Property lawyers in Spain

Buying a home in Spain, through a company or business or in your own name, renting one out or facing a dispute with a tenant, landlord or neighbours: we advise owners and tenants on the legal side of residential property, from drafting the contract to resolving the dispute in court. If you have no experience of the Spanish property market, we give you legal guidance and assistance at each step in English (in the UK this work is done by a conveyancing solicitor; in Spain, by a lawyer together with the notary).

Property purchase in Spain: legal checks and risks before you sign

Before you buy a property in Spain, a lawyer carries out the legal due diligence. Before you sign anything, we check the property at the Land Registry (Registro de la Propiedad): who owns it, whether the seller has the right to sell and whether it carries mortgages, seizures or other charges. We also check that there are no debts with the community of owners and that the description matches the land survey register (Catastro). For the condition of the building, an independent expert, such as an architect or surveyor, can carry out a technical inspection. If you are taking out a mortgage with a Spanish bank, we review the offer and its clauses before you accept it. As a foreign buyer you will need a foreigner identity number (NIE). The sale is signed as a public deed before a notary (escritura pública) and then registered in your name: completion takes place at the notary, where the payment is made and the title deed is signed, and the registration at the Land Registry is what protects your ownership against third parties. You will usually also need a Spanish bank account to pay the taxes and the property’s bills. If you cannot travel to Spain, you can sign through a power of attorney (poder notarial) granted to someone you trust, who acts on your behalf.

Taxes when you buy Spanish property

Buying a resale home pays property transfer tax (Impuesto sobre Transmisiones Patrimoniales), set by each region; a new-build home pays VAT (IVA) instead. Once you own it, every year there is the municipal property tax (IBI) and, if you are not resident in Spain, non-resident income tax (Impuesto sobre la Renta de No Residentes), even if you do not rent the property out. We explain the Spanish tax requirements and procedures for your purchase before you sign, together with the other costs of buying (notary and Land Registry fees), so you can plan your investment with clear information.

Buying property and residency in Spain

Buying a home no longer gives you the right to live in Spain: the investor residence visa linked to property (golden visa) was abolished from 3 April 2025 (Organic Law 1/2025). If you want to move to Spain from another country, residency depends on other permits, such as the non-lucrative visa or the digital nomad visa, which our immigration area handles.

Questions from international clients: buying on the Costa del Sol and elsewhere in Spain

Many foreign buyers look for a home on the Costa del Sol, around Málaga or Marbella, as well as in Madrid, Barcelona or Mallorca. The legal checks are the same everywhere, but the property transfer tax and some local rules change from one region to another. The firm has offices in Málaga, Palma, Madrid, Barcelona, Sevilla and Córdoba, and our English-speaking lawyers can deal with your family’s purchase without you having to work in another language.

Renting a home in Spain

Residential leases are governed by the Urban Leases Act (Ley de Arrendamientos Urbanos, Law 29/1994). We draft and review tenancy agreements, deal with deposit disputes and represent landlords and tenants in eviction proceedings. If you own a holiday or long-term rental in Spain, we also review the rental contract and your obligations as a landlord.

Inherited property in Spain

If you have inherited a property in Spain, it has to be accepted and registered in the heirs’ names before it can be sold. We coordinate that process with our inheritance team.