REAL ESTATE – MARBELLA – How to register a home in the property registry in Spain?

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How to register a home in the property registry in Spain?

Surely when you think about buying a new house, you only take into account things like the square meters, the location or the price. But there are many more things you should be aware of, especially those related to bureaucracy. One of them is to register your home in the Property Registry.

Find out now what you should do if you want to complete this process.

Is it mandatory to register a property?

The first question that assails us when acquiring a home is “do I have to register my property?”. In fact, registering your property is not mandatory, it is a voluntary act. However, doing so carries a series of benefits and avoids negative consequences that could occur in the future.

If we register our home in the Property Registry, we will be officially recognized as the owners. In this way we can have our right to sell or mortgage it, when the time comes.

And what happens if we don’t? What risks do we face if we do not register our home? Well, there are a series of situations that can occur, and we must assume the consequences.

• Loss of legal security. The main function of the Property Registry is to give public faith, ensuring that the home belongs to the owner, and that the property is exactly what is detailed there. This avoids many future problems.
• Difficulties for the sale of the house. By not being registered, it is more difficult to prove that you really are the owner of the home. In addition, it will be difficult to determine that the home is free of charges, so buyers willing to assume this insecurity are reduced.
• Increased registration costs. If you want to register it later, the process becomes more complex and expensive. Registration costs may double.
• They won’t give you a mortgage. According to the Law, for a mortgage to be legally constituted, the deed must be registered in the Property Registry. So you go to the bank to get a mortgage, and the house is not registered, it will be impossible for them to grant it.
• Hidden costs. If a home is registered in the Land Registry, we will be able to know if it has charges, such as pending payments on a mortgage or a foreclosure order. On the other hand, if it is not registered, we will ignore all these points, so, once the home is acquired, we will have to face all these payments.

Documentation required to register a property

To register your home in the Property Registry there are three fundamental documents.

• A notarized copy of the public deed of sale.
• Proof of payment of the Patrimonial Transfer Tax.
• Justification of having presented the documentation for the payment of the municipal capital gain.

Once you have all these documents in your possession, you must present them at a Property Registry office. You must do it within the same province where the house is located, so first it is better to check which office suits you best.

This procedure can be done yourself, or if you prefer, it can be done by an agency or notary, if it has management services.

In the following fifteen business days the home will be registered. Before that, the registrar will verify that the purchase and sale contract has been made with all the legal guarantees. Once the registration is made, the Registry will communicate the change of owner to the Cadastre.

Deadline to register in the property registry

As it is not a mandatory procedure, there is no specific deadline to start the registration process. However, if you do not want to find yourself in a situation of legal defenselessness, our recommendation is that you start the process as soon as possible.

To do this, remember to have all the necessary documentation in order. The payment of fees and taxes are usually the most cumbersome procedures, but totally necessary for the registration of the property.

Once you start the home registration process, the deadline for entry in the Property Registry, as mentioned, is 15 business days. Following the review of the documents by the registrar, several scenarios may arise. If everything is correct, we proceed to the registration. In the event that any document has a defect, you will be notified so that you can proceed with the correction.

Once you have registered your home, its validity does not have an expiration date. That is, when you finish doing this procedure you will not have to renew it again. Therefore, although it has an associated cost, which varies according to the value of your home, the advantages of registering your property are much higher than not. Also, although the popular belief is that homes that are not registered do not have to pay Real Estate Tax, they do not. The application of the rate is independent of whether the home is registered or not.

As you have seen, registering the property is an advantage when buying a home. However, when buying a home, it’s not the only thing we need to look out for

For this reason, if you really want to find the home of your dreams and not have headaches, it is best that you hire an expert in real estate purchases who will do all the steps for you.

Marbella WOHNEN Immobilien

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