Please help with a purchase :)
 

Hello. We're currently buying our first home in Spain. We have finally agreed on a price. We have property selling in the UK (due to complete within the next 10 days).

The agents are really pushing for a deposit of 10,000 euros to secure it although we have said when we pay the deposit we will be at the stage of completing in Spain anyway. In other words we will pay the deposit within a few weeks once a few things are ironed out, we'll then pay the balance around the same time. We understand that we could lose out if someone else comes in but we won't pay anything until we know the property is in order.

The purchase is a finca with land. The owner has built a small detached bungalow and pool on the land without permission. The agents says the fines would be dealt with before any purchase but they're now saying that the seller has agreed to knock 5,000 euros off to cover any future fines. According to the agent the fines couldn't exceed this because the fine is based on the area of land effected. Does this sound right? They say if you get passed 4 years you're ok anyway if you can prove when it was built.

But do we alert the local authority and say we'd prefer to have this dealt with pre-sale? The fee we have agreed includes the deduction of the 5,000 euros.

We're not doing anything until we have a solicitor over here. The agents have put forward suggested names but obviously they say we can pick whoever we like and they will understand this. Does anyone know of any English speaking reliable proven lawyers in the Sax, Alicante area?

What advice would you give us at this stage please? We haven't seen any paperwork yet because we said we had to sell at home first. We're now at the stage where we need to start checking out the property and make sure that we're doing all the right things. Obviously we need a solicitor but I value the contributions on these forums for people who have done it all.

We want to get things moving so we're currently in the area ready to press ahead finding legal help and doing all the necessary groundwork.

I really appreciate any help that you can provide.

Re: Please help with a purchase :)
 

sorry dont know any solicitors but sounds a bit dodgy to me - I wouldnt hand over any cash just yet until an independent solicitor (not one the agent takes you to) has checked over the escritura and you know its 100% legit

Re: Please help with a purchase :)
 

Hi Nacnud,

The only advice that I can give you is to proceed with caution and find a reliable solicitor that has been recommended independently. If I were you, I would definitely not put in a deposit until I knew that all paper work is in order. You can request copies of the deeds so that the necessary checks can be done. This is normal practice and deposits need not change hands for them to give you these copies. Once the checks have been done and you have positive feedback from your independently chosen solicitor and ONLY THEN should you hand over any money.

We work with a great solicitor but I'm afraid he is a bit far from you. His offices are in Teulada and he is not the cheapest, but he is impeccable and knows what he is talking about.

Wishing you all the best,
Martha

P.S. If they insisit, tell them that the usual deposit (to take a property off the market) is €3,000 with a contract that states that this deposit is refundable if checks prove to be dodgy.

Re: Please help with a purchase :)
 

As Spain says, sounds very dodgy, pay nothing.
Without paperwork you dont even know if its his to sell and they might only catch you for the deposit but its a lot of money to loose to learn a lesson.
Hire another lawyer, too many people have been caught like this.

Re: Please help with a purchase :)
 

Yes we'll do that. In fairness the agents mentioned the exact score from the start with regards the permissions but we won't hand over anything until we know we're safe with any fines etc and that the seller is legit.

Re: Please help with a purchase :)
 

Thanks for the reply. We don't have a lawyer yet, we're trying to find one that someone can put forward to us :)

Re: Please help with a purchase :)
 

Sorry but have to agree with Spain and Martha. Please please do not hand over any money until everything has been checked. I speak from bitter experience (not on a house purchase though)!

Re: Please help with a purchase :)
 

Thankyou very much. Not too concerned about the cost of the lawyer as we want to ensure we're looked after :)

Appreciate the input - thanks again.

Re: Please help with a purchase :)
 

If you are worried about losing the property you could just do what was suggested in one of the posts above - pay the deposit, but make sure that the reservation contract is weighted in your favour. IE, that when you get to the notary's office the property has to be completely free of all debts and totally legal.

Most importantly (and this is completely standard) make sure that the contract states that if the seller does not comply with any of your stipulations then the deposit must be returned to you DOUBLED. Therefore, if the owner is knowingly selling you a total lemon, he will refuse to take your deposit cos he would be the loser in the long run.

Re: Please help with a purchase :)
 

yes thats a good idea:thumbup:

Re: Please help with a purchase :)
 

Cheers. What is the seller likely to want in the contract or what is normal for us to agree? Where the deposit go? What stops a seller running with that money?

Obviously the solicitor will help here but it's good to be backed up first. Have read loads of stuff but the support on here is great.

Re: Please help with a purchase :)
 

If I were you I wouldn´t allow the seller to prepare the contract. I would do it yourself (via a solicitor) so that you get all the clauses that you want and obviously they will be much more beneficial to you than the seller.;)

Deposit can either go directly to the seller or (perhaps better) be held in a separate account. What stops the seller doing a runner? well you know where he lives for one!, but the reservation contract is legally binding. You can take him to court if he fails to comply with any of the conditions.


What should go in the contract? I would say something like the following:

That the property will be sold to you completely free of debts.
If there is already a mortgage on the property, the vendor will have to cancel this mortgage at his own cost.
Since you will be doing the contract, why not try the following: the contract is subject to you being approved for a mortgage by the bank of your choice.
And of course that when you appear before the notary the house will be totally legal with all its planning permissions.

If the vendor has any doubts about the house´s ability to be "legalised" he will not sign this contract.

Re: Please help with a purchase :)
 

The seller is selling an illegal build, which in theory can be overcome by an agreement between the parties. Meanwhile the local authorities are busily looking to knock down illegal builds, never mind the possible fine.

If it were me I would ask the simple question- their are significant risks inherent in a deal like this- do I need the worry and potential legal hassle?

Re: Please help with a purchase :)
 

I would walk away and look for something legal.

Re: Please help with a purchase :)
 

Sometimes easier said than done. If I have understood the OPs situation correctly they will shortly be homeless in the UK, and would like their property in Spain asap, presumably to avoid time in rented? And looking for a property in Spain whilst you are in the UK is not easy! Fincas in particular take a lot of time to look for - so if they have found one that they like it is at least worth bottoming out if it can be legalised or not before abandoning it and returning to square one.