29 Oct 2009 12:29 PM:

You may want to read the following article we wrote a couple of months ago on Spanish Inheritance Tax:

Spanish Inheritance Tax: Advantages of Making a Will in Spain - 3rd September 2009

In it we explain how many regions in Spain have supressed this tax subject to certain requirements that almost invariably involve taking up residency in the region where the bequeathed assets are located in, amongst others.

We also explain how in many other regions, such as Andalucía, despite not having abolished it yet, the IHT exposure can be mitigated to the point of it being almost nil providing certain requirements are met. We give as an example the region of Andalucía.

There's an ongoing trend to abolish Spanish IHT much like there was to abolish Wealth tax, which was finally abolished early last year.

Regards,

 

 

 

 

Thread: Can I transfer my Spanish property to my children now and will this mean they will not have to pay inheritance tax

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04 Sep 2009 5:38 PM:

Dear Alamred,

Apologies for the belated reply, I've only just read your legal query.

AFAIK there is no official translation into English.

More than translating this law, which we partially have done, we've reviewed it in detail in our article: 

Bank Guarantees in Spain: All That You Ever Wanted to Know but Were Afraid to Ask - 12th of November 2008

Bank Guarantees explained 27th of June 2008

Regards,

 

 

 

 

This message was last edited by Lawbird on 04/09/2009.
Thread: QUESTION FOR MARIA - OR LAWBIRD

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04 Aug 2009 1:50 PM:

Dear Colleague Myra Cecilia,

Developer AIFOS are not bankrupt nor have they filed for bankruptcy as you mistakenly post.

They have sought creditor protection filing for receivership. In other words, they are in administration, not in bankruptcy. I refer you to our blog post on the matter: Developer Aifos Announces it has Gone Into Voluntary Receivership  - 30th of July 2009.

As was the case of high-profile developer Martinsa-Fadesa, going into administration does not equate to bankruptcy.

That is something that will be decided upon at a later date in the ongoing administration procedure by the Mercantile judge.

Yours respectfully,

 

04 Aug 2009 10:31 myra cecilia Ático I'm in Manilva Malaga I've made 118 posts Send private message to myra cecilia

Aifos. According to the BOE. which is the boletin of the state Aifos were declared bankrupt on the 31st of July. they have now through Adminstrators who I am not sure have been named but could find out  from a lawyer who deals in these cases. to make a list of their creditors. They must also list their assets and have two months or three if they ask for an extension to complete the courts ruling. Please look at my post AIFOS AND LAWSUITS for some further infomation.   _______________________ Myra Cecilia. Costa Advice Bureau

Thread: Rough justice yet again!

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03 Aug 2009 12:46 PM:

Dear Sir/Madam,

The Spanish name for "handing back the keys" to the lender is called "dación en pago en deuda".  Please read our articles on the Dación en Pago Explained and on the Dación en Pago Procedure for more details.

All it is, is that your lender agrees to buy-back the property from you and in exchange they will write-off the outstanding debt having it fully discharged. You will not receive any money. This is formalised by means of signing a Deed at a Spanish notary and you surrendering the keys to them.

The reason people do this is because on you defaulting servicing your Spanish mortgage the lender can repossess you. Please read our article on bank repossessions in Spain If after they have repossessed you the property is left in negative equity, meaning you owe the bank more money than what the property is worth, they can actually pursue you abroad in your home country.

In other words, unlike the US, you are personally at fault on owing money to the Spanish lender as per art 1911 of the Spanish Civil Code. The property itself, the collateral, was only guaranteeing the bank loan. Post repossession you will be held personally liable with all your assets, both now and in the future, for the difference between what you owe the bank (plus the repo associated expenses, lawyer's fees, default interests etc) and what the property is now worth after the full repossession procedure is over. The same thing happens in the United Kingdom.  

That is why many defaulting borrowers in lieu of being repossessed would rather either sell the non-performing mortgage as a distressed asset (of which there are now many websites available) or else follow a dación en pago procedure if they are unable to find a buyer in time.

For a dación en pago to work out, two things are required basically:

1.- The property must not be in negative equity.
2.- Your lender must not have started a repossession procedure against the property.

Basically the outline of how it works is as follows:

1.- The customer must be on time with payments (the repossession legal procedure must not have been initiated), with Community fees and also with local taxes.
2.- You contact your lenders' branch manager and propose it to them.
3.- The lender will require it to be reappraised. You will be expected by your lender to pay this in advance. On average it's approx 350€.
4.- If [I]on average[/I] 80% of the new valuation of the property covers (debits +13% of the debits like legal expenses) the lender will accept to take the possession of the apartment, cancelling your debits and will waive taking legal action both in Spain and at the British courts.
5.- The day of signing the Deed at the Notary, the borrower will surrender the keys, and leave the property clear of furniture and tenants.

It is not compulsory to hire a lawyer for the dación en pago. What is compulsory is that you appoint a translator to act on your behalf if your command of Spanish is low. However, if you don't hire a lawyer be warned that problems such as this may happen:

Can we be chased by the bank after arranging a Dacion en Pago?

We just cannot stress enough how important it is to appoint a lawyer who will act both as a translator and also verify that indeed your debt with the lender is being effectively fully discharged on you signing the Deed. Besides your lawyer will be able to negotiate with the lender as some banks will try to make borrowers pay for some expenses. The Notary is not there to give you legal advice as they act impartially to either party.  

We advice you contact your lender first prior to hiring us and see if they accept the dación en pago. The reason is that the above legal fee is a retainer fee and will not be refundable regardless of the outcome. So it's a good idea to first make sure the bank will accept the dación en pago before you hire us. If you think they are dragging their heels (as you write) and weeks go by without feedback it might be a good idea to hire us to help push the matter through.

Yours faithfully,
 

 

This message was last edited by Lawbird on 03/08/2009.

This message was last edited by Lawbird on 03/08/2009.
Thread: Repossession or Dacion en Pago?

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21 Jul 2009 12:49 PM:

You can read the following articles to know what it is:

The Licence of First Occupation Explained

 First Occupation Licence

Regards,

 

 

 

Thread: Licence of first occupation

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