After the pandemic of COVID-19, many doubts arise about how to access the purchase of a home in Spain and, if you are from England, these doubts might increase because of the whole issue with BREXIT.
At Grupo IPG we will try to clarify all the processes and doubts that can arise after these situations that we are exposing.
Let's go step by step and point by point resolving the doubts and questions we have.
- How is the real estate market in Spain after the COVID - 19 pandemic?
The real estate market in Spain, as in many other countries where tourism in one of the strongest industries has been driven by investments in vacation rental housing for a few years now. This paradigm is one of the most affected by this pandemic. Both large and small landlords are now focusing on long term rentals because of the expected low tourist influence for the 2020 summer season.
But how is this affecting the average house price if what I want to buy, well, according to data from the General Council of Notaries, the pandemic has directly affected the number of sales transactions in Spain which stood at a total of 32,332 transactions in March 2020. This represents a year-on-year change of 37.51% less than the same period last year.
Taking into account these data, how has this affected the average price of newly built houses in Spain? Well, during this month the change in activity began to be noticed, the average price per square metre fell slightly by 2.2% to 1396 euros/m². These data show us that, despite the sudden drop in the number of property sales transactions in Spain, the real estate sector is enjoying a long journey and good health.
- Where can I buy my new home?
It is clear that the needs of each person and family will determine what type of housing they will acquire, variables such as the number of family members, proximity to services such as schools, supermarkets, health centers or sports facilities are some of the conditions that can make you choose one area or another when buying your new home.
Regarding this, the COVID - 19 pandemic is also changing the preferences of many buyers in Spain. If not long ago, the preference when buying a new home was to be as central to the city as possible, now we are noticing how customers are asking more for homes on the outskirts of cities.
Preferences when buying a new home are shifting from the proximity of services such as those described to variables such as the property having common areas with a private pool, a terrace or garden in the same home, and in general that the home has larger spaces than those that can be found in a home in the city center.
- What steps should I take to buy a new home in Spain?
Well, let's suppose that we already have our preferences clear and that we have looked for our apartment either as a primary residence or as a second home. Then, what steps should I take to buy a new home? This is the time to leave the hard work to a real estate service company.
The sector is not exempt from the changes brought by the health crisis in COVID - 19 and is currently undergoing a digital transformation, which, although it is the transformation that is already taking place in other sectors, in the real estate sector it is going to increase. These services are mainly focused on visualizing the houses in virtual tours and on the online management of most of the procedures.
However, once we have contacted our real estate group, for example, Grupo IPG, and we know which new property we are going to buy, we must be clear about which legal documents we need in order to be able to acquire your property in Spain.
In the case of foreigners, you will need to have the Spanish NIE (Foreigners Identification Number) in order to buy your home. This number is exclusive for each person and is essential to carry out any transaction in Spain. This identification number is not complicated to get, but it takes a lot of time to get it and it is needed in order to sign the deed of your house.
In addition to this, although it is not compulsory, we must have a Spanish bank account. Having one will speed up the payment process enormously and you will also avoid having to pay some extra fees.
You can ask your real estate agent to help you with all these documents. Perhaps having one of our agents help you will save you a lot of time in the whole process.
Finally, it is also possible that you will be able to access with you NIE to some aids from the Spanish government. These aids are usually in the area of tax discounts and usually vary, depending on when you want to buy your home. At this time, there are grants for the purchase of a first home and for regular use (resident) for those under 35 years of age, which consist of a reduction in VAT from 10% to 4%.
At Grupo IPG, our agents will inform you of all these procedures and about the documentation necessary to formalize the purchase of your home in Spain, whether it is a second home or a residence here. We will also help you to look for the financing you need to make the purchase and speed up all the procedures so that buying your new home in Spain, if you are a foreigner, will be a simple process without any headaches.