Buying a house in Mallorca is something that many foreigners dream of. The euro-dollar parity, as well as a historical advantage of the pound over the euro, has meant that in recent years many people from outside Spain and the European Union have been interested in buying a property on the main island of the Balearic Islands.
In the Castell Law office, belonging to the firm Castell Abogados, they are dedicated to advising this type of client and managing purchases and sales of real estate assets in Mallorca. The office, specialized in Property Law and international clients, shares with us the main steps to buy a house in Mallorca:
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Find a lawyer speaking your language and Spanish in Mallorca. This should be the first step for any foreigner who wants to buy a house or property in Mallorca. The market for buying and selling houses is complicated and fluid communication is needed to fully understand all the procedures, permits, processes to end with a successful purchase. That is why you have to look for a lawyer, the best specialist for this type of transaction, who can mediate, advise and manage everything while speaking the official languages of Mallorca, Spanish and Catalan, as well as a third or fourth international language. At Castell Abogados there are immigration lawyers who speak multiple languages and are capable of supporting this type of process.
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Get a NIE. This is the foreign identification number for people who are not Spanish citizens. A NIE number will always be requested to buy a house and to pay the fees, so it is one of the first steps that the future buyer has to take. It can be obtained through the management of a lawyer in Mallorca and remotely, it is not necessary for the buyer to be on the island.
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Open a bank account. With a NIE number and all your documents, this step is one of the easiest. It is easy to open a current account in Spain. But this step must be taken together with a trusted lawyer, to be advised on rates, currency exchange and possible charges that the future buyer of the house may incur both in their country of origin and in Spain.
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Find the house or property of your dreams. It is possible that the client is already clear about what they want to buy, but in law firms such as Castell Law they have a portfolio of exclusive homes, which are not on the market for other buyers, located in the best locations and with investment plans in each one of them. Once found, visited and adjusted the purchase price, we move on to the next step.
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Mortgage management. Not all foreigners who want to buy a house in Spain need a mortgage, but if necessary, the lawyers at Castell Law manage it for you and get the best conditions for foreigners.
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Sign the reservation contract “arras”. In Spain, it is recommended to sign a reservation contract, or "arras" contract, which means that the property is reserved while other processes such as permits, mortgage, fees and banking procedures are managed. This makes the property go off the market and cease to be for sale for a certain period of time, from 15 days to approximately 3 months.
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The most important step before the final purchase. This step, while we have the reservation contract signed, is vital for the success of the operation. At this point, the specialized lawyers work intensely to get all the documents in the property registry, permits, manage visits and projects with architects, make sure that the property is free of charges, get the documents from the owners and check that everything is legal and ready to be purchased. With all this verified, it will be time to move on to the moment of the final purchase before a notary.
As mentioned, it is vital that this entire process is carried out together with a lawyer specialized in property law and immigration, such as those who work at the Castell Law office in Mallorca. This law firm also works in Menorca, Ibiza, Formentera and the rest of Spain, and has an extensive portfolio of both properties and international clients.