THE SIGNING OF THE PUBLIC DEED.

The big day has arrived, and be prepared—it will be intense for a few hours! The first thing is to go see the villa or apartment you're going to buy. The sellers are usually present and will show you how everything works and if there’s anything special to know. You also need to check that the furniture and equipment included in the sale are actually there (it’s important to have drafted an inventory beforehand to avoid surprises).

Houses or apartments are often sold furnished simply because most of them are second homes, at least in my area. But sometimes, it’s not exactly a gift—clients might not even want them because they’re too worn out or simply outdated! But back to the point: once you have all the operational information for your future property, you need to go to your bank, yes, here in Spain. There, the bank has to prepare the final payments. You’ll need to give them the amounts and tell them whether you'll do it by bank transfer or certified check. In everyday life in Spain, we don’t have checkbooks, but here you can issue one to give to the seller. This certified check from the bank guarantees, of course, that the account is funded.

But in Spain, if the seller is a non-resident, they must pay a 3% Non-Residents Income Tax (IRNR) at the time of selling their property. To ensure this amount is paid properly, it’s better to deduct it from the amount the seller will receive from the sale and transfer it to the notary’s account, who will handle the liquidation. Likewise, if the non-resident seller returns to their country and doesn’t have time to go to the town hall to pay the municipal capital gains tax, that should also be deducted. All of this ensures that you won’t have to pay anything that doesn’t concern you! If the payment to the seller is made by transfer, you need to know that the bank only records the seller's details and account number, as well as the amount. It’s only at the time of signing that the notary will call your bank to confirm that they can proceed with the transfer. Once the bank sends the transfer receipt to the notary, the signing can take place. The seller will be reassured and check that there are no mistakes… You never know, sometimes I might have accidentally given out my bank account! (Ha! Ha! Ha!).

Finally, you’ll receive the KEYS TO YOUR VILLA IN SPAIN. I don’t want to spoil your joy of becoming happy homeowners, but don’t forget to pay the 11.5% associated acquisition costs, which you’ll need to settle within 15 days from your Spanish or French account. Right after the signing, the notary will give you the amount of the provision of funds with an account number where you can transfer the indicated amount. The 11.5% (it’s a little less, but as everything increases…), includes taxes (10%), registry fees (between 0.1% and 0.25%), notary fees (between 0.2% and 0.5%), and the fees for handling all of this, which the notary normally handles. However, you can also do it yourself or hire a "gestoría" (management office) to take care of it for you, which usually costs around €300. This is a provision of funds, and on the day of the signing, you will receive a simple copy of the deed of sale. But once the notary has paid everything, expect about 3 months for you to pick up the final deed and all the documents from the notary’s office, along with any remaining provision of funds. For all these steps—the calculations for the bank, the amounts to deduct from the seller, everything—it’s your real estate personal shopper who takes care of it all and stays by your side throughout. You just need to sign a bit here and there, and that’s it: "WELCOME TO YOUR HOME!"