Buying property in Spain Part III, The private agreement

We are pleased to continue with our posts dedicated to buying property in Spain safely. In this article, we will focus on the private contract of sale/purchase.

In our property industry, it is normal that a private agreement is signed by the parties, seller and buyer, few days or weeks after the reservation deposit was signed and before the public deed of sale is granted with a Notary public in Spain.


The contract will reasure the intention of the buyer to complete on the purchase and the intention of the seller to sell the property within the agreed period of time.

When this contract is signed, part of the price is paid by the buyer. 10% of the total price has became almost the normal practice, but this can vary from a lower or higher amount or any other percentage of the total price, with the commitment to pay the rest of the balance at the final completion or even later if there is any condition agreed by the parties.

Our private contract is well described and defined in our Civil Code with all the legal obligations and rights for buyer and seller.

There are different types of contracts and you may choose the most suitable in accordance with your requirements and needs.

It is important to remind a few stepts that you should take before signing the private contract. We can highlight the following:

1 Examine the property's physical features.

Visit the propety as many times that you wish in order to look it over to see que quality of its materials, the condisitons of the installations and equipments, its general upkeep, the amount of light it gets, te views, the neighbourhood, the noise level, access to transport and so on.

If anything seems wrong, do not hesitate to let the seller or the agent know. If you are not satisfied, you may have a professional such an architect or quantity surveyor, go with you.

2. Examine the legal situation of the house

Your lawyer will ascertain:

• Who the property belongs to, and therefore who its owner or owners are
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• If there is any liens or burdens, such as burdens or injuctions affecting the property.
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• If there are leases or tenants
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• If the property is part of some special programme, like low-income housing.
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• If the home is part of a community of owners, if the payments are all paid up.
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• If there is outstanding property tax or any other administrative bill pending.
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• If there is any specific restriction to the any kind of extension of the construction if you planning to do so
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• if all the administrative license and contracts with the different suppliers are in place and paid up.

Now that you are satisfied with all the features of the house and the legal situation has been checked by your lawyer and you have a complete due diligence on the house, you will sign the private agreement which is object of our post.

When you sign the purchase agreement, or your lawyer with a power of attorney, you and the other party are giving your formal consent to the deal. 

So, in summary:

Sign the contract when you are totally satisfied with all your requirements and remember:

A)     A contract of sale must contain the essential parts of the contract: parties, property and price. The contract should also indicate the date and place where and when it is signed.

B)     Arrangements and conditions agreed by the parties can be freely stipulated and stated in a contract as long as they are not contrary to laws, regulations, good faith, morals or policy.

C)     The consent is essential in a property transaction

F)      The seller is responsible for any hidden defects or encumbrances of the property sold, with the limitations and requirement determined in the articles. More specific provisions have been developed for buying property off plans from developers, with greater guarantees in favor of the purchaser.