Town houses. - Page 2

Rascalmate wrote on Fri May 3, 2019 9:00pm:

Hi Beverley & Rein,

Buying property in Spain safely is not easy.

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There are many pitfalls to encompass.

The ukgov website covering moving and buying in Spain ( sorry we are not allowed to give actual web links on this forum) covers all these pitfalls and advises how to go about it.

Also I print below my advice which hopefully will aid you.

We made mistakes when we moved permanently to Spain 8 years ago.

Took the advice of a well known Estate Agent - con merchants, used the Lawyer recommended by them - we lived in the house illegally apparently as we did not have a Habitation Licence. We found out two year's later. Fortunately a new found friend who worked at the local Townhall tracked the First Habitation Licence for us. You can get ejected and heavily find for occupation if caught.

What type of property you buy makes no difference to the risk.

Talk to other occupiers when viewing, ask them whats wrong with the property/ area.

Most residents will tell you all the problems.

However 8 years on we love living in Spain and have never been back to the Uk with no plans ever to.

Here is my advice:

Buying Property : What Documents are needed

If you are buying property you need the Ecritura (Deeds) and The Habitation Licence issued by the Townhall.

Lots of properties are being sold by Agents and their " recommended solicitors who usually are no more than conveyancer's " which do not have Habitation Licences and in these cases probably never will ( beware urbanizations like  Camposol for instance)

Without a Habitation Licence you cannot legally live in the house you have just parted with your hard earned cash.

In fact you can face a massive fine by the Town hall for living in your house without a Habitation Licence.

Agents in the process to sell property will tell you anything, like the Habitation Licence has been applied for or even a licence is not necessary and they will usually recommend using their 'lawyer' which on most occasions is just an unlicensed conveyancer to cover their incorrect advice's.

However : Do not use their Lawyer find your own.

Any Lawyer in Spain should be able to give you their Registration Number from their area Colegio of Lawyers (equivalent of the English Law Society).

If they cannot or will not give you their Registration Number walk away.

They are guilty of a criminal act and should be reported.

Never never never buy a property without knowing and seeing the Habitation Licence.

Promises of obtaining such document should be ignored. They are false.

Whoever tells you such is talking nonsense, irresponsible, illegal and conning you - walk away.

They would be conning you to sell the property, which is all they are interested in and they know it. However pleasant they seem they are not your friend.

Beware if you think you need to pay a deposit, or you are asked to pay one by an Agent to reserve your dream property.

NEVER ever give a deposit to the Agent.

ONLY your own Solicitor.

If you pay a deposit to an Agent you are committed to contract which will cost you to cancel even if you find out the build is not legal.

So what do you do?

Ignore the Homes in the Sun scenario.

Do not rush.

Find a proper registered Solicitor first before you part with cash.

Take his advice and if he advises that the paperwork is all in place then go ahead and pay the deposit to him.

He will ensure your property is reserved for you even prior to paying a deposit.

He will only part with a deposit when contracts have been agreed and signed prior to exchange, assuming he agrees all documentation is to hand.

When viewing ask if the property has any debts attached to it and if it has a Habitation Licence.

Your Solicitor will definitely ask these questions.

However to save your time and costs  if they do not say YES walk away. You are likely being conned.

Rest assured every Agent asks these questions if you put your property up for sale with them.

Finally only take legal advice from a proper qualified legally registered Lawyer as I described earlier.

Trust this helps,

Good luck, regards Al

Louise74 wrote on Tue Oct 13, 2020 5:57pm:

Is a habitation license a new thing? Can you explain more.. I don't recall my parents getting one or was that because they were using the house for holidays 

juanida wrote on Thu Oct 15, 2020 12:16am:

I think this would apply only for new builds.  If you don't have this license signed by the architect, you can't legally get connected to the utilities.  If somehow you have bought or are living in a property with all the utilities but without the signed certificate, you could face a fi...

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...ne and could certainly be disconnected.  I am certainly not an expert on this matter as I've never had a new build but I this is what I've heard.