re: Embargo on house
Rosemary
Mar 28th 2014 | 12:27 am
#14
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 6,912
From: Puente Esuri
Re: Embargo on house
CAB Spain seem to be very good if you google them you should be able to see the site but you will have to join to ask for help. Easy to do takes about 2 or 3 days so do it now then ask Myra Swainson your questions she seems very knowledgable and you can do it by private message. Do it today!
Mar 28th 2014 | 4:01 am
#15
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 858
From: Los Martinez
Re: Embargo on house
Here you are a link to CAB Spain....
https://www.facebook.com/groups/citizensinspain/
It is a facebook page and you join the group, takes about 2 hours before you are given the go ahead to post questions.
It is free and just offers expert advice to expats.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/citizensinspain/
It is a facebook page and you join the group, takes about 2 hours before you are given the go ahead to post questions.
It is free and just offers expert advice to expats.
