markandjane

Hi 

I was wondering if anyone could help me please.

I want to sell my property, so I decided to contact an estate agent in Torrevieja. They came to see me they took photos and so on. then he asked me for my title dees and variouse other documents.

I asked what he need these for? He said in Spain if you want to sell your property you  need to supply all these documents. Could someone tell me if this is true and what exactly I should give an estate agent.

When I sold my house in the uk the estate agent came out and didnt ask for anything like what the Spainish agent was asking for. You hear of so many scams I am frighened to hand anything over.

Hope somone can help 

Thank you

Steve


This message was last edited by tlc on 11/5/2008.

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Hi tic,

It is quite normal for an Estate Agent to ask for these documents. You only need to give copies. Or take the originals into the agents office for copies to be made - watch them whilst they do it or some dippy assistant could leave a vital page on the photo-copier.

The reason an agent requires copies is because the law for Estate Agents requires them to keep them in order to legally list the property for sale.

Also, it is common in Spain for the seller of a property to not employ a lawyer, this saves them money as often the buyers lawyer ensures most loose ends are tied up (though many lawyers don't). I would always use my lawyer when selling, as certain tax documents need to be submitted by the seller, but the temptation to save money often gets them into hot water. ALWAYS USE A LAWYER WHEN SELLING!.

Because most sellers don't use a lawyer, the Estate Agent will position him/herself to act on your behalf by supplying all the title deeds, utility bills etc. on to the buyers lawyer. As most buyers purchase on a 3 day inspection trip- or similar- the paperwork will be required quickly to get a purchase contract in place before the buyer returns to the UK.  If this is not done in time, contracts need to be sent through the post and as time goes on the buyer may get cold feet.

If your agent is worth his/her salt, he should also use the copy of your title deeds to check out your property to ensure it is fully legal and has no outstanding issues, embargo's etc before he/he lists it for sale.

Your Estate Agent should ask for the following copies,

1) The title deed or a Copia Simple.
2) A copy of the mortgage deed if applicable.
3) A copy of the most recent Nota Simple. Though they should obtain a recent one near to the completion date.
4) Copies of water and electricity contracts.
5) Copies of recent electricity and water bills.
6) Copies of your IBI (rates bills) plus basura (rubbish bills) if seperate.
7) Copy of your telephone contract, if applicable.

Offer the agent a copy of anything that will speed up the sale or at least not hold up the buyers side of things.

One final thing, if you do not have enough confidence in your agent to give copies of the above items, then find a more reputable and well established one.

I hope the above helps.

Gillespie.

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Hi Gillespie,

Thank you very much for your reply to my post. I was getting very concerned when he was asking for these things.  
On the 7 things you have listed, I dont know what a Nota Simple is also so I dont think I have a IBI or a Basura, if I do I dont know what they look like, my wife looked after all these things but she passed away 3 months ago hence the reason for me to sell.

I guess if I dont give these 7 things to the agent, I wont be able to sell my home? there is nothing owing on my home everything is ok with it.

Thank you again for your help. Sorry to be a pain with all my questions, I have been asking different people what I have to do but everyone tells me diffrent things, I want everything to be done legal, but as I said I was concered when he was asking for all these things I thought he was maybe tring to take my home or somthing.

Kind regards

tlc

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No problem tlc and my sincere sympathy for the loss of your wife. I know how we lean on our partners for certain things and it makes situations like this seem extremely daunting.

Just to clear up the Nota Simple, this is usually a single page or sometimes 2 pages on a creamy off white paper that sumarises the title deeds and lists any outstanding debts etc. if applicable. It also gives important inscription numbers such as the land registry reference for the property and catastral.

Don't worry if you can't find one, they are obtainable by the future buyers lawyer over the internet, he will use the existing title deed references to obtain the Nota Simple near to a completion of the sale.

You may not have the IBI/Basura if your property is quite new, it takes town halls a long time to issue the first ones and usually at a certain time every year. My area issues them every October.  If your property is an older one, then maybe your original lawyer may have a copy of the previouse one, but again, they are only really required as a sale completes.

It´s just that I, as an Estate Agent here in Spain usually try and get it all at the beggining to save a panic later when I have a buyer for the property.

I wish you good luck tlc, if you have any problems you could pm me as I shall be more than happy to help if I can.

Best regards,

Gillespie.

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My deepst sympathies to you too, this must all be very distressing for you.

Just to add to Gillespie's notes, if your property is in a community (such as an apartment building) then you will also at some point need to produce proof that the fees have been paid up to date. You will probably need to get a letter from the administrator, signed by the president, to this effect - the last receipt may not be sufficient.

Also, if the property is registered in joint names, you will need to sort this out as well before you can sell it. 
Normally I suggest that there is no need to use a lawyer when selling (sorry Gillespie!) but under the circumstances, and because I gather that you are not familiar with all the documentation pertaining to your property, I would advise that the expense will be worthwhile.

Good luck, and feel free to ask away here if you have any other questions.

Gillespie - do you know about Decreto 218 in Andalucia, and do you have a similar law where you are? The Junta is starting to enforce it now (only came into effect 2006!) and is causing many REAs headaches, most notably because the nota simple must be no more than 3 months old. What a time to crack down. The straw that will break any remaining agent's backs.

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It is awesome how helpful members are here and how much they know of the legal day-to-day.
My best wishes to you tic and my condolences.
Best regards,
Maria

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Thank you very much to you all for all your help. Just one more thing to ask if you dont mind, then I will leave you all alone.

I want to sell my home for 150,000euros. One agent says he will put it on his web address for 150,000euro and the agent who wants all my information says he will put it on his address for 175,000 do you think I would be better going with the agent who is putting it on for 175,000 or am I being greedy.

The agent who said he will put it on his address for 150,000 hasnt asked for any infomation like the other agent so this has confused me a little.

Many Thanks to everyone for your help.

tlc 

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I would not worry about that but just about declaring in the deed all the money you are receiving for the house.
Of course a 150.000 house is obviously a little bit  easier to sell, but not really big deal.
M

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As Maria says, especially in the current market, the lower the asking price, the easier it will be to sell, although bear in mind that any potential buyer will also expect to beat you down, so you may need to allow for this in order to achieve the price you want.
What is more important, is that you establish beforehand how much commission these agents are including in (or adding to)  the asking price. If any of them mention a figure higher than 5%, walk away.

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I agree with Roberto and Maria.

I suggest you put your property on the market with at least 3 agents

Choose a good Spanish one to expose it to the Spanish market. A good British one to expose to the UK market and a Scandanavian one as the Norwegians and Danes are still buying in Spain.

Also ensure the UK agent you choose uses at least one highly google ranked agents property portal such as Kyero or Property net Spain to ensure you get maximum exposure for your fee.

In todays market, you should get a good agent down to 2.5% - any less than this and they will be "so no frills" that they are invisible to the buying public.

Once again good luck tlc. 

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Quote roberto, "Gillespie - do you know about Decreto 218 in Andalucia, and do you have a similar law where you are? The Junta is starting to enforce it now (only came into effect 2006!) and is causing many REAs headaches, most notably because the nota simple must be no more than 3 months old. What a time to crack down. The straw that will break any remaining agent's backs."
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Hi Roberto,

Never really had a problem with this new law, though I don't think it's applicable in my region.  Have always kept as much paperwork as possible on every property I list. I can't, in all honesty, find a reason not too, well, except the heavy investment in filling cabinets

As soon as a buyer is found, I just hand it all over to the buyers lawyer anyway.

Nice to see you again Roberto, it's been quite a while since I posted last.

Regards,

Gillespie

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Thank you everyone for your help. I have just spoken to the agent who will sell my home for 175,000. He has told me he will advertise it at 175,000 once he has sold it he will pay me 150,000 which is what I want.

I asked him what happens to the 25,000 he says this is for advertiseing and other things. I may be advanced in years but surly it doesnt cost all that money for advertising?

I have told him I will think about it but he has told me that I need to act quickly because he has some people ready to buy my home and if I mess about they will buy something else. But I wanted to check with you good people first just in case there is something wrong.

I dont know if I like this man anyway he seems very pushy. but I want to sell quickly I am not very well and I want to go back home.

Thank you again for all your advice

tlc

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tlc, I think 16.6% commission is excessive, greedy and fraudulant.

If he has a buyer waiting, why does he need €25,000 commission for advertising???

However, you need to sell your property quckly and you can't afford to miss a single opportunity.  My advice would be to agree to his terms, as you need to see if this is a real buyer. But, if the buyer makes an offer, it must come from the agents commission and not your €150,000.  

If it turns out he is bluffing, then I suggest you look for a better UK estate agent to represent you.  Also do not allow the agent to take the deposit, get your lawyer to hold the deposit until the sale completes, as, if it fell through, your greedy agent will probably keep it.

Do not sign any exclusive marketing contracts with this agent as you will probably need to dump him as soon as you find out he is lying about a buyer.

I hate greedy agents who see an opportunity to make a disgusting profit from a vulnerable seller. But you need a quick sale and can´t afford to dismiss the offer of a quick sale.  If you get your €150,000 quickly then at least you can leave it all behind you and start a new life.

Just my advice tlc.  Many people on here would advise you to walk away from this agent, but I know how important it is to see closure to this sad period in your life.

Good luck tlc.

Gillespie.

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Hi Tlc,
So in essence your agent will be charging you approximately 14%.
Gllespies advice of finding three agents that span the international marketplace is good advice,i find 14% a little choking though.......
Even with expenses etc most agents should charge anything from 2%-5%, in my opinion someone is being a little greedy here..
The other side of the coin is if he can sell it tommorow and you get what you want in this climate then see if he as good as his word, alot of agents advertise "buyers waiting" but sometimes this is just a hook.
Decreto 218 has not hit this area yet officially but most decent agents have been following this for some time anyway,as Gillespie said it does make life easier for us and ensures an easier ride for the buyer.
Regards
Georgia

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Totally agree with Gillespie and Georgia (as usual!) about this agent with "buyer waiting". If it's genuine, great, you get your price and the greedy robber can have whatever - his day will come. If it's not, you'll find out soon enough, and move on to a better prospect. Just take the precautions suggested, and best of luck.

The thing with decreto 218 is that the nota simple must be no more than 3 months old, which in the current climate when properties are not exactly flying off the shelf, means paying for a new one every three months, for every property listed. How many do you guys have listed? 100? How much to get a NS? €10? Ouch!

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Agree with you all.

The old got a buyer waiting ploy. They do it all the time over here too. Fortunately prospective sellers don't take any notice any more. They even send personal letters to our vendors saying they have waiting buyers too. Duh, if they were waiting then wouldn't they have toddled up the road to the local agent or looked on the internet?? They come they go, they don't last!!

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Hello all,

Thank you to everyone who has given me advice, and just to let you know I have decided to go with the other agent. I didnt like the other person, he was too pushy and trying to get me to sign things, where this other agent just took my details and that was that.

One last thing and then I will leave you all alone. Mr Roberto has mentioned decreto 218 could you tell me what this is please, is this somthing I have to buy? I have been looking through all the paperwork and I cant find anything with this wording on.

Thank you all very much

 

tlc

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No, no! Sorry, please don't worry about this. It is a by-law which as far as I know only applies to Andalucia (I can't remember if you mentioned to us where your property is?) and I only brought it up because of something you said about an agent requesting loads of info, which you felt uncomfortable about. It is a law which dictates that an agent advertising a property for sale must hold certain relevant information on that property. This I mentioned by way of explanation as to why perhaps this agent was asking you for such things as a copy of your deeds. I think this has been explained by others on this thread as well. It is a bit like the HIPS introduced recently in the UK, but the burden of responsibility in your case lies with the agent, so you needn't worry about it.

Don't worry about badgering for information, either, we're all happy to help, so feel free to pester as much as you like.

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