Hi, heres a copy of my notes. (i think most of it came from EOS articles and/or their buyers guide)
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Purchasing costs
As a yardstick, in Spain, you should budget for purchase costs of approximately 10 to 12% on top of your agreed property purchase price. This will cover legal fees, plus expenses including notary public fees, land registry, stamp duty and VAT (called in Spain "Impuesto sobre el Valor Añadido" or "IVA")
– which are set out in more detail below.
A property buyer is usually responsible for:
Transfer Tax (or IVA plus Stamp Duty when buying from a developer)
Property Registration Fees
Notary Public Charges
Legal Fees
Plus Valia Tax
– This is a local municipality (Town Hall) tax based on the increase in the value of the land from when it was last sold. Although this is usually the seller’s responsibility it is a one off payment and we have seen circumstances where this tax is paid in an agreed division between the buyer and seller or solely by the buyer. To avoid any confusion is important to decide at the outset of the purchase whether the buyer should be asked to shoulder none, part or all of it.
A usual breakdown for the buyer is as follows:
Fees
Notary Public Fees. These are charged on a scale of fees which, in turn, depend on the price of the property.
Property Registration Fees - Land registry. These are around 40% of the Notary charges.
Legal Fees - are normally charged at around 1.00% to 1.50% of the agreed purchase price plus 16% IVA.
Surveyor Fees - Even if you are not purchasing with mortgage funds you may obtain comfort from obtaining a Surveyor’s Report on your chosen property.
Taxes
Transfer Tax
– around 7% for second hand properties. Interestingly for younger purchasers, the transfer tax reduces to 3.5% if the buyer is below 35 years of age and the property is to be their main residence.
IVA is charged at 7% for the purchase of a new property. However, if you are purchasing a Parcela or plot of land, garage or commercial building the IVA rate increases to 16%.
Impuesto Actos Juridicos Documentados or "Stamp Duty" is around 1% for new properties.
Plus Valia - see above. Payment may from a few hundred €s for smaller properties to several thousand €s for large villas or plots. You should note that if the seller has held the property for a long time
– particularly through the 1990’s and early 2000’s – a period of substantial growth - the Plus Valia may well be very high when calculated from last sales price to this sales price.
Furnishing Costs
The costs of furnishing a three bedroomed home can obviously vary greatly, but to avoid the tortuous process of importing furniture from "home" a budget in the region of €20,000.
Annual Domestic Taxes, Utility Bills and Personal Expenses
Impuesto Sobre Bienes Inmuebles or "IBI" is a local Town Hall charge and effectively an annual real estate tax. IBI’s are similar to "Rates" in the UK. Your legal representative should obtain copies of previous bills from the seller of a resale or second hand property.
Community charges. These charges will be rendered if you buy a property on an Urbanisation. The "community" will maintain the gardens and swimming pools. The costs of their work and staff will be covered by these charges. In large formal Urbanisations these charges may be quite high but they may also include the provision of water to your property.
Basura - Rubbish Collection tax. This annual tax is payable by all property owners to the local Town Hall.
House and Contents Insurance - It is compulsory to have fire insurance if you have a mortgage. Generally, it’s not as expensive and, perhaps, a little less all encompassing than the similar product in the UK.
Do not forget about Wealth tax which is payable annually. It is based on the value of the property and income
– either notional or actual - derived from the property.
For a three bed roomed apartment or villa
– depending on whether you have you own heated pool and air conditioning - you will need to budget for the following domestic costs and expenses – these are obviously very general in nature and are affected by year round or temporary living and actual consumption:
Electricity - bi-monthly circa €200
Gas - unless you receive gas directly you’ll purchase "bombona" from a delivery van these are around €12.50 each and may last a week or two depending on consumption.
Water - from around €70.00 per month depending on consumption and supply.
Telephone
– A relatively modestly used combined fixed line telephone and ADSL will cost circa €75.00 per month. A mobile phone whilst useful can be maintained on a pay as you go arrangement with recharges available in most petrol stations and supermarkets from as little as €10.00 per recharge. .