Buying property in Valencia 2026

Nothing else on this list can start without it. The NIE is the tax number Spain uses to identify you, and the bank, the notary and the tax office will all ask for it. Apply at a Spanish consulate before you travel or at a national police station once you are here: our NIE guide covers both routes.

Taxes, notary fees and the payment itself all run through a Spanish account, and so do the utility direct debits once you have the keys. Banks want your passport, your NIE and proof of income, and they run more checks on a non-resident than on a resident. Start here: opening a Spanish bank account.

See it in person, and see it twice: a street in Ruzafa at 11am is a different street at 1am. Before you commit anything in writing, pull the nota simple from the Land Registry and check who actually holds title, what charges sit on it and what surface is registered. Our home finding service does the viewings and those checks with you.

The reservation takes the flat off the market for a few days. The arras contract is the real commitment, and the type changes everything: only arras penitenciales give you an exit at a known price, where you forfeit the deposit and a seller who backs out repays double. Courts do not assume that right, so read the arras contract guide before you sign or transfer anything.

Non-residents are usually offered 60-70% of the valuation and residents up to 80%, so your status moves the cash you need at the table far more than the interest rate does. Since Ley 5/2019 the bank must hand you the binding offer at least ten calendar days before signing, and the notary appointment that goes with it costs you nothing. Run your numbers through the purchase calculator before you accept an offer.

The escritura pública is read out loud, signed by both sides, and the keys change hands the same morning. The notary is a neutral public official who checks that the deed is lawful, not an adviser working for you: bring your own lawyer, and an interpreter if Spanish is not comfortable yet. Our legal directory is where to find one.

The notary notifies the registry the same day, but the inscription itself takes a few weeks and the registrar will not complete it until the transfer tax is paid. Until your name is on the register you are the owner as against the seller only: the entry is what makes it good against everyone else. Keep the stamped deed and the registry note together, because the bank, the town hall and your insurer will each ask for them.